By Reinhard Jacobsen VIENNA, 17 March 2023 (IDN) — The United Nations is concerned about a dramatic jump in the global production of cocaine over the past two years after an initial slowdown triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. “The surge in the global cocaine supply should put all of us on high alert,” said Ghada […]
The Urbanity of Evil: 20 Years After the Invasion of Iraq
By Norman Solomon SAN FRANCISCO, 17 March 2023 (IDN) — Vast quantities of lies from top U.S. government officials led up to the Iraq invasion. Now, marking its 20th anniversary, the same media outlets that eagerly boosted those lies are offering retrospectives. Don’t expect them to shed light on the most difficult truths, including their […]
Independent Commission Server and Other Election Day Stories
By Azu Ishiekwene The writer is the Managing Director/Editor-in-Chief of LEADERSHIP newspaper based in Abuja, Nigeria. ABUJA, 16 March 2023 (IDN) — For the third time since 1999, I voted at a general election on February 25 and did so without much hassle. I knew my candidates would lose at the unit where I voted, […]
US Command Chief Wants to Help African Nations Find African Solutions
By Jim Garamone, DOD News This article was issued by U.S. Department of Defense. WASHINGTON, D.C., 16 March 2023 (IDN) — Africa is a tremendously diverse continent with many cultures, languages, threats and opportunities that U.S. planners need to consider, said Marine Corps Gen. Michael Langley, the commander of U.S. Africa Command during an interview. […]
Will China’s ‘Position Paper’ Achieve Peace or Justice for Ukraine?
By Mona Ali Khalil This article was issued by Passblue and is being reproduced with due acknowledgement. NEW YORK, 16 March 2023 (IDN) — China launched its 12-point position paper to end the war in Ukraine on the first anniversary of Russia’s full invasion of Ukraine. Some, including the United States, the European Union and […]
US Will Finally Have Envoy in Delhi as India’s Diplomatic Value Rises
By Arul Louis The writer is a New York-based non-resident senior fellow of the Society for Policy Studies, a New Delhi-based think tank. He can be contacted @arulouis. UNITED NATIONS, 16 March 2023 (IDN) — After an almost two-year delay during which India’s importance rose for US diplomacy, Washington will finally have an envoy in […]
Will Iran & Saudi Arabia Join Israel and Get the Bomb?
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS, 15 March 2023 (IDN) — Saudi Arabia and Iran— two archrivals in the Middle East who severed links seven years ago—re-established diplomatic, political and economic relations last week in a historic deal brokered by China, one of the world’s major nuclear powers. Described as a victory for Chinese diplomacy in […]
The Road from Iraq to Ukraine Was Not So Winding
By Medea Benjamin and Nicolas J. S. Davies* NEW YORK, 15 March 2023 (IDN) — March 19th marks the 20th anniversary of the U.S. and British invasion of Iraq. This seminal event in the short history of the 21st century not only continues to plague Iraqi society to this day, but it also looms large […]
It’s High Time the US Stopped Threatening China
By John Scales Avery* COPENHAGEN, 15 March 2023 (IDN) — It appears that the military-industrial complex has complete control of the government of the United States, which recently voted to give the Pentagon roughly a trillion dollars of the taxpayer’s money. This was done by cutting back on social programs which would have helped poor […]
Western Flags All Over Oceania Ensure a Continuing Hegemony
By Greg Fry and Terence Wesley-Smith* SUVA, Fiji, 15 March 2023 (IDN) — In his recently published article “Sea of many flags”, the head of the ANU National Security College Rory Medcalf makes the case for why Pacific Island states should regard the deep regional involvement of a Western coalition of powers, “quietly” led by […]