Content Type: Commentary and Analysis / Publication Year: within 3 Years

1. Pakistan Steps In: Sudan and the Transformation of Regional Security

Author:: Areig Elhag
Publication Date:: 01-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: A $1.5 billion Pakistani arms deal with Sudan signals a regional shift from diplomacy toward military escalation, which may prolong the war in Sudan. At a moment that should have seen renewed momentum toward a political settlement in Sudan, reports suggest that Pakistan, with Saudi mediation, is nearing completion of a $1.5 billion arms deal with the war-torn country. Far from being a routine arms transaction, the deal encompasses Karakoram-8 aircraft, more than 200 drones, and air defense systems. It also potentially includes JF-17 multirole fighter jets, produced jointly by Pakistan Aeronautical Complex and China’s Chengdu Aircraft Corporation. This development points to a deeper regional shift away from sponsoring dialogue and toward a military resolution to the Sudanese conflict.
Topic:: Civil War, Diplomacy, Regional Security, and Arms Sales
Political Geography:: Pakistan, Africa, and Sudan

2. Prospects for Syria-Israel Relations

Author:: David Schenker
Publication Date:: 01-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Israel may believe the tense status quo is sustainable, but Washington is frustrated about the potential implications for Arab normalization, Turkish military friction, and near-term economic plans.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Diplomacy, Bilateral Relations, Normalization, and Regional Security
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Syria

3. Venezuela: The Emperor Has No Clothes

Author:: Anil Anand
Publication Date:: 01-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA)
Abstract:: America’s attack on Venezuela—alongside threats to annex Greenland, incorporate Canada as its 51st state, attack Colombia, or seize control of the Panama Canal—raises existential concerns about America’s commitment to a rule-based order and the legitimacy of the prevailing system for global governance.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, International Order, and Nicolas Maduro
Political Geography:: South America, Venezuela, and United States of America

4. Revitalizing Integrated Tactical Units to Combat West Africa’s Irregular Militant Groups

Author:: Fatai Alli
Publication Date:: 02-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Africa Center for Strategic Studies
Abstract:: Legacy battalion-based formations designed for conventional, linear warfare are poorly matched for the dispersed, fast-moving insurgent threats confronting multiple West African countries. Enhanced operational mobility ensures reach, speed, and tactical unpredictability. Effectiveness in contemporary irregular warfare depends on integrated tactical units, intelligence-enabled maneuver, and sustained operational reach.
Topic:: Security, Counterinsurgency, Non State Actors, Armed Forces, and Military
Political Geography:: Africa and West Africa

5. Can Indonesia Fight Disinformation Without Oppression?

Author:: Ika Idris and Eka Nugraha Putrais
Publication Date:: 02-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Australian Institute of International Affairs (AIIA)
Abstract:: Indonesia is attempting to regulate disinformation and foreign propaganda, risking the country’s democracy, which is already in decline.
Topic:: Democracy, Institutions, Propaganda, and Disinformation
Political Geography:: Indonesia and Southeast Asia

6. Europe’s Migration Governance Dilemma

Author:: Elena Potitò
Publication Date:: 02-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: The EU’s migration governance model increasingly relies on externalisation, which is widely criticised for lacking accountability and failing to respect fundamental rights. This model is particularly pronounced in the Western Balkans, where infringements of procedural rights and violent practices against migrants are frequently reported. If the EU fails to reconcile its own values with its migration policies, it will further undermine its international credibility, at the expense of individuals attempting to reach EU borders.
Topic:: Migration, Governance, European Union, Refugees, Borders, and Externalization
Political Geography:: Europe and Balkans

7. Netanyahu’s Long Game to Reorder the Middle East

Author:: Akram Zaoui
Publication Date:: 03-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: As the inspirator of the ongoing war in the Middle East, Netanyahu’s actions must be read through decades of political action. US participation in the war marks the apex of years of manoeuvring in Washington to reshape the region. Goals sought include obliteration of regional strategic threats and normalisation with Arab countries from a position of undisputable strength.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Normalization, Benjamin Netanyahu, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:: Iran, Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and United States of America

8. Nuclear Energy’s New Momentum: Can World Capacity Triple by 2050?

Author:: Julius Cesar Imperial Trajano
Publication Date:: 03-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The second Nuclear Energy Summit highlighted renewed global momentum to expand nuclear power as countries face volatile fossil-fuel supplies amid ongoing Middle East tensions. With governments pledging to triple nuclear capacity by 2050, nuclear energy is once again being positioned as a reliable low-carbon pillar of energy security. However, the speed and credibility of this expansion will ultimately depend not only on financing and technology, but also on regulatory institutions, industrial capacity, and a skilled workforce needed to govern it safely.
Topic:: Carbon Emissions, Nuclear Energy, and Energy Security
Political Geography:: Middle East and Global Focus

9. Global Water Bankruptcy: Southeast Asia’s Water Future Is a Peace and Security Issue

Author:: Adam Hansen and Julius Cesar Imperial Trajano
Publication Date:: 04-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: As the world enters an era of water bankruptcy, Southeast Asia faces a future with increased competition over shared water resources. With data centres reliant on water-intensive cooling systems, adding to the region’s drivers of water insecurity, stronger multistakeholder cooperation and confidence-building measures are crucial to reduce tensions and enhance sustainable water management.
Topic:: Security, Natural Resources, Water, Peace, Competition, and Data Centers
Political Geography:: Asia and Southeast Asia

10. Food Security in ASEAN’s 2026 Agenda: Perspectives on Human Security and Inclusiveness Amidst Crises

Author:: Jose M. L. Montesclaros, Kayven Tan, and Mely Caballero-Anthony
Publication Date:: 04-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: Farmers form the backbone of ASEAN agriculture but are increasingly vulnerable amidst crises and longer-term structural challenges, including ageing, urbanisation, and natural disasters. A human security approach that prioritises these vulnerabilities is integral to resilience.
Topic:: Agriculture, Natural Disasters, Urbanization, Food Security, Human Security, ASEAN, and Inclusion
Political Geography:: Asia and Global Focus

11. The UN Climate Regime and the US Withdrawal

Author:: Margareth Sembiring
Publication Date:: 04-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The Trump administration announced the US withdrawal from the international climate regime earlier this year. One possible explanation lies in the growing influence of the IPCC’s scientific authority in domestic spheres, which may have altered the perceived costs and benefits of continued participation. Despite the US absence, the UNFCCC remains an important platform for international climate cooperation.
Topic:: Climate Change, International Cooperation, United Nations, and Donald Trump
Political Geography:: Global Focus and United States of America

12. Securing ASEAN’s Food Resilience Amidst the Middle East Conflict

Author:: Jose M. L. Montesclaros, Kayven Tan, and Mely Caballero-Anthony
Publication Date:: 03-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The Middle East conflict is set to have a double-whammy impact on both ASEAN’s import of fertilisers, and its energy-intensive fertiliser production. The timing is critical as in the coming months, the five major crops, including rice, are being planted in ASEAN.
Topic:: Agriculture, Food Security, Resilience, and ASEAN
Political Geography:: Middle East and Asia

13. Effective Sustainable Development

Author:: Barry Buzan
Publication Date:: 04-2026
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: How can we make the concept of sustainable development more effective? Finding a pathway towards effective sustainable development (ESD) becomes more urgent as global warming specifically, and the Anthropocene crisis generally, intensify. It helps to take a long view of development and its role in global society (the anthroposphere) before focusing on what characteristics ESD needs to have.
Topic:: Security, Climate Change, Anthropocene, and Sustainable Development
Political Geography:: Asia

14. Reflections on WTO Reform: Lecture series by Ignacio Garcia Bercero

Author:: Ignacio Garcia Bercero
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: LSE IDEAS
Abstract:: This special edition of our Expert Analysis presents four lectures (edited for publication) on World Trade Organization reform delivered by the author at LSE IDEAS during June-November 2022 and concluding in May 2023. The paper ends on a postscript reflecting on the perspectives on the different issues discussed in the lectures following the outcome of the 13th Ministerial Conference of the WTO in February-March 2024, as well as the November 2024 re-election of Donald Trump—on the basis of a disruptive trade policy agenda.
Topic:: Reform, Trade Policy, Donald Trump, and WTO
Political Geography:: Global Focus

