The European Union aims to be carbon-neutral by 2050 as part of the comprehensive Green Deal that was agreed upon four years ago. However, an analysis of the policy documents outlining the practical measures of the Green Deal shows that it will decrease carbon emissions in Europe, but also increase carbon emissions outside of the...
Today, Christie’s became the first international auction house to establish a permanent commercial license to operate in Saudi Arabia. Noor Kelani will oversee the new location in her recently established role as managing director of Chrisie’s Saudi Arabia. According to a press release, she will head up client services for the fine art and luxury...
Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance continues to defend the false claim that migrants in Springfield, Ohio, have been abducting and eating area cats and dogs. That outlandish idea has been thoroughly debunked since former President Donald Trump repeatedly raised it as an anti-immigrant talking point in the Sept. 12, 2024, presidential debate. Trump never...
A study by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) and the University of Murcia (UM) challenges the theory that warrior groups with a ‘Steppe’ genetic component originating from Eastern Europe violently replaced the male population of the Iberian Peninsula some 4,200 years ago and presents a different scenario, in which groups with ‘Steppe’ ancestry mixed...
China-Africa relations have deepened over the past two decades, characterised by increased economic cooperation, investment and infrastructure development. China is now Africa’s largest trading partner, with partnerships focused on building roads, railways and energy projects. As the ninth Forum on China–Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) kicks off this week in Beijing, a new, green theme is shaping...
The largest diamond found in more than a century has been unearthed at a mine in Botswana, and the country’s president showed off the fist-sized stone to the world at a viewing ceremony Thursday. The Botswana government says the huge 2,492-carat diamond is the second-biggest ever discovered in a mine. It’s the biggest diamond found...
Throughout the summer of 2024, young Kenyans have taken to the streets of the capital, Nairobi, in a series of anti-government demonstrations. Dubbed the “Gen Z” protests, the unrest was sparked by the introduction of an unpopular finance bill in mid-June. A month later, the bill was withdrawn, but protests have persisted and at least...
Allies and adversaries will take note if U.S. foreign policy swings wildly from one administration to the next. A version of this piece originally appeared in the Substack “Blue Blaze.” The United States remains a superpower—indeed, the superpower. As such, its policies and preferences will shape every region of the world in the coming years and decades. The post-World...
Lies, misconceptions, and propaganda about intensifying climate change and policy responses will increasingly shape security and geopolitics. In May, southern Brazil experienced devastating flooding that killed more than 160 people, displaced 600,000 residents, and drew in the military for a lengthy recovery. It was another harbinger of our age of climate insecurity. But despite likely scientific explanations, recovery was complicated by...
A review of Steve Coll, “The Achilles Trap: Saddam Hussein, the CIA and the Origins of America’s Invasion of Iraq” (Penguin Random House, 2024) Steve Coll’s latest work, “The Achilles Trap: Saddam Hussein, the CIA and the Origins of America’s Invasion of Iraq,” seeks to explain why Saddam Hussein would put his regime at risk...
