USA and Canada

Photo: U.S. Soldiers with Forward Support Company, 65th Engineer Battalion conduct a presence patrol March 26, 2014, in Kandahar province, Afghanistan. Credit: Defense.com

Why Doesn't the U.S. End the Afghan War, Instead of Focussing on Russian Bounties to the Taliban?

Viewpoint by Sonali Kolhatkar

This article was produced by Economy for All, a project of the Independent Media Institute. Sonali Kolhatkar is the founder, host and executive producer of “Rising Up With Sonali,” a television and radio show that airs on Free Speech TV and Pacifica stations.

LOS ANGELES (IDN) – The New York Times in late June published an explosive revelation about the longest official U.S. war in modern history. According to high-level sources, Russia had been paying cash bounties to Taliban forces to kill U.S. soldiers.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 11 July 2020

Image: Cover of Bolton's book. Credit: The writer

Bolton's Book Fires Blanks at the Trump Administration

Viewpoint by Charlotte Munns

Charlotte Munns is a London-based freelance writer who has specialized in English Literature and Middle Eastern Studies at Columbia University, New York

LONDON (IDN) – John Bolton's 'The Room Where It Happened' opens with a bizarre epigraph touting the British triumph over Napoleon in the Battle of Waterloo. To liken Bolton's 'tell-all' memoir of the Trump administration to the actions that destroyed an empire is a stretch, to say the least.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 09 July 2020

Photo: Whatever Trump is up to this time, the world can almost be sure that this president won’t go away, quietly. Source. Washington Monthly. Credit: The Epoch Times/Flickr

Will Trump Go, If He Loses?

Viewpoint by Azu Ishiekwene

The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-In-Chief of The Interview magazine based in Abuja, Nigeria.

ABUJA (IDN) – After three and a half years of his presidency, US President Donald Trump appears to have exhausted all surprises in the bag, except, of course, the next one. And that next one could be the big one: Will Trump leave the White House if he loses the presidency on November 3?

Discussions about it first started in hushed tones and informal offline chats. But as poll after poll predicted a bleak future for Trump, discussions about his reaction to a possible defeat have been forced into the open.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 07 July 2020

Photo: Polish president Andrzej Duda meets with soldiers assigned to the Tennessee Army National Guard's 2nd Squadron, 278th Armored Cavalry Regiment's Task Force Raider, during a visit to Bemowo Piskie Training Area, Poland, March 6, 2019. Credit: SARAH KIRBY/U.S. ARMYring troops from Germany to Poland.

Russia Feels Threatened by Bigger US Presence in Poland

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – Russia and the United States, since the end of the Cold War, have had confrontations on many issues, and it is highly unlikely if both will ever find something in common. There have been differences on regional issues from the Middle East and North Africa through Asia to Europe. Now the latest, that has drawn both global leaders into sharp antagonism is the proposed [re]deployment of US military forces from Germany to Poland.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 02 July 2020

Photo: Huge massive red sandstorm. Credit: Strange Sounds

Huge Sahara Red Dust Cloud Reaches America's South

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – A brilliant red sky at dusk can be seen in states along the Atlantic but the eye-popping show should be watched with some caveats. Things to consider when it comes to the dust cloud include the size of the particles, the concentration and the composition of the particles.

When it comes to size, approximately 30 per cent of the dust coming from the Sahara is considered to be "fine". "Typically, the smaller particles can penetrate deeper into the lungs and the health impacts become more [serious]," says Dr. K. Max Zhang from Cornell University's School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 30 June 2020

Photo: Governor Tamaki (right) with U.S. Marines stationed in Okinawa (2019). Public domain | Source: Wikimedia Commons

Okinawa Governor Refuses to Host Prohibited U.S. Nuclear Missiles

By Jaya Ramachandran

GENEVA (IDN) – Governor Denny Tamaki of Okinawa district has rejected the U.S. plans to base on the island missiles capable of threatening China – apparently as part of President Donald Trump's move to challenge Beijing and upgrade the importance of Taiwan, 500 kilometres away from the island. If a plan for Okinawa to host such missiles were to develop, Tamaki said: "I can easily imagine fierce opposition from Okinawa residents."

: Jaya Ramachandran; ARMAMENTS; Nuclear Weapons; 27 June 2020

Photo: Standoff in Washington. Credit: Eleanor Goldfield. Source: Consortium News.

Policing Is Irrelevant for Public Safety—Here Are Some Alternatives That Are Proven to Work

Society doesn't need a large group with a license to kill.

Viewpoint by Justin Podur *

Justin Podur is a Toronto-based writer and a writing fellow at Globetrotter, a project of the Independent Media Institute. You can find him on his website at podur.org and on Twitter @justinpodur. He teaches at York University in the Faculty of Environmental Studies. He is the author of the novel Siegebreakers.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 25 June 2020

Photo: President Donald J. Trump joins the G7 Leadership and Extended G7 members as they pose for the “family photo” at the G7 Extended Partners Program Sunday evening, Aug. 25, 2019, at the Hotel du Palais Biarritz, site of the G7 Summit in Biarritz, France. (Official White House Photo by Andrea Hanks)

Russia's Participation in G7 Summit Sparks Debates

By Kester Kenn Klomegah

MOSCOW (IDN) – The rescheduling of the Group of Seven (G7) summit from late June to September and Russia's participation alongside with South Korea, Australia, India and South Korea has sparked discussions among both Russian officials and experts.

The Kremlin reported that Russian President Vladimir Putin and U.S. President Donald Trump had discussed in a telephone call, at the initiative of the U.S., the situation concerning Covid-19 pandemic, the Crew Dragon spacecraft launch, the Group of Seven (G7) summit as well as the situation on the oil market.

: Kester Kenn Klomegah; THE WORLD; Russia; 19 June 2020

McDonald's and the Ongoing Indo-Chinese Conflict

Viewpoint by Manish Uprety F.R.A.S. and Jainendra Karn *

NEW DELHI (IDN) – Thomas Friedman first put forward the Golden Arches Theory of Conflict Prevention in 1996 which claimed that no two countries that both had McDonald's had fought a war against each other since each got its McDonald's.

However, life has its own logic and cannot be interpreted in binaries. The Western logic is rooted in the Greek traditions and is binary, whereas the logic in the Eastern traditions can be multi-dimensional such as the four valued Chatushkoti logic of the Vedas or Buddhism used by scholars like Patanjali and Panini, or seven valued Saptabhangi of the Jainas. It helps one get a bigger, better and richer picture of life.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 19 June 2020

Photo: Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Fatou Bensouda. Credit: ICC

Human Rights Watch Supports ICC, Trump Attempts to Block Investigation of Possible U.S. War Crimes

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) – A world court designed to investigate allegations of human rights violations has found itself in the crosshairs of the President of the United States.

A new Trump executive order threatening the court’s operations has been condemned by prominent global institutions and individuals as it appears to give cover to human rights abuses committed in the course of U.S. foreign wars while demanding accountability from foreign countries in similar circumstances.