Category: Geopolitics

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Geopolitics Migrant Lives

An Indonesian Hero Who Saved Drowning Rohingya Refugees

Rohingya migrants rescued by Indonesian fishermen last May.
Rohingya migrants rescued by Indonesian fishermen last May. Ari Muzakki/Pacific Press/ZUMA

LANGSA — It was 8 p.m. and the sea was calm in the Strait of Malacca, at the northern tip of Indonesia’s Sumatra island. Ibrahim, a local fisherman, was pulling in his first catch of the night when he received news that a nearby boat was overcrowded and in trouble. “We met another small fishing boat and they asked us to help,” Ibrahim recalls. “The fisherman said there were more than 1,000 people that needed help, but his boat could only take around 20 to 30 people.” He immediately released his catch and headed towards Malaysia. Half an hour later, […]

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Economy Geopolitics

Japan Refuses To Join China’s Investment Bank At Its Peril

Shinzo Abe
Shinzo Abe Tomohiro Ohsumi-Pool/Jana Press/ZUMA

The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank that China is leading will launch with 57 founding members, but Japan isn’t among them. Its dependency on the U.S. is a symptom of its outdated thinking, and will leave it badly isolated.

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Geopolitics Ideas

NSA Spying On France, Time For America´s Mea Culpa

French President François Hollande welcomes Secretary of State John Kerry to the Élysée Palace in Paris, on Jan. 16, 2015.
French President François Hollande welcomes Secretary of State John Kerry to the Élysée Palace in Paris, on Jan. 16, 2015. U.S. Department of State

Few are shocked by revelations that U.S. intelligence spied on French presidents. But if Washington wants to be a good ally, it should start with a loud and clear apology to all its snooped-on friends.

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Geopolitics Ideas

China And The Middle East, Autocracies Intertwined

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi wave to a crowd in Beijing
Chinese President Xi Jinping and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi wave to a crowd in Beijing Liu Weibing/Xinhua/ZUMA

Amid growing ties, the youths of the Arab Spring could come between Beijing and its local partners

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Geopolitics Society

Take 5 Iran: Nuke Deadline, “Veiled” Female Wrestlers, Ramadan Violators

Take 5 Iran: Nuke Deadline, "Veiled" Female Wrestlers, Ramadan Violators
Worldcrunch/ZUMA

We shine the spotlight this week on Iran: IRAN MINISTER: ISIS + USA Iranian Interior Minister Abdolreza Rahmani Fazli made an incendiary claim this week during a joint appearance with the Syrian interior minister, connecting ISIS objectives with those of the West. He said that ISIS doesn’t just discredit Islam but also poses a danger […]

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Geopolitics Ideas

Turkey‛s Twisted Logic: Fearing Kurds More Than ISIS

In Tal Abyad, at the border of Turkey and Syria
In Tal Abyad, at the border of Turkey and Syria Ibrahim Khader/Pacific Press/ZUMA

The Kurdish victory over ISIS in the Syrian border town of Tal Abyad has brought out the worst instincts from Turkey’s leaders.

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Geopolitics

Russia Can’t Afford To Choose Between East and West

Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Barack Obama in 2014
Vladimir Putin, Xi Jinping, Barack Obama in 2014 Lan Hongguang/Xinhua/ZUMA

If it wants to grow in a balanced way, Russia should not think a rash of new agreements with China will permit it to forsake the West.

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Geopolitics Society

In Egypt, A Jewish Love Story Just In Time For Ramadan

Menna Shalaby and Iyad Nassar
Menna Shalaby and Iyad Nassar

The new series “The Jewish Alley,” set in the early 1950s, is being shown to Egyptian audiences during the Ramadan TV season. Its creator explains why it matters now.

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Geopolitics Ideas

How Rising China-U.S. Animosity Looks From Beijing

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yiin Beijing on May 16
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yiin Beijing on May 16 Stephen Shaver/ZUMA

Tensions are playing out in the South China Sea, and stakes couldn’t be higher.

