Talk of a nuclear strike on Iran’s “Pickaxe Mountain” has no official basis. But if the idea resurfaces, the US National Academies settled the central question two decades ago: an earth-penetrating nuclear weapon cannot contain its effects. By Tariq Rauf* VIENNA | 9 November 2026 (IDN) — In recent days, parts of the US and […]
OPINION: A UN for All? Asia’s Inclusion Must Be a Priority for the Next Secretary-General
By Shihana Mohamed* NEW YORK | 6 November 2026 (IDN) — “Outside these walls, people are not asking whether the United Nations still exists. They are asking whether it works.” Khalilur Rahman of Bangladesh, President of the United Nations General Assembly, warned the international community in his opening remarks at the 81st Session of the United Nations General […]
ESSAY: While the World Burns …
By Franz Baumann* This essay was originally published online on 2 November 2026 in Environment: Science and Policy for Sustainable Development, Taylor & Francis, under the title “While the World Burns …” DOI: 10.1080/00139157.2026.2725625. VIENNA | 6 November 2026 (IDN) — “Our house is on fire while we avert our eyes. Nature, mutilated and plundered, can no […]
OPINION: African Countries Face Rising Economic Risks
By Daniel D. Bradlow* PRETORIA | 5 November 2026 (IDN) —The current global economic situation is confusing. On the one hand, it’s characterised by inflation and food and other critical supply shortages caused by the wars in Ukraine and the Gulf states. On the other, by optimism and economic growth caused by the boom in AI […]
Gaza’s Ceasefire Leaves Palestinians Trapped Behind a Moving Line
UN rights officials warn that repeated displacement, attacks near encampments and restrictions on shelter materials are making return increasingly difficult. By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 2 November 2026 (IDN) — A ceasefire may have reduced the scale of fighting in Gaza, but it has not ended the displacement of Palestinians. Nor has it given most […]
Eleven Votes, but No Clear Road to the UN’s Top Office
Rebeca Grynspan widens her lead as the Security Council’s seventh straw poll leaves the decisive question of possible vetoes unanswered. By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 31 October 2026 (IDN) — Rebeca Grynspan has strengthened her claim to become the next United Nations Secretary-General, winning support from 11 of the Security Council’s 15 members in its […]
Latecomers Crowd the Race for the Next UN Chief
UAE candidate Lana Nusseibeh faces questions over Sudan as Türkiye weighs a last-minute entry by former foreign minister Feridun Sinirlioğlu. By Ramesh Jaura BERLIN | 29 October 2026 (IDN) — The contest to succeed António Guterres as United Nations Secretary-General should be moving toward a decision by now. Instead, it is growing more crowded—and harder […]
OPINION: Ending Nuclear Weapons
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 28 October 2026 (IDN) — Moscow and Washington urgently need to resume talks on a new framework for controlling nuclear weapons, said Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesman, on 20 October. “The absence of a treaty-based framework is creating a very dangerous situation”, he said. Indeed, there has been no […]
Improving Cities from Space: Geospatial Innovations in North and Central Asia
By Kareff Rafisura, Ladislav Charouz and Elena A. Pronina* BANGKOK | 26 October 2026 (IDN) — Cities in North and Central Asia are growing quickly, bringing them face to face with the interlinked challenges of rapid urbanisation, rising population density, and heightened vulnerability to disaster and climate risks. World Cities Day is a good opportunity to consider these […]
Why Doesn’t the US Implement Its Treaties?
By Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden | 21 October 2026 (IDN) – The US Senate—usually the Republican members—rejects multilateral treaties as if it were a sport. Others it rejects through inaction—the Law of the Sea Treaty, for example, negotiated under President Jimmy Carter and fruitlessly pushed for ratification by every president since. Republicans justify their blocking […]