By Kester Kenn Klomegah MOSCOW (IDN) – Russia and the Republic of Congo have enjoyed good bilateral relations over more than five decades. But, as President Denis Sassou-Nguesso’s talks at the Kremlin reveal, there are still prospects for strengthening ties between the two countries, especially in the economic and security spheres. This was affirmed by […]
How Real is Saudi Religious Moderation?
Viewpoint by James M. Dorsey James M. Dorsey – a senior fellow at Nanyang Technological University’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, an adjunct senior research fellow at the National University of Singapore’s Middle East Institute and co-director of the University of Wuerzburg’s Institute of Fan Culture – offered this viewpoint to IDN. SINGAPORE (IDN) […]
Forced Displacement in Africa Not Just a Tale of Human Tragedy
By Sean Buchanan NEW YORK (IDN) – The estimated 24 million and more Africans who have been forced from their homes in recent years is placing a growing burden on the continent’s economy, environment and communities hosting those displaced. This was the backdrop to a May 21-23 event held at UN headquarters as part of […]
Generation 2030 in the Nordic Countries Tackles SDGs
By Lowana Veal REYKJAVIK (IDN) – On September 5, 2017 – two years after the United Nations adopted Agenda 2030 with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and 169 targets – the Nordic countries jointly launched the Generation 2030 programme with the aim of speeding up implementation of Agenda 2030 through official Nordic cooperation. A […]
China’s OBOR Promises a World Sans Hegemony
Viewpoint by Chandra Muzaffar The writer, Dr Chandra Muzaffar, is the President of the International Movement for a Just World (JUST). KUALA LUMPUR (IDN) – The Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) also known as the One Belt One Road ( OBOR) project could well emerge as the obor ( the flame in Indonesian or Malay) […]
Ancient Silk Route Hub Gets Ready for Modern Tourism
By Kalinga Seneviratne BUKHARA, Uzbekistan (IDN) – The city of Bukhara was a major trading hub of the ancient Silk Routes that connected Asia to the Arab world and Europe. With the Uzbekistan government’s lifting of restrictions on foreign tourists in 2016 and global interests on the ancient Silk Routes gathering momentum, this 2000-year-old city […]
Congress Should Dump Gandhi Family, Reinvent itself for Survival
Viewpoint by Shastri Ramachandaran The Congress party has to reshape and sharpen itself for re-emerging as an instrument of public usefulness, writes in the Outlook Shastri Ramachandaran, a political and foreign affairs commentator, also for IDN-INPS. Views expressed are his own. NEW DELHI (IDN-INPS) – Congress president Rahul Gandhi and, perhaps, his sister and party’s […]
Pakistan Tests Nuclear-Capable Ballistic Missile, Affirms Willingness for Dialogue with India
By Ayaz Gul This article first appeared on Voice of America on May 23, 2019. ISLAMABAD (IDN-INPS) – Pakistan says it has successfully conducted a “training launch” of a ballistic missile capable of carrying both nuclear and conventional warheads up to 1,500 kilometers. The move came amid Pakistan’s heightened military tensions with neighboring rival India, […]
Uncertainty over U.S.-Russian Arms Control Talks
By Kingston Reif and Shervin Taheran While Kingston Reif is Director for Disarmament and Threat Reduction Policy, Shervin Taheran is Research Assistant at the Arms Control Association, which carried this report on May 24, 2019. WASHINGTON, D.C. (IDN-INPS) – Following a May 14 meeting in Sochi, Russia, with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Foreign Minister […]
79-Nation Group’s Head Explains Vital Tasks Ahead Until ACP-EU Accord Expires
By Reinhard Jacobsen BRUSSELS (ACP-IDN) – As talks progress on future relations between 79 African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) Group of States and the European Union in the aftermath of historic Cotonou Agreement due to expire in February 2020, Secretary-General Dr. Patrick Ignatius Gomes has spelt out vital tasks ahead. The significance of milestones marking […]