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blog Geopolitics

Ecuador: Rafael Correa’s “Dictatorship Of The Heart”

Correa and kin
Correa and kin El Comercio/GDA/ZUMA

-OpEd- BOGOTA — The government of Ecuadoran President Rafael Correa released a somewhat Orwellian video last month that tries to turn the concept of dictatorship on its head. The soundtrack of the video, which touts the administration’s various achievements, is a schmaltzy pop song that goes: “If this is a dictatorship, then we’ve been had. […]

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Economy Geopolitics Society

The Lies And Limits Of China’s Propaganda Machine

Show of strength in Beijing
Show of strength in Beijing Chen Xiaowei/Xinhua/ZUMA

Behind the Chinese government’s easy shows of strength is a rising sense of insecurity within the regime.

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Geopolitics Society

Exiling Dissent, How Putin Is “Killing” Russian Civil Society

Thousands of people march in Moscow to honor Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, killed February 27, 2015
Thousands of people march in Moscow to honor Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov, killed February 27, 2015 Geovien So/Pacific Press/ZUMA

Le Temps meets up with Olga Abramenko, head of a human rights organization that Russian authorities have deemed a “foreign agent” and banished from the country.

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Geopolitics The Endless War

Can France Shake Israeli-Palestinian Peace Talks To Life?

Laurent Fabius and Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah
Laurent Fabius and Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah Fadi Arouri/Xinhua/ZUMA

French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius has a plan that sets a strict 18-month deadline for Israeli and Palestinian leaders to find a lasting accord. If not, he says France will recognize Palestine nationhood anyway.

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blog Geopolitics

China, Where The ‛Left-Behind Children‛ Turn To Suicide

Left-behind children near Huangshan City, eastern China
Left-behind children near Huangshan City, eastern China Guo Chen/Xinhua/ZUMA

BEIJING — In Bijie, an impoverished rural area of Guizhou Province, children are dying, some in ghastly accidents, some by their own hand. It’s as if the place is cursed. Earlier this month, four “left-behind” siblings, aged five to 13, committed suicide by ingesting pesticide. Their father works in the city all year, and their […]

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Geopolitics Syria Crisis

Between Salafism And Baathism, The Recipe For ISIS Success

ISIS tanks near the Syria-Turkey border
ISIS tanks near the Syria-Turkey border Tumay Berkin/ZUMA

-OpEd- Caliphate, Islamic State, ISIS, Sunnistan, Jihadistan … Whatever name we give it, an entity is emerging in the heart of the Middle East, a sprawling swath of territory located between Mosul and Baghdad (Iraq) in the east, and Aleppo and Damascus (Syria) in the west. Inside this zone, as borders are disappearing and populations […]

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Geopolitics Society

Egypt’s Wannabe G.I. Janes

Moganada Masirya members rally for conscription
Moganada Masirya members rally for conscription Jihad El Komy/Facebook

A movement championing the right of women to enlist in the military is taking on conservative gender politics, the military status quo and religious doctrine.

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Future Geopolitics

The Economics Of Our Growing Appetite For Protein

Harvesting soybeans north of Buenos Aires, Argentina
Harvesting soybeans north of Buenos Aires, Argentina PHOTOGNOSOURCE/TNS/ZUMA

For Argentina, and other Latin American countries, this is a golden opportunity.

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Geopolitics Society

Take 5 Italy: Roman Mafia, Medical Marijuana, Lighthouse Sale

Italian news snapshots
Italian news snapshots Worldcrunch montage

We shine the spotlight this week on Italy: MAFIA IN ROME A second wave of corruption arrests has swept the Italian capital, with several local politicians charged with involvement in what has been dubbed Mafia Capitale. According to investigators, a criminal organization headed by a former fascist terrorist with links to the Naples mob collaborated […]

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Geopolitics The Endless War

ISIS And Corruption Undermine Hamas Rule In Gaza

Members of the Palestinian Hamas security forces parading in Gaza on June 16
Members of the Palestinian Hamas security forces parading in Gaza on June 16 Ashraf Amra/APA Images/ZUMA

Hamas, the Islamist group that governs Gaza, is now facing a challenge from Islamic State insurgents and growing disenchantment with its leadership.

