By Ken Baldwin* CANBERRA, Australia | 24 March 2025 (IDN) — Taxpayers have already paid a price for the political division over Australia’s energy future — and now the Coalition’s nuclear policy is effectively hitting their hip pocket even before voters get their say on whether it’s part of the nation’s energy transition. All Australians […]
Bhutan’s Growing Migration Wave Demands Better Planning
By Namdu Lhamo, Jelle J P Wouters, Binaya Pasakhala* THIMPU, Bhutan | 20 March 2025 (IDN) — Sonam and Pema migrated a decade ago from eastern Bhutan to the south-west Pasakha Industrial Estate, located on the border with India. The married couple were farmers, but Bhutan’s climate change impacts and interwoven rural crises, including escalating human-wildlife […]
From Crisis to Strategy: The OSCE and Arms Control in A Divided Europe
By Alexander Graef The writer is a Researcher at the Institute for Peace Research and Security Policy in Hamburg. It was first published on the Website of the European Leadership Network. HAMBURG | 16 March 2025 (IDN) — Over its nearly 50 years of existence, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) has […]
Diplomatic Pressures and Bangladesh’s Military: Unraveling the Debate
By Mujtoba Ahmed Murshed The writer is an analyst, researcher, and journalist. He has served in Japan and Germany’s foreign ministries and worked as the Advisor at the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC). DHAKA, Bangladesh | 14 March 2025 (IDN) — In the aftermath of Bangladesh’s political transition on […]
African Union Peacekeepers in Somalia Accused of Widespread Abuse
By Mohamed Gabobe* MOGADISHU, Somalia | 14 March 2025 (IDN) — A new African Union peace enforcement mission, known by its acronym AUSSOM, was launched at the beginning of the year to support a fragile Somali government that has struggled against a jihadist insurgency entrenched in the countryside. AUSSOM is the third iteration of a multinational combat […]
A Geologist Explains Why Ukraine’s Minerals Are Exceptional
By Munira Raji* PLYMOUTH, Devon, England | 13 March 2025 (IDN) — Ukraine’s minerals have become central to global geopolitics, with the US president, Donald Trump, seeking a deal with Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky to access them. But what are these minerals exactly, and why are they sought after? Ukraine is often recognised for its […]
Budget Crisis Exposes Contradictions in South Africa’s NU Government
By Pavan Kulkarni* NEW DELHI | 1 March 2025 (IDN) — South Africa’s two largest parties, allied in the Government of National Unity, disagree on how to resolve the budget crisis: The ANC wants to raise taxes on the poor to continue funding social programs, while the DA prefers to slash public expenditure. South Africa’s […]
US Threat to Cut Off Military Aid to Egypt & Jordan May Provoke Arms Suppliers
By Thalif Deen* UNITED NATIONS | 23 February 2025 (IDN) — President Donald Trump’s threat to cut off military aid to Egypt and Jordan—if they refuse to provide sanctuary to Palestinians removed from Gaza—is most likely to trigger protests from the US military-industrial complex, one of the most powerful lobbies in the US. Currently, Egypt […]
US-Russia Meeting in Riyadh Successful, More to Follow
Meeting Atmosphere Professional, Not Ideological By Stephen Bryen* This article was issued by Weapons and Strategy and is being republished with their permission. WASHINGTON, D.C. | 18 February 2025 (IDN) — Both the Russian and the US side say that the high level diplomatic meeting held in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on the morning of February […]
BRICS Proves Increasingly Attractive for Middle Powers in The Region
By Marlies Linke* ALMATY, Kazakhstan | 17 February 2025 (IDN) — The sixteenth BRICS summit, held in Kazan, Russia from 22 to 24 October 2024, bore the slogan “Strengthening Multilateralism for Fair Global Development and Security”. According to its concluding statement, the summit was intended to demonstrate that the participating Global South countries are expanding […]