15. Assad’s Fall Is an Opportunity for a U.S. Win Over China

Author:: Grant Rumley
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Beijing consistently supported the regime’s brutal repressive measures, so cozying up to the rebel-led transition government may be more difficult than it expects. In the months since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023, China has seized on the conflict to criticize not only Israel but by extension the U.S. and its position in the region. For years, Chinese diplomats had been careful to toe a centrist line in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, calibrating their language to avoid offending either side too greatly. Yet as the conflict has dragged on the past year, and as the region’s criticisms of the U.S. have risen, Beijing sensed an opportunity to diminish the U.S. standing while boosting its own. Chinese officials have regularly omitted mention of Hamas’s atrocities while blasting Israel and the U.S. for its support. Now, however, the collapse of the Assad regime in Syria has presented the U.S. with a similar opportunity...
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Strategic Competition, Bashar al-Assad, 2023 Gaza War, and Transitional Government
Political Geography:: China, Middle East, Syria, and United States of America

16. In Syria, America Should Be Ruthlessly Focused on the Islamic State

Author:: Joseph Votel and Elizabeth Dent
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: With the U.S. military presence on a potentially short timetable, officials should prioritize policies that ensure the continued security of Islamic State detention facilities, such as brokering local ceasefire agreements and alleviating Turkish concerns. Five years ago, we warned that a snap decision to depart Syria would be a devastating setback and damage American credibility. A few weeks later, amongst a U.S. withdrawal and subsequent Turkish invasion into areas held by the Syrian Democratic Forces, we argued the United States would need to maintain the ability to fight remnants of the Islamic State and ensure the fighters in detention remain there. Washington ceded much of its negotiating power in the country to Moscow and Ankara, only to reverse course a few months later and keep a small allotment of troops in northeast Syria to prevent a power vacuum and a run on Syrian oil and gas infrastructure. Today, the United States and its Kurdish-led partners face a nearly identical set of challenges, but in a massively changed balance of power in Syria. And despite political nominees’ reassurances that the United States is unlikely to abandon its partners there, Trump himself has been more ambivalent...
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Islamic State, and Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)
Political Geography:: Turkey, Middle East, Syria, and United States of America

17. PMF Non-Deployment to Save Assad: Sudani’s View Contradicted by Iran

Author:: Hamdi Malik
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: The Iraqi prime minister portrayed Baghdad's non-intervention in Syria as a sovereign decision, but Iranian leaders gave a different explanation. Iranian and Iraqi narratives surrounding recent events in Syria reveal clear contradictions, particularly regarding the role of Iraqi muqawama (resistance) militias in efforts to preserve Bashar al-Assad’s regime. High-ranking Iranian officials offered accounts that challenged Iraqi prime minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani’s portrayal of events, asserting that external threats rather than Sudani’s leadership ultimately limited the extent of Iraq’s involvement.
Topic:: Non State Actors, Syrian War, Bashar al-Assad, and Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF)
Political Geography:: Iraq, Middle East, and Syria

18. Gaza Ceasefire: Implications for Israel, Hamas, and U.S. Policy

Author:: Dennis Ross, Matthew Levitt, and Neomi Neumann
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:: Former Israeli and U.S. officials discuss the deal’s timing, provisions, and near-term prospects, outlining the Trump administration’s practical options for advancing peace in Gaza and beyond.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Ceasefire, Armed Conflict, and 2023 Gaza War
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Palestine, Gaza, and United States of America

19. The US TikTok Ban, the RedNote Moment and China

Author:: Aurelio Insisa
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: On 23 April 2024, the US Senate passed a bill forcing the Chinese company ByteDance to choose between divesting from its prized social platform TikTok, one of the dominant apps among Americans aged 18-29,[1] or accepting its ban on US soil. Following ByteDance’s refusal to divest, the US Supreme Court upheld the ban on 17 January 2025. The ban on TikTok rested on national security grounds. TikTok is technically a limited liability corporation registered in Delaware and with headquarters in Singapore and Los Angeles. Yet, its parent company ByteDance, while incorporated in the Cayman Islands, is based in Beijing and subject to a domestic legal framework legally requiring it to “provide assistance” to the Chinese government, including, crucially, giving up the data of TikTok users.[2] Further highlighting the limited autonomy of the company vis-à-vis Chinese authorities, “cells” of the Chinese Communist Party have been embedded within the structures of the company since 2017.[3] In short, ByteDance cannot guarantee that the personal data of its users could be kept at arm’s length from Beijing. While the Senate’s bill enjoyed bipartisan support, then President-elect Donald J. Trump publicly stated that he would not enforce the ban. Throughout the 2024 electoral campaign, Trump had announced – in contrast with most of the Republican Party members of Congress – his opposition to the bill, acknowledging how the platform had been a relevant tool for re-election.[4] On 19 January, Trump announced that he would consider imposing a 90-day delay of the ban and search for a joint-venture between ByteDance and a US company.[5] Two days later, he suggested the possibility that either Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla, owner of X, and Administrator of the Department of Government Efficiency in the new administration), or Larry Ellison (chairman of Oracle) would buy the social media platform.[6]
Topic:: Social Media, Digital Policy, and TikTok
Political Geography:: China, Asia, North America, and United States of America

20. Trump First, America Second

Author:: Riccardo Alcaro
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: In his inaugural address to a nation half-enthusiastic and half-stunned still by the most extraordinary political comeback in US history, Donald Trump portrayed himself as the saviour of the nation, chosen by God Himself to finally turn America First from slogan to reality and truly ‘make America great again’.[1] The mixture of politics, ideology and megalomaniac eschatology is especially interesting because Trump has tied the fate of the nation to his personal fortunes like no other president before him. As he puts it, the realisation of America First is inextricably linked to his personal power.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Ideology, Far Right, Donald Trump, and Nativism
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

21. A Tough Opponent for Trump: Inflation

Author:: Matteo Bursi
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: According to several pre-election polls, the economy was perceived by many US voters as the key topic in deciding whether to vote Democratic or Republican in the 2024 presidential elections.[1] During Joe Biden’s administration, the US GDP grew steadily and unemployment reached very low levels. Nevertheless, for the first time since 2004, the Democratic Party lost the presidency, the popular vote, the House of Representatives and the Senate. This seemingly paradoxical situation, according to some commentators, finds an explanation in the issue of inflation.[2] From this perspective, a significant number of Americans reportedly voted for Donald Trump due to the sharp price increases experienced during the past four years, blaming the outgoing Democratic administration for failing to sufficiently protect the purchasing power of US citizens and businesses. During and after the election campaign, the tycoon has claimed that he can curb inflation, emphasising his plan to intensify the exploitation of domestic energy resources. This proposal – covered by one of the many executive orders signed by Trump upon taking office – could help contain price increases but is unlikely to be a definitive solution. Likewise, its effectiveness could be largely offset by inflationary pressures arising from other policies that the Republican politician has promised to implement.
Topic:: Domestic Politics, Economic Policy, Inflation, and Donald Trump
Political Geography:: North America and United States of America

22. The New Syria and the Regional Balance of Power

Author:: Amjed Rasheed
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: The sudden fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime on 8 December 2024 and the subsequent rise of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), now leading the Syrian interim government in the country, have dramatically shaped the regional balance of power. Remarkably, the HTS-led interim government has been making some serious attempts to consolidate its control, and boost legitimacy, but also rebuild Syria after 14 years of civil war and a half-a-century of Assad dynasty rule. In its pursuit to achieve these ends, the interim government has launched diplomatic efforts toward regional and international powerhouses. Everybody, including Russia, is currently welcome to visit Damascus. Yet there is also failure so far to open up the transition to others, which could generate grievances and lead to disruptive regional interference. While the success of such a policy remains to be gauged, the HTS approach to accommodate regional contradiction is worth explaining.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Syrian War, Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), and Regional Politics
Political Geography:: Russia, Turkey, Middle East, Syria, and Gulf Nations

23. The Mattei Plan One Year On

Author:: Filippo Simonelli
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: On 28-29 January 2024, the Italian Senate hosted the Italy-Africa Summit, bringing together 21 heads of state and government from African countries, along with other representatives of African, European and global organisations. The African representatives were gathered by the announcement that Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni would publicly present the Mattei Plan, a project with which the Italian government wants to redesign relations with the continent based on “equal-to-equal” collaboration. A year later, it is possible to take a first stock of announcements, projects and weaknesses that have emerged so far.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Development, Public-Private Partnership, Collaboration, and Mattei Plan
Political Geography:: Africa, Italy, and North America