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Geopolitics Ukraine Winter

How Italy Is Quietly Trying To Break Russia’s Isolation

Vladimir Putin and Matteo Renzi meet at the Milan Expo on June 10
Vladimir Putin and Matteo Renzi meet at the Milan Expo on June 10 Kremlin

Italian PM Matteo Renzi has obtained Washington’s blessing to pursue its own dialogue with the Kremlin. Could Rome be the bridge to resolving the Ukraine crisis?

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Geopolitics

Take 5: Alarming Droughts Around The World

Droughts international
Droughts international Worldcrunch collage

With the state of California now in its fourth year of what is classified as a “mega-drought,” Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency and Hollywood stars are getting shamed over their abundant water consumption. But there are less notable corners of the earth going dry as well, as droughts are increasing in […]

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Economy Geopolitics

Coal Mines In Eastern Ukraine Go Underground

Ukrainian miners' helmets
Ukrainian miners' helmets Igor Golovniov/ZUMA

DONETSK — Komsomolets Donbas is one of the largest coal mines in the Donetsk region in eastern Ukraine. But for more than a year now, it’s been out of operation due to serious damage suffered by the war. There are holes from falling explosives. The electricity has been interrupted. And the entrance is practically collapsed. […]

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Geopolitics

Putin Playing Nice – Will The World Believe Him?

Putin Playing Nice - Will The World Believe Him?

Putin Playing Nice, The World Tour by Worldcrunch

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blog Geopolitics

Egyptian President Sisi, A Year Of Strong Words And Symbolism

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pressing the flesh in Alexandria.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi pressing the flesh in Alexandria. Egyptian Presidency/ZUMA

In his first year as president, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi has shown surprising rhetorical flair, even as he consistently sends contrasting messages.

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Geopolitics Society

Arab Israelis, Alas? How East Jerusalem Was Abandoned By All

Just over the line in East Jerusalem
Just over the line in East Jerusalem Djampa

JERUSALEM — The biggest Palestinian newspaper Al-Quds published a long interview last week with Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat. The interview is an unusual event in the political landscape of this nationalist Palestinian newspaper that has long spent its ink attacking Israeli policies. In the interview, Barkat lays out details of construction plans for a new […]

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Geopolitics

The Top 10 Takeaways Of Turkey’s Historic Election

Erdogan's future is suddenly uncertain
Erdogan's future is suddenly uncertain Democracy Chronicles/Worldcrunch montage

ANKARA —Last Sunday’s general elections in Turkey represented nothing less than a cultural and political revolution: Not only did President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lose his parliamentary majority, but Kurdish politicians also succeeded for the first time in winning enough votes to enter parliament. The Turkish electorate’s disenchantment with its egomaniacal leader deals a blow to […]

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Eyes on the U.S. Geopolitics

The American Pivot, Inward – Reflections On The Missing Obama Doctrine

U.S. President Barack Obama in Miami on May 28
U.S. President Barack Obama in Miami on May 28 Amy Beth Bennett/TNS/ZUMA

It is politically reasonable for President Obama to want to focus on problems at home. But his fainthearted foreign policy approach has contributed to global volatility.

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Geopolitics Society

‘At War With ISIS’ – Sunni Islam’s Spiritual Leader El-Tayeb Speaks Out

El-Tayeb earlier this year
El-Tayeb earlier this year Wikipedia

La Stampa takes on big questions in Muslim world with Sunni Islam’s highest authority, who was at a conference in Italy, his first trip to Europe since taking his post in Cairo.

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Geopolitics Society

Take 5 Venezuela: Prisoner Wives, Cheap Gas, Maduro On Maradona

Take 5 Venezuela: Prisoner Wives, Cheap Gas, Maduro On Maradona

We shine the spotlight this week on Venezuela: PRISONER POLITICS Plenty of glowing foreign press coverage of the arrival in Caracas of former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez, who came to support opposition leaders who’ve been jailed by the government of President Nicolás Maduro. But El Correo del Orinoco, a state-owned daily, wrote that the […]

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Geopolitics Society

Disputed Kashmir Wrestles With How To Bring Back Hindus

Kashmiri men in Srinagar, the summer capital of Kashmir
Kashmiri men in Srinagar, the summer capital of Kashmir Javed Dar/Xinhua/ZUMA

It’s been two decades since the flight of many Kashmiri Hindus after an insurgency targeted them. Now even Kashmir Muslims want them to return.

