Viewpoint by Herbert Wulf This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission. BONN (IDN) — In order to find an answer to the difficult question about the future of Ukraine, it is worth analysing the two extreme and polarised positions currently propagated in Western Europe. On the […]
Ukraine: The Russian Nuke Threat
Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte The writer is a former High Representative of the United Nations for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA), and President of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs. NEW YORK (IDN) — The conflict between Russia and Ukraine, described by Moscow as a “special military operation”, entered its eighth month without an end in […]
Is President Putin Offering an Olive Branch to the West?
Viewpoint by Somar Wijayadasa* NEW YORK (IDN) — The 19th Annual Meeting of the Valdai Discussion Forum, titled “Peace after Hegemony: Justice and Security for all” was held in Moscow from October 24-27. The meeting was attended by 111 international policy experts, politicians, diplomats and economists from 41 countries, including from France, Germany, and the […]
Drone Warfare: The Battlefield of the Future
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The deployment of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs)—more commonly known as drones—largely by US and Russian military forces has highlighted a weapon that is being increasingly deployed in war zones in the Middle East, Asia, Africa and most recently Ukraine.
Panch Mahabhoot, Climate Change and UN SDGs
Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. The writer is an ex-diplomat and Special Adviser for Asia & Africa of ALCAP, the Latin American Parliamentary Association of Audio-Visual Communication. Any views or opinions expressed are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of IDN InDepth News. NEW DELHI (IDN) — Bad news first. […]
Sri Lanka Foundation Awards Honour Excellence Among Expatriates
By Nandi Jasentuliyana The author is a former Deputy Director-General United Nations and Director of the UN Office for Outer space Affairs. LOS ANGELES, USA (IDN) — An awards ceremony recognizing those in the Sri Lankan expatriate community whose work has had an essential impact on the lives of others has taken place since 2003. […]
Time To Think Again About Abolishing Torture
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Right now, 47 years ago to the day in the autumn of 1975, the corridors of the UN in New York were abuzz with a small army of Amnesty International staff members lobbying countries to agree on a Declaration Against Torture.
A UN Security Council Committee Meets in India to Commit to Fight Digital Terror
By Aar Jay NEW YORK | NEW DELHI (IDN) — In a two-day meeting of the UN Security Council Counter-Terrorism Committee in India, member states have decided to counter the use of new and emerging technologies for terrorist purposes. The non-binding document, known as The Delhi Declaration, was adopted in the Indian capital on October […]
UN Climate Conference Must Make Funds for Poor Nations A Priority
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Water stress, withering droughts and devastating floods are hitting African communities, economies and ecosystems hard. Rainfall patterns are disrupted, glaciers are disappearing and key lakes are shrinking. In South Africa, the extreme rainfall that triggered one of the country’s deadliest disasters of this century was […]
Effective Ebola Vaccines Discovered in Pennsylvania Drug Company’s Freezer
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) — Thousands of doses of a vaccine effective against the Ebola pathogen now circulating in Uganda have been discovered in freezers of the Merck pharmaceutical company in Pennsylvania. The drugs were discovered after repeated inquiries by Science magazine, a peer-reviewed academic journal of the American Association […]