24. The European Screening Mechanism and Its Implications for Chinese FDI

Author:: Emanuele Ballestracci
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: The European Commission has recently proposed a revision of the EU foreign direct investment (FDI) screening mechanism, originally established in 2020. The aim is to further strengthen the EU’s economic security within the framework of its “de-risking” policy, which aims to manage risks coming from the economic and technological engagement with China.[1] The new proposal aims to address major shortcomings in the current screening mechanism, expanding its scope to greenfield investments and European outward FDI. However, this could conflict with the EU’s goal of encouraging Chinese greenfield investment and joint ventures, particularly in the electric vehicle (EV) sector.
Topic:: Science and Technology, Foreign Direct Investment, European Union, and Economic Security
Political Geography:: China, Europe, and Asia

25. Trump’s Call with Putin Raises Great Concerns, Few Hopes

Author:: Riccardo Alcaro
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: US President Donald Trump’s phone call with Russia’s leader Vladimir Putin, especially when read in combination with Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth’s re-definition of US Europe policy, casts a long shadow. There are good reasons to be more concerned than hopeful about the peace deal that seems to be taking shape in the minds of the US Administration. At the same time, there are elements suggesting a less pessimistic assessment of the looming negotiations. Trump’s call with Putin has made a big splash but has not yet pierced Ukraine’s armour.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, European Union, Donald Trump, and Vladimir Putin
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, North America, and United States of America

26. Another Transatlanticism Is Possible: Europe’s Moment in Latin America amid Trump’s Return

Author:: Raffaele Piras
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: Donald Trump’s return to the White House has reignited his hallmark “America First” agenda, with significant consequences for Latin America. During his inaugural address, Trump emphasised the need to regain US control of the Panama Canal, framing it as a cornerstone of national security amidst heightened competition with China.[1] This rhetoric marks the continuation of a policy approach that relies on coercion and transactional diplomacy to achieve US objectives. While Trump’s focus on Latin America will undoubtedly reshape the region’s geopolitical dynamics, it also presents a strategic opportunity for the European Union to strengthen its role as a stabilising force and reliable partner.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Politics, European Union, Institutions, and Transatlantic Relations
Political Geography:: Europe, Latin America, North America, and United States of America

27. A Three-year War and Four Lessons for Europe

Author:: Alessandro Marrone
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: The tragic third anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began on 24 February 2022 witnesses the start of diplomatic talks between Russia and the United States on the possible end of the conflict. Three years of large-scale, high-intensity war of attrition in Europe, with over a million dead or injured soldiers, offers at least four politico-military lessons for European countries, the EU and NATO. Lessons to bear in mind through this negotiation for the future not only of Ukraine but of the security of the whole continent.
Topic:: Defense Policy, NATO, Transatlantic Relations, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Europe and Ukraine

28. Giorgia Meloni’s Italy between Trump and Europe: Fateful Choices Ahead

Author:: Maria Luisa Fantappiè, Leo Goretti, and Filippo Simonelli
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: The priority should be “preventing divisions within the West and the transatlantic alliance”, while “rooting for” this or that side would not be helpful: it is thus that Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni commented on the spat in the Oval Office between President Volodymyr Zelensky and Donald Trump,[1] and by extension, between Washington and Europe. In the aftermath of the clash, while most European leaders openly supported Zelensky, Meloni’s reticence was notable. The choice was tough. Siding with Zelensky would jeopardise Meloni’s aspiration to become the go-to EU leader for Washington. And yet, siding with Trump would lay bare a lack of commitment to Europe and especially the defence of Ukraine, for which Meloni had previously shown constant support. At the ensuing London Summit on Ukraine, Meloni couldn’t hide her discomfort.[2] The resolve of European leaders – spearheaded by the French president Emmanuel Macron and the UK’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer – in advocating for a strategic Europe seemed to shelve Meloni’s carefully crafted plan to leverage her bilateral ties with the Trump administration to bolster her role in Europe – even at the cost of fragmenting its unity. Meanwhile, at home, her junior coalition partner Matteo Salvini openly sided with Trump, in an attempt to present himself as an alternative to Meloni and to win consensus among that sizable chunk of the Italian public opinion who wants to see an end to the war in Ukraine.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Transatlantic Relations, Donald Trump, Russia-Ukraine War, and Giorgia Meloni
Political Geography:: Europe, Italy, and United States of America

29. Trump’s Exit from the Paris Agreement: An Opportunity for the EU to Back South Africa’s Climate Leadership

Author:: Bongiwe Ngcobo-Mphahlele and Darlington Tshuma
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: In his address to the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos in January 2025,[1] South Africa’s President Cyril Ramaphosa – who currently chairs the G20, the first African leader to do so – outlined a bold and assertive agenda centred on global cooperation, inclusive growth and sustainable development. His address included a renewed call for transparency in the allocation of climate resources and the reform of the global financial architecture that has long been criticised as too rigid to support long-term sustainable development in the Global South.[2]
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Climate Change, Economics, and Sustainable Development
Political Geography:: Europe, South Africa, North America, and United States of America

30. Can France Provide European Allies with Nuclear Deterrence?

Author:: Roberto Zadra
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: In his speech to fellow citizens on 5 March, French President Emmanuel Macron announced the opening of a “strategic debate on the protection of our allies on the European continent by our (nuclear) deterrent”.[1] It is not the first time: already in the 1990s then-president François Mitterrand alluded to a vocation européenne of French nuclear deterrence.[2] Macron himself proposed, already in February 2020, the opening of a dialogue on the matter.[3] The initiative was not very successful at the time, essentially because European allies considered the security guarantees provided by the United States to Europe through NATO sufficient, together with the repeated reassurances of NATO communiqués that the British and French nuclear forces “have a deterrent role of their own and contribute significantly to the overall security of the Alliance”.[4] This time, however, the reactions by many European allied countries to the French initiative will probably be different. For a simple reason: excluding the deployment of its own forces to Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire and denying security guarantees to Kyiv, the Trump administration fuels the fears of European allies that Washington’s commitment to collective defence is less solid than in the past. Indeed, the Ukraine crisis has shown the limitations of the traditional NATO distinction between Article 5 and non-Article 5 – that is, between those who are members of NATO and therefore protected by collective defence, and those who are not because collective defence is not valid for NATO partners – as it has laid bare how crisis management and cooperative security are having a direct impact on (the perceived lack of US commitment to) collective defence in Europe.
Topic:: Defense Policy, NATO, Nuclear Weapons, Deterrence, and Transatlantic Relations
Political Geography:: Europe and France

31. NATO-Europe-US Cooperation in the Indo-Pacific: Challenging Times Ahead

Author:: Gabriele Abbondanza
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Istituto Affari Internazionali
Abstract:: As the Indo-Pacific gradually becomes the world’s geopolitical and geoeconomic epicentre, states and regional organisations are progressively pivoting to it. Due to a combination of drivers – chiefly US pressure, economic opportunities, strategic interests and politico-normative priorities – European and Indo-Pacific actors have increased cooperation with Washington and NATO in the region. However, the second Trump administration looks considerably less aligned with the conventional pillars of US foreign policy. In light of the unfolding fracture between the US and its European allies over Ukraine, what lies ahead for NATO-Europe-US cooperation in the Indo-Pacific?
Topic:: NATO, International Cooperation, Geopolitics, Transatlantic Relations, and Military
Political Geography:: Europe, United States of America, and Indo-Pacific

32. Simul in the Middle East: Regional Strategic Ramifications of Israel and Hezbollah’s War

Author:: Boushra Jaber
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP)
Abstract:: This report aims to explore the background of the Hezbollah-Israel conflict and the context surrounding their most recent war. It argues that the causes and consequences of this war have both domestic and broader regional and international dimensions. The report underlines the significant ramifications of this war by analysing the origins, progression, and outcomes of the conflict at both domestic and regional levels, as well as its international resonance. Additionally, it presents policy recommendations to address these challenges, particularly in Lebanon, focusing on containing Hezbollah and strengthening state governance. Eventually, the report highlights two main findings: first, the conflict underscores the profound geopolitical interconnections within the Middle East, illustrating how instability in one nation can create a ripple effect throughout the region, ultimately impacting its overall stability. Second, it stresses the urgent need for carefully considered and well-informed policies to navigate the complexities and interdependencies inherent in the region.
Topic:: Geopolitics, Hezbollah, Armed Conflict, and Regional Politics
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and Lebanon