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Geopolitics

The Complicated Recovery Of Former Boko Haram Hostages

Screenshot of a Boko Haram video showing the "Chibok girls" kidnapped in April 2014
Screenshot of a Boko Haram video showing the "Chibok girls" kidnapped in April 2014 Ifedayo Oniyide

More than 270 women and children who were held captive by Boko Haram have been rescued and are recovering in Nigeria, but treatment and taboos are tricky to navigate.

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Geopolitics Ideas

Outraged By FIFA? The UN Is Just As Corrupt

UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and FIFA President Joseph Blatter in Sao Paulo in June 2014
UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and FIFA President Joseph Blatter in Sao Paulo in June 2014 Zhou Lei/Xinhua/ZUMA

Those who believe that the FIFA scandal is an exceptional case among international organizations should think again. The poison is called “global governance.”

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Geopolitics Ideas

Mexico Malaise: Democracy Lessons For Pena Nieto From Brazil And Chile

Rally against Pena Nieto in Mexico City
Rally against Pena Nieto in Mexico City Libertinus

The government’s failure to address crime, corruption and declining living standards risks true social upheaval. But Enrique Pena Nieto just sits on the ball.

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Economy Geopolitics

Will Macedonia Scuttle Gazprom’s New Mega Pipeline?

Building pipelines in Russia
Building pipelines in Russia PressGPNS
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Geopolitics Society

Is Michel Platini The Man To Save FIFA?

Michel Platini, Sepp Blatter's right-hand man no more
Michel Platini, Sepp Blatter's right-hand man no more Wang Lili/Xinhua/ZUMA

PARIS — Eternally nostalgic of its past grandeur, France is already dreaming about the prospect out loud: Platini! As an attacking midfielder, he led France to the 1984 European Championship and Italian squad Juventus to club dominance, before turning manager and overseeing the 1998 World Cup organization in France and eventually taking over as head […]

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Geopolitics

Egyptian Intrigue As State Security Tightens Grip On Power

A riot police member in Cairo on Jan. 25, 2015
A riot police member in Cairo on Jan. 25, 2015 Ahmed Gomaa/Xinhua/ZUMA

The state security apparatus that secretly exerted control over much of Egyptian society during the Mubarak regime is firmly back in command.

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Geopolitics Ideas

FIFA’s Other Crisis: Israeli-Palestinian Feud Plays Out In Soccer World

Palestinian soccer chief Jibril Rajoub giving Israel a red card at the FIFA Congress in Zurich on May 29
Palestinian soccer chief Jibril Rajoub giving Israel a red card at the FIFA Congress in Zurich on May 29 Xu Jinquan/Xinhua/ZUMA

While attention was focused on alleged corruption at FIFA, another kind of drama was playing out between the Israeli and Palestinian soccer delegations.

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Geopolitics Ideas

Turkish Election: The Political Boomerang Threatening Erdogan

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine in Istanbul
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his wife Emine in Istanbul Nikos Pilos/ZUMA

Turkey’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) may not have enough seats to form a government if the main Kurdish party passes the 10% election threshold.

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Geopolitics

In Burundi, Where Anti-Government Protests Are Tamed With Guns

Clashes in Bujumbura on May 31
Clashes in Bujumbura on May 31 Jean Philippe Remy via Instagram

BUJUMBURA — When she goes out alone of Burundi’s capital, Valerie has started wearing trousers in case she has to run or is dragged to the ground. On this day, Bujumbura is sunny with a light breeze coming off Lake Tanganyika — still her heart is beating fast. Valerie (not her real name) is always […]

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Geopolitics Society

The EU’s Ailing Body: Grexit, Brexit And Europexit

Ouch.
Ouch. Kike Calvo/ZUMA

PARIS — Europe is truly a strange character. In Greek mythology, Europa was a princess kidnapped by a white bull whose breath smelled like Crocus flowers. In today’s reality, it’s a body threatening to cut off its own limbs. Its left foot is considering stopping its own blood flow. Suffering from cramps for the past […]

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