Viewpoint by Dr Ram Puniyani This article is the 21st in a series of joint productions of South Asian Outlook and IDN-InDepthNews, the flagship of the International Press Syndicate. The writer is a former professor of biomedical engineering and former senior medical officer affiliated with the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (now Mumbai) and meanwhile […]
The Abraham Accords’ Implications for The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
Viewpoint by Alon Ben-Meir Dr Alon Ben-Meir is a retired professor of international relations at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University (NYU). He taught courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies for over 20 years. NEW YORK (IDN) — The Abraham Accords have been in the making for several years; what […]
US Declares an Exception to Its New Policy Against the Use of Landmines
By Thalif Deen UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The anti-landmine treaty, which came into force in 1999, has more than 160 signatories who pledged to ban the use of these weapons, along with the destruction of remaining stocks, and clearance of mined areas, and assistance to victims. But at least seven key countries—including the US, Russia, […]
Addressing the Challenges Confronting the Oceans
Viewpoint by Dr Palitha Kohona BEIJING (IDN) — I was the co-chair, along with Dr Liesbeth Lijnzaad of the Netherlands, of the United Nations ad hoc Working Group on Biological Diversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ). Since handing over our conclusions and recommendations in 2015, a negotiating process has begun with a view to finalizing a […]
SGI Amplifies Voices of Youth, Faith Communities and Nuclear Victims
By IDN-INPS Team VIENNA | TOKYO (IDN) — From June 21–23, at the historic First Meeting of States Parties (1MSP) to the UN Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), held in Vienna, Austria, the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) joined civil society groups calling for universalization of the Treaty, cohosting workshops highlighting perspectives of […]
ICRC Accentuates the Vital Importance of Nuclear Disarmament
Following are excerpts from the text of ICRC President Peter Maurer’s statement at the TPNW MSP1 on February 21, 2022. VIENNA (IDN) — A decade ago, this may have seemed illusory. Today, a global, unequivocal, comprehensive prohibition of nuclear weapons—the most catastrophic weapons ever created—is a reality. We owe this reality to the tireless efforts […]
Kazakhstan Calls for Universalization of the TPNW
Following are excerpts from the text of the statement by Kazakh’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Affairs Minister Mukhtar Tileuberdi, at the High-Level Opening Session of TPNW MSP1 on June 21, 2022. VIENNA (IDN) — The First Meeting of States Parties to the TPNW is a remarkable historic achievement following a nearly decade-long collective effort […]
Faith Communities Greet First Nuclear Weapons Ban Conference
By IDN-INPS Team VIENNA (IDN) — Faith communities “from a diversity of traditions and located all over the world” have joined together “with one voice to mark” the first meeting of the States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (MSP) to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).”
A Side Event at TPNW Conference Focusses on Nuclear Weapons Victims
By Aurora Weiss VIENNA (IDN) — “Today is a historic moment,” are the words with which the First Meeting of States Parties to the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) opened in Vienna on June 21. Representatives of the international community, government, civil society and academia gathered here to put into effect the […]
There’s No Need for War with Russia
Viewpoint by Jonathan Power LUND, Sweden (IDN) — Conflicts have a history of spinning out of control. Trotsky, the one-time close comrade of Lenin, reportedly said, “You may not be interested in war, but war is interested in you”. The overwhelming majority of Ukrainians were not interested in war until President Volodymyr Zelensky took his […]