33. Collateral Effects of the Tariff War on ASEAN Food Security

Author:: Jose M. L. Montesclaros and Kayven Tan
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The United States and China are locked in a cycle of escalating tariffs, with likely knock-on impacts on global food supplies and prices. In response to increases in tariff rates imposed by the US on China’s exports, China hit back with additional tariffs on US$21 billion worth of US agricultural products in March 2025. Beijing’s retaliatory tariffs will mean an additional 10 per cent tariff on soybeans, sorghum, beef, pork, aquatic and dairy products, fruits, and vegetables, and an additional 15 per cent tariff on wheat, corn, maize, and chicken from the US. Given the tense words exchanged by leaders and officials on both sides in recent days, neither side appears ready to back down from these trade measures. The food security concern for ASEAN states is whether the trade war will impact the supply and prices of food in a region where 37 per cent, or 251 million people, cannot afford a healthy diet. Many Asian states rely heavily on imports for their food. Wheat is used in household staples such as noodles and bread, while corn and soybeans are used for food and livestock feed.
Topic:: Food Security, Tariffs, Trade Wars, ASEAN, and Supply Chains
Political Geography:: China, Asia, and United States of America

34. Managing Global Biological Risks: Towards a Security-Health Coordination Framework

Author:: Jose M. L. Montesclaros, Jeselyn, and Mely Caballero-Anthony
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The task of securing the world against biological risks is complicated by enforcement and information challenges. A security-health coordination framework is crucial for securing cooperation among a diverse set of actors with different but converging mandates.
Topic:: Security, Biosecurity, Crisis Management, Risk, Public Health, and COVID-19
Political Geography:: Global Focus

35. Protecting Food Security in the Face of Tariffs and Trade Wars

Author:: Paul Teng
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The uncertainty caused by tariffs and trade disputes affects food security. Increases in geopolitical tensions will undermine the best plans to maintain global supply chains, encouraging countries to develop alternative ones. Consumers in Southeast Asia, even though far from the geographic areas of dispute, will ultimately suffer from interruptions in food availability and price hikes. National strategies to ensure food security are needed.
Topic:: Food Security, Tariffs, Trade Wars, and Supply Chains
Political Geography:: Asia and Southeast Asia

36. Biosecurity Awareness and Education in Southeast Asia

Author:: Julius Caesar Trajano and Jeselyn
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: ASEAN leaders recognise the critical importance of biosecurity. But there is a need to enhance the security culture and biosecurity awareness among life science, medical, and biotechnology professionals to mitigate the misuse of biological materials.
Topic:: Security, Education, Biosecurity, and Biotechnology
Political Geography:: Asia and Southeast Asia

37. California Wildfires and Planetary Health

Author:: Pey Peili
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Centre for Non-Traditional Security Studies, S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
Abstract:: The California wildfires are an environmental disaster, but they also point to a deeper set of challenges, not only for the United States of America but for the global community. Such wildfires, which are ever-increasing in frequency and scale due to the impact of climate change, result in structural damage and long-term health risks that disproportionately affect vulnerable communities and are a costly burden to the state. A planetary health approach highlights the need for a more comprehensive understanding of the climate-environment-health interface in managing the risk and incidence of wildfires.
Topic:: Climate Change, Health, Natural Disasters, and Wildfires
Political Geography:: California, North America, and United States of America

38. To Vote or Not to Vote: Venezuelans Face Another Election Choice

Author:: Catherine Ellis
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the shadow of a contested presidential vote, Venezuela’s upcoming regional elections reveal more about power struggles than democratic representation.
Topic:: Elections, Domestic Politics, Representation, and Voting
Political Geography:: South America and Venezuela

39. Indigenous Women Survivors of Guatemala’s Rape Camps Seek Justice

Author:: Jo-Marie Burt, Paulo Estrada, and Eduardo Colindres
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Forty years after surviving state violence, Maya Achi women return to court to demand justice, challenging a long legacy of impunity for crimes against humanity.
Topic:: Rape, Sexual Violence, Accountability, Justice, and Crimes Against Humanity
Political Geography:: Central America and Guatemala

40. The Modern Surveillance State: Mexico and the CIA during the Cold War

Author:: Claire Dorfman
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Newly declassified CIA documents reveal the links between Mexico’s contemporary surveillance state and a uniquely close Cold War collaboration with U.S. intelligence agencies.
Topic:: Cold War, Intelligence, Surveillance, and Central Intelligence Agency (CIA)
Political Geography:: Latin America and Mexico

41. The Reinvention of the Strike: 10 Years of Feminist Uprising in Argentina

Author:: Verónica Gago and Linas Kojala
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: This year marks the 10-year anniversary of the Ni Una Menos movement. Understanding the tensions that mark these moments of intense rearrangements and changes in increasingly militarized capitalism is urgent.
Topic:: Capitalism, Protests, and Labor Strike
Political Geography:: Argentina and South America

42. Debates over TPS for Venezuelans Reveal Diasporic Divide

Author:: Francisco Llinas Casas and Erick Moreno Superlano
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The battle over Temporary Protected Status provides a window into the class, racial, and political divisions within the Venezuelan diaspora in the United States.
Topic:: Politics, Race, Diaspora, Class, Immigration Policy, and Temporary Protection Status (TPS)
Political Geography:: South America and Venezuela

43. Honduran Farmers Continue Their Fight for Land and Justice

Author:: Jaime Jacques
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: After the murder of their leader, communities in the Aguán Valley have continued their fight against corruption, impunity, and the pollution of their lands.
Topic:: Justice, Land Rights, Pollution, and Activism
Political Geography:: Central America and Honduras

44. Cuerpx en Vela: Travesti Performance Against the Necro-State

Author:: Malú Machuca Rose
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Artist Germa Machuca uses her body as an altar and guiding light to illuminate the connections across anti-trans and anti-Indigenous violence in Peru.
Topic:: Arts, Violence, Indigenous, Transgender, and Travesti
Political Geography:: South America and Peru

45. At the Thresholds: Labor Organizing as Travesti-Trans Formal Workers in Argentina

Author:: Francisco Fernández Romero, Pato Laterra, and Victor Sánchez
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Travesti and trans workers in the formal sector expand imaginaries about the relationship between LGTBQ+ people and work, contributing to broader labor struggles for all of society.
Topic:: Labor Issues, LGBT+, Transgender, and Organizing
Political Geography:: Argentina and South America

46. For Trans Men in Colombia, All Cops Are Bastards

Author:: Nikita Dupuis-Vargas Latorre
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Violence against trans men by state forces is widespread—and little studied. The profiling inherent to mandatory military service only aggravates the problem.
Topic:: Violence, LGBT+, Police, Transgender, and Police Brutality
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

47. Transfeminist Struggles Against Debt and Dispossession

Author:: Lucía Cavallero
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In Argentina, sexual dissidents mobilize transversal alliances to denounce indebtedness as a tool of capitalist displacement and violence.
Topic:: Debt, Capitalism, Displacement, Feminism, Violence, and Transgender
Political Geography:: Argentina and South America

48. Community Forestry Addresses Environmental Destruction in Mexico

Author:: Linda Farthing
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Community-based governance structures put decision-making about Ixlán de Juarez’s forests into local hands, creating economic opportunity and reversing centuries of deforestation in the town.
Topic:: Environment, Governance, Deforestation, Forestry, and Community Initiatives
Political Geography:: Latin America and Mexico

49. Neofascist March Calls for the Expulsion of Haitians in Punta Cana

Author:: Simón Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: A recent violent and destructive march calling for the expulsion of Haitians in Punta Cana demonstrates the vehement anti-Haitianism and rising fascism prevalent in the Dominican Republic.
Topic:: Economics, Far Right, Migrant Workers, and Neofascism
Political Geography:: Latin America, Caribbean, Haiti, and Dominican Republic

50. El Salvador, No Place for Asylum Seekers

Author:: Laura Blume, Stephanie Sosa, and Andrea García Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Deported from the United States without due process, asylum seekers now face political persecution and deadly conditions in El Salvador’s mega-prisons as the Trump administration outsources cruelty to the Bukele regime.
Topic:: Prisons/Penal Systems, Donald Trump, Deportation, Due Process, Nayib Bukele, and Asylum Seekers
Political Geography:: Central America, El Salvador, and United States of America

51. Colombia's Just Energy Transition

Author:: Patricia Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: President Gustavo Petro is leading the way in promoting a fossil fuel phase-out in South America and beyond, but there are challenges and contradictions in Colombia’s actions at home.
Topic:: Climate Change, Fossil Fuels, and Energy Transition
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

52. Tren de Aragua: A Gang, Not Terrorist Invaders

Author:: Elliott Young
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Trump’s use of the Alien Enemies Act to target Venezuelan migrants relies on a false narrative about Tren de Aragua and the Venezuelan state, and sets a dangerous precedent for immigrant rights.
Topic:: Immigration, Deportation, Gangs, and Tren de Aragua
Political Geography:: South America, Venezuela, and United States of America

