Diplomacy
Europe Just Gave Ukraine €50 Billion. Most of the Important Work Will Not Happen on the Battlefield.
The European Union finally agreed this week on a €50 billion financial package for Ukraine covering the period to 2027, overcoming the Hungarian veto that prevented agreement at December’s summit. All twenty-seven EU governments, including…
Iran and Pakistan Both Say They Were Fighting Terrorists. They Ended Up Bombing Each Other.
Iran and Pakistan exchanged military strikes across their shared border this week in one of the most serious confrontations between the two neighbours in years. On Tuesday, Iran launched missiles and drones into Pakistan’s southwestern…
America and Britain Have Bombed the Houthis. The Hard Question Is Whether Punishment Will Actually Make Them Stop.
The United States and Britain launched strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on Friday, hitting sites associated with missiles, drones, radar and other military capabilities after weeks of attacks on commercial shipping in the Red…
Nobody Says They Want a Regional War. That Does Not Mean the Region Cannot End Up in One.
The war that began in Gaza three months ago is increasingly becoming a regional system of interconnected confrontations. Hamas deputy political leader Saleh al-Arouri was killed in Beirut on Tuesday, in an explosion widely attributed…
The EU Has Agreed to Open Membership Talks With Ukraine. That Does Not Mean Ukraine Is Joining Anytime Soon.
The European Union made one of its most consequential decisions since Russia invaded Ukraine this week. On Thursday, EU leaders agreed to open accession negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova and granted candidate status to Georgia.
Climate Change Has Already Caused Damage That Cannot Be Adapted Away. Now Comes the Harder Question: Who Pays?
COP28 opened in Dubai this week with an agreement that climate negotiations have struggled towards for decades. Governments formally operationalised a new Loss and Damage Fund intended to provide financial support to developing countries facing…
Ukraine’s Greatest Long-Term Vulnerability May Not Be Western Military Capacity. It May Be Western Political Patience.
Slovakia voted yesterday in an election whose consequences extend beyond a country of roughly 5.4 million people. Former prime minister Robert Fico’s Smer party finished first with about 23% of the vote, placing him in…
Canada Says India May Have Been Involved in a Killing on Canadian Soil. The Evidence Now Matters More Than the Politics.
Relations between India and Canada have deteriorated dramatically this week after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told Canada’s Parliament that Canadian security agencies were investigating what he described as “credible allegations” of a potential link between…
India Did Not Choose Between the West, Russia and the Global South at the G20. That May Be Exactly Why It Mattered.
The G20 summit concluded in New Delhi today with an outcome that looked surprisingly conventional considering how divided its members have become. The group produced a consensus declaration despite disagreements over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine,…
BRICS Is Getting Bigger. That Does Not Necessarily Mean It Is Becoming More Powerful.
BRICS decided this week to invite six additional countries into the organisation. Argentina, Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have been invited to join Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa…
NATO Says Ukraine Will Join. It Still Will Not Say When.
NATO leaders met in Vilnius this week only around 30 kilometres from the Belarusian border, with one question dominating much of the summit: what exactly does the alliance mean when it says Ukraine’s future belongs…
Modi’s Washington Visit Was Not Really About Friendship. It Was About Who Builds the Technologies That Will Define the Next Twenty Years.
Narendra Modi’s state visit to Washington this week produced all the symbolism expected from one of America’s highest forms of diplomatic recognition. President Joe Biden hosted him at the White House, Modi addressed a joint…
