Showing 11 - 20 of 141
France stumbles through an autumn of woe
Oped, John J. Metzler, Published on 05/11/2025
» France has faced a tumultuous autumn. The usual strikes, government shuffles, and sensational events -- from a high-profile daylight heist at the world-famous Louvre Museum to the imprisonment of a former president -- have characterised a disquieting period.
UN picks rights council members with bad records
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 23/10/2025
» In a ritual of near-farcical folly, the UN General Assembly has elected 14 new members to join the Geneva-based Human Rights Council on Oct 15.
UN debate swerves, slides, but scores
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 01/10/2025
» US President Donald Trump lambasted the United Nations on opening day for its failure to stop global crises in the midst of major regional wars, humanitarian disasters, looming security threats, never mind costly bureaucratic waste. But as the leader of the most prominent and founding UN member state, he then added that the world organisation isn't living up to its potential, and scathingly challenged, "What's the purpose of the United Nations?" The old rebuke, "You can do better!" Sometimes it works.
UN assembly opens amidst wars, other woes
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 23/09/2025
» Presidents, prime ministers, kings and potentates are converging on New York for the United Nations General Assembly session. The upcoming General Debate, starting today, will bring together a cast of thousands of delegates for 10 days.
UN assembly shadowed by clouds of chaos
Oped, John J. Metzler, Published on 03/09/2025
» When the new UN General Assembly session opens next Tuesday, world leaders and diplomats will commemorate the 80th anniversary of the global organisation established in the wake of World War II to "maintain international peace and security" for future generations. But at headquarters here oin New York, delegates and staff will be doing far less celebrating than previously planned.
Trump's govt makes peace in Kyiv a priority
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 21/08/2025
» The landmark political summit between President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin, set in the geographical majesty of Alaska, offered the opening scenes to what could be the long-sought path to peace in Ukraine. Yet few genuine diplomatic observers presumed a political deal could be "done in a day" to bridge the yawning trust gap between the ongoing Russian aggression and beleaguered Ukraine.
Alaska talks will test the desire for peace in Ukraine
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 13/08/2025
» Is there now a chance to end Russia's war in Ukraine? Are both sides in this bloody stalemate finally willing to give peace a chance, despite real reservations by both Moscow and Kyiv to keep the fighting going just a little longer? More importantly, are Ukraine's backers, notably the US and European countries such as the UK, Germany and Poland, able to exert enough pressure on Vladimir Putin to make a deal?
Overcoming obstacles to reform
Oped, Nilima Gulrajani and John Hendra, Published on 11/08/2025
» At the 80th United Nations General Assembly this September, participants will have to confront the escalating development finance crisis that is engulfing the UN system. So far, responses to financial pressures have focused on cutting costs, such as by reducing overhead and improving efficiency. But a lasting solution will require deeper changes, which begins with a fundamental question: What kind of UN does the world need today, and are current funding models fit for purpose?
A new page as France quits key bases in Africa
News, John J Metzler, Published on 02/08/2025
» It's a turning of the page in Franco-African diplomatic relations. For the first time since the decolonisation of the French colonies in the 1960s, there will be no formal French military bases on the African continent.
UN turns 80 amid wave of global crises
Oped, John J Metzler, Published on 02/07/2025
» Amid wars, global strife and massive refugee dislocations, the current global scene is overwhelmed with crises ranging from the Middle East to Ukraine and a dozen African conflicts, which rarely make the news. The contemporary world situation in many ways resembles 1945 and the end of WWII. There's a strange deja vu of a history most people do not know or would rather forget.