53. Ecuador Enters "Trump Mode" with Noboa Victory

Author:: Ociel Alí López
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Authoritarian drift and political blackmail shape the runoff election in Ecuador, where incumbent President Daniel Noboa won Sunday’s vote.
Topic:: Authoritarianism, Elections, Domestic Politics, Democratic Backsliding, and Daniel Noboa
Political Geography:: Central America and Ecuador

54. The Life of a Trans Mexican Revolutionary, in Drag

Author:: Olivia Ferrari
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Drag performers mine the story of the revolutionary hero and trans icon Amelio Robles to better understand the past and shape the future.
Topic:: History, Transgender, Amelio Robles, Drag, and Mexican Revolution
Political Geography:: Latin America and Mexico

55. Can Democracy Stop Extractivism and Authoritarianism?

Author:: Paula Sevilla Núñez
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Ecuador’s electorate will go to a runoff vote in April in a highly polarized climate. At stake is a broader political struggle between authoritarianism and democracy.
Topic:: Authoritarianism, Elections, Democracy, and Extractivism
Political Geography:: Central America and Ecuador

56. Despite Regional Opposition, a Canadian Company Pursues Mining in Santander

Author:: Lital Khaikin
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the face of rifts over securitization issues and calls for conservation, Aris Mining intends to launch the Soto Norte mine in Santander, Colombia, in 2029.
Topic:: Environment, Mining, Conservation, and Securitization
Political Geography:: Canada, Colombia, and South America

57. In a Polarized Political Climate, Ecuador Heads to a Presidential Runoff

Author:: Marc Becker
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Ecuador held its general election on February 9. Defying the polls, Ecuadorians will be heading to a runoff race in April to choose its next president.
Topic:: Elections, Domestic Politics, and Polarization
Political Geography:: Central America and Ecuador

58. In the Face of Violence, Catatumbo’s Communities Call for Solidarity

Author:: Priscyll Anctil Avoine and Adriana Pérez-Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Failed peace negotiations and the battle for control over valuable territory have produced an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe.
Topic:: Solidarity, Negotiation, Humanitarian Crisis, and FARC
Political Geography:: Colombia, South America, and Catatumbo

59. A Proposal for Plurinational Popular Power Woven from Below

Author:: Malvika Gupta
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Leonidas Iza, Ecuador’s presidential candidate with the Indigenous-aligned Pachakutik political movement, outlines his vision for governing a Plurinational State.
Topic:: Politics, Elections, Domestic Politics, Indigenous, and Plurinationalism
Political Geography:: Central America and Ecuador

60. Panama Canal Takeover: An Old Ghost in a Curious Present

Author:: Francisco Javier Bonilla
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Trump's threat to take back the Panama Canal signals a new era of U.S. expansionism and the greatest attack on Central American sovereignty since the 1990s.
Topic:: Sovereignty, Donald Trump, Panama Canal, and Expansionism
Political Geography:: Central America and Panama

61. The Forgotten Victims: Orphans of Femicide in Colombia

Author:: Anna Abraham, Tony Kirby, and David García
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the face of the femicide crisis in Colombia, a second crisis persists: hundreds of children are left orphaned each year and without support from the state.
Topic:: Crime, Children, Gender Based Violence, Femicide, and Orphans
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

62. Trump and the Threat of Domestic Militarization

Author:: Dawn Paley and Ojalá
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Mexico's experience with the militarization of prohibition and migration is defined by violence and displacement.
Topic:: Migration, Displacement, Violence, Donald Trump, and Militarization
Political Geography:: Latin America and Mexico

63. The Disappearance of a Mapuche Elder is an Indictment of Chile’s “Progressive” Government

Author:: Carole Concha Bell
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Activists link the disappearance of land defender Julia Chuñil to the state’s militarization of the region and its deep ties to rapacious forestry companies.
Topic:: Disappearance, Land Rights, Indigenous, Deforestation, and Mapuche
Political Geography:: South America and Chile

64. Forensic Crisis Reveals Institutional Responsibility in Mexico City’s Disappearance Crisis

Author:: Eliana Gilet, Madeleine Wattenbarger, and Gleider I. Hernández
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In Mexico City, families of the disappeared mobilize for justice for their loved ones and the accountability of forensic authorities.
Topic:: Crime, Accountability, Police, Disappearance, Activism, and Forensics
Political Geography:: Latin America, Mexico, and Mexico City

65. Mass Grave in Medellín Tourist Hotspot Sparks War of Words—and Walls

Author:: Joshua Collins
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The discovery in historic neighborhood Comuna 13, a neighborhood known for its art as much as its dark past, has reignited the debate over paramilitarism in the country.
Topic:: Arts, Tourism, Memory, Paramilitary, and Mass Grave
Political Geography:: Colombia, South America, and Medellín

66. This Spanglish Bookstore In New York Is Reclaiming Bushwick's Sense Of Latinidad

Author:: Victoria Mortimer
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Mil Mundos began as a means for María Herrón to reclaim her identity. Now, this bookstore’s founder is building a community among Latines in Brooklyn, New York.
Topic:: Community, Identity, and Spanglish
Political Geography:: New York, North America, and United States of America

67. A New Mall for the Village: How Carbon Credits Impact Indigenous People in Guyana

Author:: Clarissa Levy and Agência Pública
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In 2022, Guyana became the first country in the world to issue carbon credits on a national scale. Indigenous people say they were excluded from the negotiations and criticize the loss of autonomy in their territories.
Topic:: Negotiation, Indigenous, Autonomy, Carbon Emissions, and Carbon Credits
Political Geography:: South America and Guyana

68. The U.S. Is Helping Brazilian Police Kill

Author:: Joseph Bouchard
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Brazil’s highly militarized policing disproportionately impacts poor and racialized communities. By providing funding and training, the United States has helped exacerbate the crisis.
Topic:: Training, Police, Militarization, and Police Brutality
Political Geography:: Brazil, South America, North America, and United States of America

69. Explosive Report and Exposé on Colombia’s Magdalena Medio Oil Industry

Author:: Yago Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: After a two-year investigation, a comprehensive report, BBC documentary, and whistleblower dossier reveal alleged widespread contamination, health impacts, and surveillance by Colombia’s state-owned Ecopetrol.
Topic:: Oil, Surveillance, Journalism, Investigations, State-Owned Enterprises, and Contamination
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

70. Buscadoras in Mexico Under Threat After Grisly Discovery

Author:: Joshua Collins and Daniela Diaz Rangel
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: News of a mass grave found by civilian search collectives has reopened an old debate about a lack of political will on the part of authorities to investigate violent crime.
Topic:: Crime, Accountability, Police, and Mass Grave
Political Geography:: Latin America and Mexico

71. "Memory Moves Us": Argentines Take to the Streets for 24M

Author:: Virginia Tognola
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the face of Javier Milei’s deepening attack on civil rights, massive mobilizations in Argentina honor the victims of state terrorism on the Day of Remembrance for Truth and Justice.
Topic:: Protests, Memory, Civil Rights, Truth and Reconciliation, and Javier Milei
Political Geography:: Argentina and South America

72. Destierro y Desmar: Embroidering Experiences of Internal Migration and Forced Displacement

Author:: Morgan Londoño Marín
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: For transmasculine activists uprooted from the lands and waters they called home, embroidery and poetry become practices for expressing nostalgia and building community in Bogotá.
Topic:: Arts, LGBT+, Community, Transgender, Forced Displacement, and Embroidery
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

73. Cuerpos Furiosos: Travesti-Trans Politics for Counterrevolutionary Times

Author:: Cole Rizki
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The Spring 2025 issue of the NACLA Report explores travesti-trans politics across the Americas, an antifascist and transversal politics with the power to reshape our world.
Topic:: Politics, Transgender, Antifascism, and Travesti
Political Geography:: South America, Latin America, and Central America

74. Afro-Feminist Poetics and Trans Life in Cuba: A Conversation with Max Fonseca

Author:: Kerry M. White and Max Fonseca
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The poet and activist talks about the precarity that trans, queer, and Afrodescendent people in Cuba face today, and the life sustaining worlds built by Black trans women in Cuba and its diaspora.
Topic:: Politics, Feminism, Interview, Transgender, Activism, and Afro-Feminism
Political Geography:: Cuba, Latin America, and Caribbean

