2025

Debt can be a useful tool for governments to finance their development projects, protect and invest in their people, and pave the way to a better future. But when debt becomes excessive, or its costs outweigh the benefits, it can become a crisis. This is what happened in many developing countries after an era of […]

In a series of cases involving the war in Yugoslavia, notably at Srebrenica in 1992 and at Kozarac in 1993, the phrase ‘ethnic cleansing’ has been used to describe the violent and terror-inspiring tactics employed by one group against another to force its members to flee. This compulsion to flee may in itself constitute additional […]

Political exile occurs when an individual is forced to live outside of their homeland for one reason or another. It may be a consequence of political persecution, war, or coups and revolutions. It can also occur as a result of social, economic, and familial problems that make returning home difficult or impossible. Exile can shape […]

About this article The saber-rattling in Ukraine by Vladimir Putin has rekindled fears of a nuclear war. In the past, the nuclear taboo was such that even implicit threats from superpowers were rare. Implicitly, the belief was that if any one nation attacked another with nuclear weapons, that country would receive a swift retaliation from […]

When governments accuse rivals of unfair trade practices such as dumping (selling products at lower prices to undercut competitors) or subsidies for domestic industries, they may impose tariffs and restrictions to level the playing field. They also aim to support local businesses and protect jobs. While this approach provides some benefits, it can also have […]

Rebel forces are those armed groups fighting against the Syrian regime in the ongoing civil war in Syria. These forces are mainly secular military units and Islamist militias, with a few factions that have a mix of both. The most powerful of these is Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which operates primarily in the northwestern province […]

Protest is a cornerstone of democracy, but governments across the world are increasingly turning to heavy-handed tactics to suppress protests and limit freedom of speech and assembly. These crackdowns have heightened concern about the direction of our global society. On 4 June 1989, Chinese troops opened fire on students and workers who had gathered in […]

Drone strikes have become a new form of warfare with unprecedented collateral damage. The trauma of living under drones fuels anti-American sentiment and aids recruitment to armed groups that engage in terrorism. This unintended impact, known as blowback, is a major obstacle to countering terrorism. Designed to be both a hunter and an intelligence-gathering platform, […]

Global market crash The Great Recession of 2007-2009 arose from the collapse of financial institutions in the United States. The failure of Lehman Brothers sparked a panic that spread to the rest of the world due to fears about the housing bubble and the subprime mortgage crisis. This sparked widespread selling in markets around the […]

The United Nations was founded in 1945 after World War II by 51 countries committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, achieving worldwide cooperation to solve international economic, social, cultural, and humanitarian problems, and serving as a […]