Fitch Ratings, one of the three global rating agencies, published reports this week on the state of play in Russia. The government of Russia’s BBB rating was affirmed, but the Outlook for the rating (i.e., where the rating is likely to go in the next two years) remains negative. Russia has been more negatively affected by […]
Dilma Rousseff, the less-than-glamorous heir-apparent to Brazil’s leftist President Lula, is being accused of exerting pressure on a government official to whitewash an investigation into a political ally. See FT article on the subject. These corruption investigations snarl Brazil’s Congress all the time, and some blow over, while others balloon. What will happen to this one could affect […]
The FT reports today that China is extending a much-needed $1 billion loan to the government of Ecuador, one of the worst-run countries on the planet, as a downpayment on oil deliveries to the Asian juggernaut. Ecuador has oil, as well as other assets, including in tourism (for example, the Galapagos Islands, the Andes, and […]
Are the Democrats hypocrites on Colombia and on Free Trade? With Obama in tow, last year they killed the Colombia FTA legislation promoted by President George W. Bush (I know you don’t like him), who really got it right on hemispheric free trade and on U.S. ally Colombia. The Dems whined about abuses by the government […]
Shareholders for two Fidelity Investment mutual funds chose yesterday not to pass proposals that would prevent them from investing in companies that do business in Sudan. The Sudanese government is accused of committing various war crimes in relation to the conflict in Darfur. This past March, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for […]
They always say that communities across the globe are often united by film, but what about generations. Film is a powerful medium that can unite cultures, bridge generation gaps and open doors. However the use of film as a medium of expression is often seen as an adult world, but the leaders of tomorrow are […]
Brazil’s persistent economic weakness over the years has been its external balance sheet — heavy indebtedness to foreigners, weak foreign trade sector, and low external liquidity (e.g. low fx reserves). This was in addition to a heavy government debt burden (government borrowing abroad in fact drove the fragile balance of payments), a poor business climate (a huge tax […]
I’d like to take a minute to turn from our usual focus on foreign policy and diplomacy to take a look at science and technology. The U.S. has a proud history of being a world leader in technological innovation. This website, for example, provides a list of U.S. Nobel Prize winners, as of 2008, and […]
What would President Monroe say? An Economist article discusses the growing presence of Great Powers, especially China, in Latin America, flouting nearly two centuries of U.S. dominance in the region, since the articulation of the Monroe Doctrine in the early 1820s. In the near term, this worry is overdone. Longer-term, if the U.S. continues to […]
Ride for the climate from New York City to Washington DC, September 26 – 30. That’s the story of the Brita Climate Ride. In addition to raising a lot of consciousness, the two hundred riders will benefit the work of Focus the Nation, the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, and Clean Air – Cool Planet. The United Nations […]
Over the course of its history, the U.S. Army has been called many things, but “democractic” is certainly not one of them. That however, maybe be changing. The NY Times reported over the weekend about a radical new approach the Army is taking to the writting of its manuals, which serve as the the basis […]
Not even 30 km outside of Tbilisi and the first road sign to Sukhumi, Abkhazia’s de-facto capital, is a reminder of a legacy and war that continues to haunt the imaginations of IDPs who wish to return home and Georgians who wish to reintegrate the break away region. It is a sign of a conflict […]
In a three part series in Der Spiegel a new approach to aid is looked at in one Namibian village, that has been plagued by racial disparity and poverty. working to shift from a historical bias against the black poor and the elite white farmers, Namibia is seen as a country that is easily on […]
Everyday there is fresh evidence that government spending to stimulate demand was critically necessary to pull the country out of the economic tail spin caused by the reckless risk-taking of essentially unregulated financial markets, easy money policies often championed by Right-wing economists such as CNBC’s Larry Kudlow.
In a country that has seen years of war and experienced a painful shift to democracy, it’s heartening to know that some of the people are using their voices to call for justice for the free press. Articles from several major media organizations show photographs of the peaceful protest. According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), […]