75. Bodies on Fire: Toloposungo’s Trans-Marika Abolitionist Performance

Author:: Cecilia Azar
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In Colombia, a trans-marika vogue collective takes to the streets to denounce state violence and call for police abolition.
Topic:: Culture, State Violence, Transgender, and Abolitionism
Political Geography:: Colombia and South America

76. Anti-Racist Transfeminism: Against Adjustment and the Plundering of Rights

Author:: Chana Mamani
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the face of discriminatory narratives and laws in Argentina, activists advocate for anti-racist, transfeminist initiatives during this year’s International Women’s Day.
Topic:: Feminism, Racism, Activism, and Transfeminism
Political Geography:: Argentina and South America

77. “Carnival is Always Political”: Keeping Protest Alive in Trinidad

Author:: Khalea Robertson
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Designer Robert Young discusses the political activism woven into the costumes of his band, Vulgar Fraction, which participates annually in Trinidad and Tobago’s Carnival celebrations.
Topic:: Politics, Protests, Interview, and Carnival
Political Geography:: Latin America, Caribbean, and Trinidad and Tobago

78. Brazil’s Student Movement Resists the Far Right, at Home and Abroad

Author:: Alice Taylor
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: In the days after the Trump inauguration, Brazilian students gathered at the largest student congress in Latin America to debate the future of left resistance.
Topic:: Donald Trump, Leftist Politics, Students, and Activism
Political Geography:: Brazil, South America, and Latin America

79. Trump’s Latin America Policy: Inconsistencies and Vacillations

Author:: Steve Ellner
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The Trump administration’s volatility on foreign policy reveals internal divisions within Trumpism. But when threats and populism lose their momentum, the anti-communist hawks may get their way.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Domestic Politics, and Donald Trump
Political Geography:: Latin America

80. The U.S. War on Migrants Gets Help from El Salvador

Author:: Timothy O'Farrell
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: El Salvador's offer to house deportees and U.S. citizens in its infamous prisons – for profit – signals a new and troubling escalation in the criminalization of migration.
Topic:: Migration, Prisons/Penal Systems, Donald Trump, Deportation, and Criminalization
Political Geography:: Latin America, El Salvador, and United States of America

81. Rio’s Samba Parade Spotlights Trans Rights

Author:: Constance Malleret
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: The Tuiuiti samba school uplifts trans identities and highlights the political dimensions of Brazil’s Carnival celebrations.
Topic:: Politics, Dance, Transgender, and Carnival
Political Geography:: Brazil and South America

82. Forbidden African Legacies in the Dominican Republic

Author:: Patricia Rodríguez
Publication Date:: 02-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: The North American Congress on Latin America (NACLA)
Abstract:: Despite the ongoing criminalization and racist persecution of African tradition, from the criminalization of Vodou to restrictions against Gagá, Afro-Dominican culture persists.
Topic:: Culture, Racism, Tradition, Criminalization, and Vodou
Political Geography:: Africa, Latin America, and Dominican Republic

83. South Sudan’s peace process stagnates as violence grips Greater Upper Nile region

Author:: Stefan Bakumenko
Publication Date:: 01-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: In September 2024, South Sudan’s government postponed elections until 2026.1 This and other violations of the 2018 Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS) reinforce the country’s deep divisions and continued, widespread violence.2 After a devastating civil war (2013-2018), politicians, generals, and communities have lacked a unifying identity or incentive and have focused on shoring up their political power, undermining their rivals, and diversifying their economic holdings. As South Sudan’s oil fields dry up, wealth and sustenance are carved out wherever they can be found, often violently.3 The central government in Juba deprives national institutions of funding, neither state nor rebel forces are committed to integrating into a unified military, and state officials at all levels exploit their positions to fund expensive lifestyles and large patronage networks.4 Politicians have long plundered South Sudan’s main source of wealth, its state-owned oil company, Nilepet, to fuel their wars and wealth, and the country remains economically destitute.5 Across South Sudan, violence has become more geographically dispersed as armed groups have fractured. Between 1 January 2013 and the signing of R-ARCSS on 12 September 2018, there were conflict events in 718 distinct locations, compared to 1,720 between 13 September 2018 and 17 January 2025 (see maps below). Given these realities, the peace process could hardly address South Sudan’s myriad, local-level contests over borders, resources, and political positions.6
Topic:: Elections, Violence, Armed Conflict, and Peace Process
Political Geography:: Africa and South Sudan

84. Q&A: What happened in the coastal region of Syria last week?

Author:: Muaz Al Abdullah
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: On 6 March, a group of armed supporters of former President Bashar al-Assad ambushed a group of security forces in Beit Ana village in the Lattakia countryside, killing and injuring several service members. Following the attack, the gunmen targeted an ambulance that tried to evacuate those who were killed and injured. This triggered a large-scale response by the security forces inside Beit Ana that included artillery shelling and helicopter strikes. Later that same day, Assad loyalists launched coordinated attacks across Lattakia and Tartus governorates to restore control over the main junctions that link the two provinces. This sparked a cycle of violence that included extrajudicial killings of people in the Alawite community by regime forces. At least 57 distinct locations in Lattakia, Hama, Homs, and Tartus governorates were the site of violence over four days (see map below).
Topic:: Security, Extrajudicial Killings, Armed Conflict, and Alawites
Political Geography:: Middle East and Syria

85. India — Expert Comment: Kashmir attack stokes tensions along the India-Pakistan Line of Control

Author:: Pearl Pandya
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: On 22 April, separatist militants fired at tourists in the resort town of Pahalgam in the Kashmir Valley, killing at least 26, including one foreign national. This was the deadliest attack on civilians in nearly two decades, and a rare attack against tourists, who have thus far been largely spared from separatist violence.1 Local reports attributed the attack to The Resistance Front (TRF), believed to be an offshoot of the Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Taiba, an Islamist separatist group.2 While the group has focused its activities against Indian security forces, ACLED data show the TRF’s involvement in at least 21 attacks targeting civilians in Kashmir since the group’s founding in 2019. Similar to Tuesday’s attack, non-Kashmiris and Hindus have borne the brunt of the TRF’s violence.
Topic:: Territorial Disputes, Violence, Separatism, and Armed Conflict
Political Geography:: Pakistan, South Asia, India, and Kashmir

86. Expert Comment: The possibility of war between Ethiopia and Eritrea

Author:: Clionadh Raleigh
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: ACLED’s CEO, Prof. Clionadh Raleigh, said: “The lines of this potential conflict are too fragmented, and there is more smoke than fire. The prevailing idea seems to be a rising contest between Eritrea and Ethiopia in and over Tigray, which the Ethiopia National Defense Force (ENDF) withdrew from in February. The ruling Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) party is incredibly and dangerously fragmented, and the non-ruling fragment is making a lot of noise. Although the faction has never admitted it, much is being made about their possible opportunistic alliances with the (former and current enemy) Eritrean government on one hand and fragments of the (former and current enemy) Amhara nationalist militias — Fano — on the other hand. So who would fight whom over what is as confusing and unlikely in Tigray as it is outside of the region.”
Topic:: Armed Conflict, Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), and Ethiopia National Defense Force (ENDF)
Political Geography:: Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Africa

87. Philippines — Expert Comment: Drug war killings continue in the Philippines as former president Rodrigo Duterte faces ICC warrant over anti-drugs crackdown

Author:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: In the weeks that followed the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest of former President Rodrigo Duterte on 11 March, nationwide protests against and in support of him broke out in the Philippines. ACLED data show nearly 60 pro-Duterte and eight anti-Duterte rallies in the Philippines in March. The largest protest took place in Davao City, Duterte’s stronghold, where supporters condemned Philippine President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. for allowing the arrest.1 In contrast, the demonstrations in support of the ICC’s actions were led by the families of drug victims. Meanwhile, Filipinos living overseas gathered in The Hague to support Duterte and ask for his repatriation.
Topic:: War on Drugs, Extrajudicial Killings, International Criminal Court (ICC), and Rodrigo Duterte
Political Geography:: Philippines and Asia-Pacific

