Today’s global stories delve into the prospects for peace in Kashmir, Paraguay’s presidential impeachment and the Queen’s historic visit to Northern Ireland.
Democracy
Wishful Spring Thinking or the Beginning of the End for al-Bashir?
Does a week of protests in and around Khartoum show that Sudan is facing its own Arab Spring?
Must-Reads from Around the World, June 25, 2012
Today’s stories include an update on the unfolding Turkey-Syria crisis, a dispatch from Mexico’s second city and the Chinese Communist Party’s main mouthpiece talking up property market intervention.
Impeachment of Paraguay’s President Still Doesn’t Solve Underlying Injustice
Paraguayan politicians impeached President Fernando Lugo following a string of scandals and controversies. But the episode that prompted Lugo’s departure speaks volumes of the fundamental inequity that still shapes many Latin …
Tax the Rich? French and British Leaders Spar over Plans to Make Wealthy Pay Up
Criticism by U.K. Prime Minister Cameron of proposals by French President Hollande to hike tax rates on the rich sparked irritation in France; a closer look reveals that the U.K. is hardly the Thatcherite paradise the posh Cameron …
Must-Reads from Around the World, June 21, 2012
Stories of note today: Western intervention in Syria, Pakistan’s political dramas and more deadly protests by Tibetans in China.
Must-Reads from Around the World, June 20, 2012
Among today’s required reading: Western web attacks on Iran, the Bo Xilai story just keeps giving and testy exchanges between the U.K. and Argentina in Mexico.
Why Is Ecuador Julian Assange’s Choice for Asylum?
Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has appealed for asylum at the Ecuadorian embassy in London. It’s a curious choice: under President Rafael Correa, Ecuador’s free speech record has been dismal.
How the Military Won Egypt’s Presidential Election
Almost immediately after polls closed, the junta announced directives on the constitution, lawmaking and, it seemed, the nature of the presidency. Activists are furious, but no one is likely to change the status quo
After Socialist Romp in Elections, France’s Conservatives Face Existential Crisis
French President François Hollande’s Socialists win formidable legislative control, while France’s conservatives suffer the consequences of having pandered to the country’s far right
Must-Reads from Around the World, June 18, 2012
In today’s required reading: evidence of Iranian subterfuge, power plays in Pakistani and more communal clashes in Nigeria’s divided Kaduna state.
Hollande’s Socialists Win Parliamentary Majority in French Elections
The French parliamentary elections hand Socialists and their leftist allies the large majority that President François Hollande needs to pass progrowth policies — and challenge German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s austerity …
A Death in The Family. Saudi Arabia’s Succession Saga
With the death of Crown Prince Nayaf, Saudi Arabia braces for a new round of musical thrones