When most people consider volunteering, they think about sacrificing one’s time to to help others without the expectation of personal gain, except for a warm and fuzzy feeling inside. Nope. Not Israelis. A new organization in Israel is touting volunteerism, claiming success in organizing groups of individuals to refurbish a synagogue and preparing meals for […]
The business and political media in Bangladesh in winding up for P.M. Sheikh Hasina’s visit to India. I’ll be following the news over the period of the 3 day visit. Already Sheikh Hasina’s itinerary is full and she’s committed to the multiple honoraria and cultural visits that foreign dignitary accede to in order to convey […]
As for China, long on an energy buying binge in world markets to feed its impressive economic growth, Iran sits at the center of its long term, geo-energy landscape. For Beijing’s rulers, any damage to its geo-energy interests in Iran would be seen as a direct blow to the country’s long-term economic prosperity.
The CIA is restarting a mission squashed during the Bush administration’s early days: sharing satellite imagery of the Arctic ice cap with climate researchers. From 1992 to 2001, scientists involved with the Medea program (Measurements of Earth Data for Environmental Analysis), spearheaded by former Vice President Al Gore, tried to see if any classified intelligence […]
Since the 1980s, the Brazilian government has offered amnesty to illegal immigrants in four different campaigns, benefiting tens of thousands of foreigners living in Brazil. The latest campaign began in July 2009 by presidential decree, and though it officially ended at the close of 2009, some cases are still pending. Until now, 41,816 foreigners received […]
Hi. My name is Derek Catsam. I am the Senior Blogger for the Foreign Policy Association’s Africa Blog. We are undergoing immense growth and transition at the FPA Blogs. One of these is to consolidate our many fine blogs (which make up the largest network of foreign affairs blogs anywhere) into coherent, managable categories. This blog will be combined […]
Though it has yet to be confirmed, it appears Swedish diplomat Staffan di Mistura will replace Kai Eide as the top UN official in Afghanistan. Mistura has recently worked for the UN’s World Food Programme and as an official in Iraq. He served as director of fundraising and external relations for the U.N.’s office in […]
In an article published in The New Republic, respected American journalist Nicholas Schmidle shares some of his experiences and observations about the over all paranoia and hysteria that has been increasingly visible across Pakistan’s electronic media. Specifically, Mr. Schmidle describes his awkward interaction with Shireen Mazari. Mazari had no information about Mr. Schmidle’s background, but […]
Story Updated Below Stunning news from Angola on the eve of the kickoff of the Africa Cup of Nations. Gunmen, almost certainly rebels, opened fire with machine guns on a bus carrying Togo’s national football team to the province of Cabinda from its training ground in the Republic of Congo (Congo-Brazzaville). The bus driver is […]
Some say that Venezuelan democracy is under assault, with Hugo Chávez and his cronies consolidating power. The populace may vote, but there is strong pressure to support the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PVUV in Spanish), and a penalty for those who support the opposition (e.g. being black-listed from government jobs). On the other hand, […]
I wonder what Hezbollah Chief Hassan Nasrallah has to say about this. An ongoing feud between Israeli and Lebanese chefs ratcheted up another notch this week, with a new world record broken outside of Jerusalem for the creation of the largest tub of hummus. The dish, created in Abu Gosh in Israel, comes months after […]
Finally after seven months of a senate hold on his ambassadorial confirmation, veteran diplomat Thomas Shannon goes to Brasilia to smooth out the rougher edges of U.S.-Brazil relations and steer these two nations toward greater cooperation on such pending issues as energy and climate change, bilateral commerce, the Iran nuclear program, the G-20 deliberations, and […]
For those of you unfamiliar with Stratfor.com, it’s one of the most compelling forecasting organizations in the U.S. today on international issues. Founded by George Friedman, who features heavily in this year’s Great Decisions Television series, their predictions are not always right, but always thought-provoking. Here is a video dispatch on what’s to come for […]
Operation Cast Lead -the Israeli strike on the the Gaza Strip one year ago- continues to dominate Israeli foreign relations, particularly with the United Nations. Some of Israel’s air strikes damaged UN facilities, including schools and a UN Relief and Works Agency facility. Israeli officials said Hamas terrorists were harbored in some of these compounds. […]
This week was the Russian Orthodox Christmas. Twenty years after Communism and somewhat at odds with the newfound Christian ardour of Russia’s elites, it’s not a big stand alone holiday, falling relatively quietly in the middle of the 10 day vacation starting with the big Soviet milestone of New Year’s. Yet at the same time, […]