88. Iron Wall or iron fist? Palestinian militancy and Israel’s campaign to reshape the northern West Bank

Author:: Ameneh Mehvar and Nasser Khdour
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: The largest forced displacement of Palestinians in the West Bank since 1967 has taken place in the first months of 2025, according to the United Nations:1 Over 40,000 Palestinians have been displaced, and the Jenin, Tulkarm, and Nur al-Shams camps are nearly emptied. This occurred as part of an operation launched on 21 January 2025 called Iron Wall — the largest Israel Defense Forces (IDF) military operation in the West Bank in decades — which initially targeted refugee camps in Jenin and Tulkarm before expanding to other areas, including Tubas and Nablus. The operation was launched shortly after the ceasefire in Gaza went into effect (see graph below), when Israel’s far-right finance minister, Bezalel Smotrich, announced that the government had decided to add security in the West Bank as an official war goal.2 Israeli officials allege that militancy in the West Bank is part of a multi-pronged campaign orchestrated by Iran against Israel,3 and that it is necessary to curb the growing militant presence in the north, citing both the intensity of the fighting and the number of attacks originating from the area — some targeting Israel — as justification for the operation.4 However, the UN and other human rights organizations have criticized Israel’s heavy-handed approach in Operation Iron Wall, stating that its use of force is more suited to war than policing.5
Topic:: Settler Colonialism, Israel Defense Forces (IDF), 2023 Gaza War, Forced Displacement, and Militancy
Political Geography:: Middle East, Israel, Palestine, and West Bank

89. Q&A | Disbanding the PKK: A turning point in Turkey’s longest war?

Author:: Nancy Ezzeddine
Publication Date:: 05-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
Abstract:: On 12 May 2025, the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) officially announced its decision to disband and end its armed struggle. Designated a terrorist organization by Turkey and several of its allies, the group has waged a decades-long insurgency for Kurdish autonomy and rights. This announcement followed a unilateral ceasefire declared on 1 March, after the PKK’s imprisoned leader, Abdullah Öcalan, issued a call for the group to disarm. The PKK has previously made commitments to peace, but last week’s announcement is unprecedented. In this Q&A, ACLED Middle East Analyst Nancy Ezzeddine explains how this development compares to previous efforts, what motivates each side, and whether it marks the start of a sustainable peace process.
Topic:: Insurgency, Kurds, PKK, and Peace Process
Political Geography:: Turkey and Middle East

90. Trapped in debt: China’s role in Laos’ economic crisis

Author:: Keith Barney, Roland Rajah, and Mariza Cooray
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:: Laos is trapped in a severe debt crisis with no resolution in sight, threatening a decade of economic and social malaise. Recent global shocks were key triggers. Yet a crisis was almost inevitable, driven by poor planning and over-investment in the domestic energy sector, financed mostly by Chinese loans and exacerbated by broader fiscal and governance problems. Exiting the crisis will require China to provide substantial debt relief. However, the politics appear unfavourable, as neither side wants to admit failure and accept the consequences. Whether by design or neglect, China has created a debt trap in Laos. The crisis illustrates some of the most troubling pathologies of Chinese lending under the Belt and Road Initiative, and its unwillingness to provide sufficient debt relief, despite the clear-cut need.
Topic:: Debt, Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Economic Crisis, and Energy Sector
Political Geography:: China, Asia, and Laos

91. Hedging bets: Southeast Asia’s approach to China’s aid

Author:: Alexandre Dayant and Grace Stanhope
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:: Southeast Asian states with acute development needs and constrained access to development financing — Cambodia, Laos, and Myanmar — are the most reliant on China. By contrast, lower-middle income countries with more diversified foreign relations — the Philippines and Vietnam — have become far more restrained in accepting Chinese largesse over the last decade. Upper-middle income countries with only moderate development needs — Indonesia, Malaysia, and Thailand — appear to be playing the field of development partners the most opportunistically and politically. Amid weakening demand for Chinese development financing in Southeast Asia, Beijing is recalibrating its offering, transitioning to fewer, smaller, and more targeted projects. In 2022, China implemented $3 billion in development financing in the region, a sharp drop from more than $9 billion in 2015. However, Southeast Asia’s success in reshaping their development ties with China could be undone if Western cuts to development budgets lead to a drastic reduction in financing to the region.
Topic:: Foreign Policy, Foreign Aid, and Economic Development
Political Geography:: China, Vietnam, Philippines, Cambodia, Southeast Asia, Laos, and Myanmar

92. The future of Indonesia’s green industrial policy

Author:: Robert Walker and Hilman Palaon
Publication Date:: 03-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:: Indonesia now supplies more than half of the world’s nickel. Under its green industrial policy, it has also become a leading destination for foreign investment in critical minerals, electric vehicles (EVs), and the battery supply chain. While this strategy has offered some concentrated economic gains, rapid industry expansion has also been costly. Nickel processing has had damaging environmental, labour, and governance impacts, and has increased reliance on Chinese investment, technology, and demand, which presents vulnerabilities. Indonesia can strengthen its industrial policy by improving environmental and labour standards in the nickel industry, fostering a more competitive and export-oriented EV industry, and diversifying trade and investment partners.
Topic:: Foreign Direct Investment, Industry, Green Economy, Nickel, and Critical Minerals
Political Geography:: China, Indonesia, and Southeast Asia

93. Lessons from West Germany's Cold War experience

Author:: Paul Williams
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Public International Law Policy Group
Abstract:: The Russian aggression against Ukraine is now more than three years old. A new US administration is implementing a radical approach to securing a ceasefire and appears poised to limit direct military assistance to Ukraine. Consequently, Europe now recognizes that it must approach this war in a decidedly different manner than might have been presumed only a few months ago. The past may offer hints to a path forward for Ukraine to survive and ultimately prevail against Russia. While the imminent threat of war hung over Europe during the Cold War, West Germany lived under the constant threat of Soviet aggression. Yet, through economic revival, strategic military growth and partnerships, and careful political maneuvering, West Germany not only outlasted its aggressor but laid the groundwork for long-term stability and prosperity. West Germany's experience during the Cold War offers valuable insights for Ukraine in its pursuit of enduring stability and prosperity amid external threats. This blog explores some of the lessons that may be drawn from West Germany across economic and military themes.
Topic:: Cold War, Economics, History, Military, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, Ukraine, and West Germany

94. Plunder by Paperwork: Land Use and Legal Manipulation in Russian-Occupied Ukrainian Territories

Author:: Kateryna Kyrychenko and Patricia Wiater
Publication Date:: 06-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Public International Law Policy Group
Abstract:: In war, land is more than terrain — it is power, memory, identity, and future. Nowhere is this clearer than in the Russian-occupied territories of Ukraine, where the battle is being waged not only with weapons but with registries, decrees, and legal manipulation. Russia’s strategy in Ukraine has not merely been to seize land — but to rewrite the law that governs it. Through reclassification, coerced registration, and demographic engineering, the occupying power is attempting to transform occupation into ownership — to fabricate a claim to sovereignty through legal means. Beneath a facade of administrative normalcy lies a systematic campaign of illegal appropriation — one that violates both international humanitarian law and human rights protections. This blog post outlines the legal framework governing land under occupation, examines how Russia has sought to subvert it, and explains why land law is now a frontline of resistance.
Topic:: Sovereignty, Law, Occupation, International Humanitarian Law (IHL), and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

95. Russian Use of Rape as a Weapon of War in Ukraine

Author:: Paul Williams, Gregory P. Noone, and Sindija Beta
Publication Date:: 06-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Public International Law Policy Group
Abstract:: Numerous investigative reports into the Russian full-scale invasion of Ukraine since 2022 have documented extensive and shocking use of sexual and gender-based violence (“SGBV”) by Russian nationals against Ukrainian civilians, prisoners of war, and other detainees. Russia has long been responsible for a largely under-discussed and distressing amount of SGBV crimes, including rape. Russian SGBV atrocities have historically been especially brutal during World War II in Germany, as well as Afghanistan, Chechnya, and Georgia. Focus has recently turned to the question of how Russia could be held accountable for its use of SGBV as a weapon of war in Ukraine. Various sources of international law provide prohibitions on the use of SGBV during armed conflict, and there have been successful examples of holding individual perpetrators accountable under international criminal law in past conflicts. As the Russian attacks on Ukraine continue unabated, it is appropriate to appraise the scale of SGBV committed, the international laws being breached, and the possible enforcement mechanisms.
Topic:: Gender Based Violence, Rape, Sexual Violence, Atrocities, Armed Conflict, and Russia-Ukraine War
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

96. Recognizing 2014: The Legal and Moral Imperative for Full Reparations for Russian Aggression

Author:: Kateryna Kyrychenko, Paul D. Williams, and Sindija Beta
Publication Date:: 07-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Public International Law Policy Group
Abstract:: Why are the earliest victims of Russia’s war in Ukraine — those targeted since 2014 — still excluded from reparations, when it was exactly the failure to respond to that initial aggression that directly enabled the full-scale invasion in 2022?
Topic:: Law, International Crime, Reparations, Russia-Ukraine War, and Aggression
Political Geography:: Russia, Europe, and Ukraine

