Noting the pain and suffering of the Ukrainian people and the risk of nuclear war that threatens the entire world, progressive lawmakers have called on US President Joe Biden to make a decisive shift in his approach to the conflict by initiating a “proactive diplomatic push” seeking “a realistic framework for a ceasefire” through direct negotiations with Russia.
This month Japan finally lifted its Covid restrictions and reopened its borders to tourists. Well, whoop-de-doo.
Japan has reluctantly agreed to help Sri Lanka overcome its economic crisis–worse than any other the South Asian island nation has faced in its seventy-year history–in part because of Tokyo’s concerns about Chinese political influence.
Chilean President Gabriel Boric recently signaled his robust support for Palestinian rights during a speech before United Nations General Assembly, warning other countries that they should not permit the normalization of ongoing human rights violations perpetrated by Israel.
Ethiopia’s northern province of Tigray is losing ground in its brutal conflict with the central government, placing both the rebel region’s administration and its civilian population in severe jeopardy.
Nigerian officials revealed this weekend that catastrophic flooding has killed more than 600 people and displaced at least 1.3 million as a heavier-than-usual rain season—likely made more intense by the climate crisis—has been pummeling the nation for weeks.
As new polling has revealed that most Americans now fear that the country may be heading to nuclear war over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, campaigners are calling on US lawmakers to take action to mitigate those fears, particularly by ensuring that the United States is doing all it can to deescalate tensions.
Japan has been targeting aid to the port of Aden, which is transmitting crucial assistance to the poverty and war-stricken nation of Yemen.
China’s “debt trap diplomacy” has been widely denounced by both the West and Japan, and it formed an underpinning theme for the latest edition of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD VIII). However, the fact of the matter is that G7 countries, not China, are the largest holders of African debt.
The near-disappearance of China’s vital Yangtze River, the mouth of which opens next to the major port of Shanghai, is creating a great deal of consternation, prompting government promises to address the environmental crisis.