Politics
Chile Got Richer. Its Voters Still Want to Change the System.
Gabriel Boric is 35 years old, a former student protest leader and left-wing congressman who was not even born when Augusto Pinochet seized power in 1973. He defeated José Antonio Kast, a conservative candidate whose…
Biden Invited the World’s Democracies to a Summit. First, Someone Had to Decide Who Counts.
The stated objectives were difficult to disagree with: defending democracy against authoritarianism, fighting corruption and promoting human rights. Biden argued that democracy is facing a global challenge and that democratic governments need to demonstrate that…
Russia Is Building Up Forces Near Ukraine. The Hardest Question Is Whether It Actually Intends to Use Them.
Ukraine says Russia may be preparing for an attack. American officials have increasingly expressed concern about the scale and nature of Russia’s military activity. Moscow denies that it is planning an invasion and argues that…
South Africa Warned the World About Omicron. The World Responded by Closing Its Borders.
By Friday, governments around the world were restricting travel from southern Africa, stock markets were falling, scientists were racing to understand a heavily mutated coronavirus variant and the World Health Organization had classified it as…
Austria Is Planning to Make COVID Vaccination Compulsory. How Much Choice Do We Give Up to Protect Everyone Else?
That is an extraordinary escalation in government power over an individual’s medical decision, and it deserves a more serious argument than either “vaccines work, so obviously everyone should be forced to take them” or “my…
One Word Nearly Broke COP26. That Word Explains the Entire Problem.
Almost 200 countries adopted the Glasgow Climate Pact, an agreement intended to accelerate climate action during this decade and keep alive the possibility of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. Governments agreed to…
Everyone Agrees Climate Change Is a Problem. That Is the Easy Part.
COP26 has produced an extraordinary collection of promises already. More than 100 countries have backed a pledge to reduce global methane emissions by 30% from 2020 levels by the end of this decade. More than…
Sudan’s Generals Have Taken Power. The Warning Signs Were Already There.
The timing is difficult to ignore. Last Sunday, I wrote that Sudan had removed Omar al-Bashir in 2019 without fully removing the political principle that men with guns ultimately decide who governs. On Monday morning,…
Sudan Removed a Dictator. It Never Really Removed the System That Kept Him in Power.
Omar al-Bashir, who had ruled Sudan for thirty years, was removed from power after months of mass demonstrations. Images from Khartoum seemed to capture one of those rare moments when political history visibly changes direction:…
More Than 200 People Died in Beirut. A Year Later, Lebanon Is Fighting Over Whether Anyone Can Be Held Responsible.
Approximately 2,750 tonnes of ammonium nitrate had been stored for years at the city’s port. When it exploded, more than 200 people were killed, thousands were injured and entire neighbourhoods were devastated. The images were…
Poland Doesn’t Want to Leave the EU. It Wants to Decide Which EU Rules Apply.
Britain spent years arguing about whether membership of the European Union had taken too much sovereignty away from Parliament. Eventually, British voters chose to leave. Poland is now creating a different and potentially more difficult…
The Pandora Papers Reveal Something Bigger Than Tax Avoidance
More than 11.9 million confidential records from 14 companies providing offshore financial services have been examined by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists and hundreds of journalists around the world. The investigation involves financial structures…