97. Remind Me Again Why We Put Together a Neighborhood Party? Recommitting to the Objectives of Special Drawing Rights Issuance

Author:: Betty N. Wainaina
Publication Date:: 06-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:: Unfair Distribution at the Neighborhood Holiday Party Imagine it’s the holiday season, and your neighborhood decides it would be nice to hold an afternoon party where all the families can come together to celebrate. There’s good music, delicious food, fun and games, and time to bond as a community. A small team is organized as the neighborhood party committee. To show your commitment to the party, every household is asked to contribute a commitment fee. Conscious that not everybody has the same financial circumstances, households contribute according to their household size and income, along with their house’s equity level. As the party draws near, the committee announces that they will use the pooled funds to purchase the drinks. However, they announce a pot-luck style contribution for the food. A list of food requirements is distributed, and households sign up to bring their dishes, with households allowed to bring as much or as little as they are able to bring, as long as their contribution can feed at least one person. The day of the party, everyone is excited! It’s a full house as guests arrive with their contributions, and music is blasting through the venue. The MC takes the microphone and gets the party started. Everyone is excited, some people are dancing, drinks are being served, and everyone is mingling happily. The food station also opens, and the announcer reminds guests to scan the QR code on the wristband they were given upon arrival to use as the ticket to get their portioned food. Nothing more is said. As the line quickly forms, people get to the station, scan their wristbands, and are served their food. Some households walk up to the station: a family of four gets fifty plates of food, a family of eight gets two plates of food, a family of six gets ten plates of food, a family of two gets one plate of food. Everyone soon becomes perplexed. What is happening? “This is a potluck, don’t we just serve ourselves based on what is available, and what we like and want?” At the beginning, everyone is trying to keep the peace. But soon, a small boy breaks the ice as he wants ice cream and his family has only been allocated one burger and nothing else. He begins to cry and is evidently very upset. The mother is flustered by all the commotion and tries to plead with the servers to see if her son can get an ice cream. However, the server remains adamant and says no. The allocation is system-generated and no exceptions can be made at this stage. A few other people join the commotion and begin to demand answers as to why food is being allocated in the way it is. The committee chairperson comes to the microphone and seeks to clarify the food is allocated according to how much each household paid as commitment fee. So, households who paid more get a bigger allocation of food, and those who paid less get less. “This is ridiculous,” most think. “We came together to have a party, to enjoy ourselves as a community. We all agreed to bring food to share, why would the sharing now be based on our contributions?” This notion destroyed the very objective of why the party had been put together, which was to build a sense of community and oneness.
Topic:: International Trade and Finance, International Monetary Fund, and Special Drawing Rights (SDRs)
Political Geography:: Global Focus

98. Unlocking Reform Capacity

Author:: Thibault Camelli
Publication Date:: 09-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:: What does the UN80 reform initiative reveal about the limits of United Nations (UN) reform, and how can member states, UN staff, and policymakers avoid ritualized repetition while unlocking actionable reform pathways? The 2025 UN80 initiative is the most wide-ranging internal reform plan launched by the UN in over a decade. However, while its initial set of proposals demonstrates real administrative intent (merging departments, relocating offices, and reducing senior staffing), they reflect a reactive posture centered on budgetary triage, not systemic renewal. UN80 responds to a liquidity crisis, but avoids a structural recalibration of its purpose, mandates, and priorities. The result is a cycle of administrative change without political transformation. It is reform without redesign. Although still exploratory, the UN80 initiative is already receiving pushback. Some observers highlight that it recycles long-standing instruments of managerial reform. Others regret that its mapping of mandate addresses implementation and not prioritization or coherence. The most frequent criticism, however, is that member state consultation has been limited, undermining co-ownership and amplifying concerns of proceduralism: member states urge efficiency but resist structural change, while the Secretariat prioritizes viability over vision. The danger is a performative reform that narrows possibilities, repeating familiar templates without confronting foundational questions. To break the cycle, reform must be reconnected to political purpose. This paper proposes 10 recommendations to shift from reactive reform to institutional stewardship and structured intergovernmental engagement. These recommendations build on existing institutional levers, procedural tools, and political strategies, requiring no new mandates but a willingness to realign tools with political direction. The UN80 initiative comes at a pivotal moment. In an increasingly fragmented global order and declining trust in multilateralism, the stakes of UN reform are no longer limited to internal effectiveness: they now shape the UN’s external legitimacy, operational relevance, and political credibility. If reform remains decoupled from political ambition and absorbed procedurally, it risks being yet another empty exercise with little structural impact. UN80 is an opportunity, but only if reform is reclaimed as a political act.
Topic:: United Nations, Reform, Budget, and Multilateralism
Political Geography:: Global Focus

99. AI for Justice and Justice for AI: Why Access to Justice Enables Better AI Governance

Author:: Nate Edwards
Publication Date:: 09-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:: The rapid development of emerging technology and artificial intelligence (AI) offers opportunities to create a more equal, just and inclusive world, but only if governance systems move in concert with innovation. To leverage the positive potential of AI, the multilateral system needs to utilize the tools already at its disposal. These tools include the capacity to set normative frameworks, institutionalize universal values, and facilitate collective action among diverse stakeholders. In particular, years of research, policy frameworks, partnership development, and programming to advance the sustainable development agenda (Agenda 2030) could become an asset to maximize the positive potential of the AI revolution. These longstanding efforts will not only benefit from new technologies, but they also offer tributaries by which the positive potential of AI can flow. One such effort is the international movement to provide equal access to justice for all by reshaping the way we think about justice and promoting a people-centered approach to addressing actual legal needs (SDG16.3). A world where everyone has equal access to justice would naturally complement more equal and inclusive AI governance. In fact, when designing new frameworks to regulate emerging technology, policymakers must use an approach that mitigates power imbalances at the individual and institutional levels, undercutting the risks of elite capture through increased accessibility of technology and its use. At the global level, too often the multilateral system is one step behind the world’s next challenge, and ill-prepared to recover from misaligned incentives, power imbalances, and unfettered capture. Focusing on justice could help the system catch up. This analysis makes a two-pronged argument: Strong, well-designed legal systems, with the principle of equal access to justice for all at the center, could support a more balanced, inclusive, and equitable AI revolution, while increasing access to the benefits of technology to everyone. Therefore, the multilateral system should prioritize equal access to justice for all as a way to facilitate the positive potential of AI. Reciprocally, an inclusive and equitable AI revolution could increase equal access to justice for all.
Topic:: Science and Technology, Governance, and Artificial Intelligence
Political Geography:: Global Focus

100. Who’s Telling the Story on Inequality?

Author:: Raquel Jesse
Publication Date:: 04-2025
Content Type:: Commentary and Analysis
Institution:: Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:: A look at how rising inequality has been reframed by anti-rights movements—and why reclaiming the narrative is essential to building a just future The past four decades have witnessed an unprecedented surge in wealth inequality and left us buffeted by one financial crisis after another. As we stand on the brink of yet another recession, a historic realignment in the global order, unfolding in real time, has made the world more unpredictable and transactional than ever. One consequence of this larger trend of instability has been the emergence of a ‘new’ wave of anti-rights leaders and movements in the aftermath of the 2007–2009 global financial crash. These movements defy easy categorization—often labeled as ‘populist right-wing,’ ‘autocratic,’ ‘fascist,’ ‘illiberal democracy,’ or ‘far-right’— but what they share is a common playbook; a willingness to offer answers to the widespread fear, anxiety, and grievances people are experiencing. Yes, they wield significant economic, social, and cultural capital, and despite often inconsistent messaging, they’re often the loudest (and often the only) voices addressing these concerns, albeit through distorted narratives of inequality, class struggle, and identity politics. They frame society as a struggle against a corrupt elite that is more invested in “woke” agendas than ordinary families. As a result, division and polarization have become the dominant response to rising precarity and distrust, and indeed, inequality. This new CIC perspectives piece explores the following themes: When Policy Fails: The Strategic Rise of (Not So) Reactionary Economics; The Vicious Cycle of Inequality and Division; Pattern Recognition: People Know When They Are Being Left Behind; When the System Really Works—But Only for the Few; Inequality by Design: The Policies that Transferred Wealth to the Top; The Crisis in Multilateralism Didn’t Start Today; Reclaiming the Fight Against Inequality.
Topic:: Economics, Inequality, Multilateralism, and Exclusion
Political Geography:: Global Focus

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COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PRESS