Section: US & Canada
UN at 70, Ready to be Retired?
UN Photo At 50, the UN appeared to be facing a middle-age crisis. Then I was Foreign Minister of a re-emerging Bosnia & Herzegovina (BiH) with the opportunity to stand in and symbolize the survival of a country still seized by genocide and aggression and where many thought it would not survive the onslaught from outside and within. (See: 50...
Canada’s premier surveillance satellites scheduled to be put into orbit on same rocket that exploded Sunday
The pride of Canada’s space program is scheduled to be launched on the same type of U.S. rocket that blew up on the weekend. The Radarsat Constellation Mission, which will cost taxpayers $975 million, is to be launched in 2018 on the SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. SpaceX, a private firm established by Canadian-South African high tech...
The Euro in Flames
Game over. The euro as we know it is coming to an end. It is no longer clear whether we are talking about a proper monetary union or about a system of fixed exchange rates. This situation was to be anticipated. The different member countries no longer trust each other. It is impossible to build a monetary union when there are so many differences...
Weimar Russia, 1995–2015
In an op-ed published in the Washington Post on March 17, 1995, I argued that Russia was “deprived of pride and self-respect. . . . The public—its pride deflated and its economic needs unmet—craves order at home and respect abroad. The authoritarian temptation is pervasive, and so is the urge to be—and to be seen—as strong once again.”In her...
Ukraine: World War II Fiasco Leads to Public Relations Disaster and Thorny Questions for Kiev and Foreign Diaspora
For Kiev, winning the public relations war against Vladimir Putin would seem to be a no-brainer. For a year now, the Kremlin has conducted a thinly-disguised war of aggression in eastern Ukraine resulting in the deaths of thousands. Yet Kiev seems intent on squandering any international public support it might have had amidst a bizarre crackdown...
Ukraine Has 75,000 Troops In East Ukraine, Says Luhansk People’s Republic Leader
Kiev has around 75,000 troops fighting in the contested and war-torn region of eastern Ukraine, said the leader of the self-proclaimed Luhansk People’s Republic (LPR) at a briefing in Luhansk on Monday, reported TASS, a pro-Russian news site. Igor Plotnitsky, who become leader of the region after an election in November last year, made the...
Greece: A Nation Divided — Will Russia Take the Initiative?
The Greek referendum set for July 5, 2015, is about “yes or no to Europe.” The nation is divided. One camp for the Euro, for membership of the European Union (EU), and ultimately for Europa; the other one against the Euro, against EU membership and ultimately against Europe. Families, friendships, organizations and businesses will...
Democracy Lab Weekly Brief, June 29, 2015
To keep up with Democracy Lab in real time, follow us on Twitter and Facebook. Aung Min, the Burmese government’s chief peace negotiator, urges the country’s ethnic armed groups to sign a comprehensive ceasefire agreement. Ievgen Vorobiov looks into the remarkable resurgence of the Ukrainian language. Mohamed Eljarh reports on a rare...
In Lithuania, Boehner promises to combat Russian aggression
Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) vowed that Congress would combat Russian aggression through free-trade and energy policies as well as military aid for America’s allies during a visit to Lithuania.“Whether it’s arming Ukraine or declaring energy… …read more Source: The...
Grexit May Be Merkel’s Biggest Risk Yet
By Noah Barkin BERLIN, June 29 (Reuters) – “If you break it, you own it,” former U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell warned President George W. Bush before his invasion of Iraq. Whether it will ever be fair to blame Angela Merkel for “breaking” Greece is debatable. But if the euro zone’s weakest link does...
