By Reinhard Jacobsen VIENNA. 23 September 2023 (IDN) — A first-of-its-kind report jointly produced by three United Nations organizations, shows that progress towards achievement of Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 is worryingly slow, with limited information to drive evidence-informed policies. The report calls for urgent action and substantial investment on Goal 16 to expand data […]
US Decides to Supply Depleted Uranium Shells to Ukraine
By Ramesh Thakur* This article was issued by the Toda Peace Institute and is being republished with their permission. CANBERRA, Australia. 22 September 2023 (IDN) — At the G20 summit in Bali last year, most of the world’s most influential leaders had strongly deplored “the aggression by the Russian Federation against Ukraine”. By contrast, the […]
U.S.-India Relationship Critical to Free, Open Indo-Pacific
By Joseph Clark , DOD News ARLINGTON COUNTY, Virginia, U.S. 20 September 2023 (IDN) — A shared vision for a free and open Indo-Pacific bolsters the U.S.-India relationship as the two countries continue to strengthen defense ties, a senior Pentagon official said on 19 September. Siddharth Iyer, the Office of the Secretary of Defense director […]
Clarion Call for a World Free from Nuclear Weapons
By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN. 19 September 2023 (IDN) — Mark* is 28 years. Like him, those in their twenties believed that atomic bombs, which the United States dropped over the Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, belonged to a remote past. However, since Russian President Vladimir Putin threatened to deploy nuclear weapons in the Ukraine […]
Re-Elected Zimbabwe President Gets Low Marks for Gender-Balance
By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network NEW YORK | HARARE. 17 September 2023 (IDN) — Women’s groups in Zimbabwe are calling on President Emmerson Mnangagwa to have a gender-balanced cabinet. The recently reelected leader has appointed just six women out of 26 cabinet positions. Women comprise 54% of Zimbabwe’s population, but men received the lion’s […]
Pope Francis’ Special Envoy Goes to China to Seek Peace in Ukraine
By Devin Watkins BERLIN | ROME. 14 September 2023 (IDN | VATICAN NEWS) — Pope Francis’ special envoy, Cardinal Matteo Mario Zuppi, the Archbishop of Bologna, is visiting Beijing on 13-15 September to seek peace in Ukraine, according to The Holy See Press Office. “The visit (to China) forms another step of the mission desired […]
Saudi Arabia, Under Fire for Civilian Killings, is Largest Buyer of US Arms
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS. 14 September 2023 (IDN) — Saudi Arabia, one of the world’s richest oil-blessed countries in the politically volatile Middle East, continues to strengthen its military relationship with the United States. According to the latest figures released by the US Department of Commerce, Saudi Arabia is America’s’ largest foreign military sales […]
Globalisation of Markets Without Globalisation of Peace
By Andrea Riccardi Professor Riccardi is a historian and founder of the Community of Sant’Egidio. The following are extensive excerpts from his remarks at the opening of the International Meeting for Peace, ‘THE AUDACITY OF PEACE’. BERLIN. 10 September 2023 (IDN) — It is of significance—for women and men of different religions, who fill their […]
The Iron Fist Inside a Velvet Glove
By Jonathan Power* LUND, Sweden. 5 September 2023 (IDN) — “1789 is a historic date, but it is not an historic example”. The French Revolution, violent to its fingertips, began with the highest motives, led by the most inspired and determined of people, but descended step by step into its self-created inferno where the revolution […]
Promoting a Culture of Peace in the Digital Era Impacted by AI
By Dr Francisco Rojas Aravena* The writer is the Rector of the University for Peace (UPEACE), San José, Costa Rica. Following are his remarks at the High-Level Forum on the Culture for Peace convened on 31 August by the President of the UN General Assembly. NEW YORK. 4 September 2023 (IDN) — Peace remains elusive, […]