By Jaya Ramachandran BERLIN | STOCKHOLM (IDN) – Global arms trade is on the upswing with the United States increasing dominance in the group of five largest exporters including Russia, France, Germany and China, which together account for 75 per cent of the total volume of weapons exports in 2014-2018. While the Middle East imports […]
Lessons from Money Laundering Scandals in European Banks
Viewpoint by Maíra Martini and Laure Brillaud This article is reproduced with the permission of Transparency International. Maira Martini is Knowledge Coordinator and Laure Brillaud Senior Policy Officer, Anti-Money Laundering, of Transparency International. Any views expressed do not necessarily reflect those of IDN. LONDON (IDN) – What do all recent major grand corruption scandals have in common? Individuals and companies involved […]
Ushering in an Era of Peace and Disarmament
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | TOKYO (IDN) – “Amid the continued escalation of global challenges, crises that were previously unthinkable are now becoming reality throughout the world.” This is the backdrop to a wide-ranging proposal eminent Buddhist philosopher, educator, author, and nuclear disarmament advocate Dr. Daisaku Ikeda has put forward. ‘Toward a New Era of […]
UN Acclaims European Support for Implementation of Biological Weapons Convention
By Ronald Joshua GENEVA (IDN) – The activities funded by the European Union are making a difference on the ground and are helping countries to develop their capacities against the threat of proliferation of biological weapons by States or non-States actors. This was one of the conclusions at an EU side event that was organised […]
UN Warns Against Emerging Hypersonic Weapon Technologies
By J Nastranis NEW YORK (IDN) – Emerging hypersonic weapon technologies present a challenge for the existing arms control and disarmament architecture at a time when it is already under strain. Because hypersonic weapons do not count towards the limits of the New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty), which is the key arms control agreement […]
Europe Ventures to Speak Up Against USA
By Somar Wijayadasa* NEW YORK | MUNICH (IDN) – “The whole liberal world order appears to be falling apart – nothing is as it once was,” said Wolfgang Ischinger, a senior German diplomat in an opinion article in the run-up to the 2019 Munich Security Conference (MSC) that he chairs. He added: “When Vladimir Putin […]
U.S. and Canadian Baby Boomers Retiring to Mexico
By Bill Dahl* REDMOND, Oregon, USA (IDN) – The term boomerang is considered a noun and a verb. As a noun, it is defined as a curved flat piece of wood that can be thrown so as to return to the thrower, traditionally used by Australian Aborigines as a hunting weapon. As a verb, boomerang […]
Haiti Unrest Beginning to Take A Humanitarian Toll
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK (IDN) – Demonstrators have been filling the streets of downtown Port-au- Prince in Haiti, as anger and frustration over government mismanagement and corruption boils over. Protestors are now demanding the resignation of President Jovenel Moise. Hundreds gathered in downtown Port-au-Prince a few days ago to demonstrate against […]
A Safer, More Secure Europe Starts Way Beyond the Continent
By Dimitris Avramopoulos The following are extensive excerpts from keynote speech by the European Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos, on Europe’s response to the challenges of migration and security at the London School of Economics on 23 January 2019. BRUSSELS (IDN-INPS) – In the year 2015, Europe was confronted with a […]
UN Committed to Providing Humanitarian Aid to Venezuelans
By J Nastranis NEW YORK (IDN) – In view of the increasingly critical situation for ordinary Venezuelans, the United Nations remains committed to providing humanitarian support, based on “need, and need alone”, according to a senior aid official. But the oil-rich country is not only suffering from food and medical shortages. The Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) […]