Is Turkey Holding Up a Resolution in Syria?
The pieces for a political deal to end the Syrian civil war are coming together — if Ankara will let them.
China, Questions of Loyalty
What determines political survival among China’s party elite? Where are the traps that ensnare men like Zhou Yongkang and Ling Jihua? The ambiguities of loyalty are a useful way to bring these questions into focus.
Great Gamble on the Mekong
A proposed dam on the Mekong River would provide energy for the region, but at a significant environmental cost. “Great Gamble on the Mekong”, a new documentary from filmmaker and journalist Tom Fawthrop, insightfully details the probable dire consequences of this dam.
Tunisia: the Arab exception’s test
The election victory of Béji Caid Essebsi is a vital moment in the pioneer country of the Arab revolts. It also reveals the scale of Tunisia’s economic challenges. “The new Tunisian leaders will also need western countries to put their money where their mouths are”.
The Method in Israel’s Madness
Israel has gone on the rampage in Gaza three times in six years. Norman Finkelstein’s latest book is a devastating assault on the myths that make the massacres possible.
UN climate talks stumble on rich, poor divide
Deep differences between developed and developing countries on how to divide the cost of tackling climate change are blocking agreement at the Lima summit.
Review: “Rising Ground” by Philip Marsden
Another excellent book by Philip Marsden. He takes us on a personal tour of Cornwall to discover how its “ritual landscapes” have the power to move us with their magnetism.
What “Free Trade” Has Done to Central America
Warnings about the human and environmental costs of “free trade” went unheeded. Now the most vulnerable Central Americans are paying the price.
British Perfidy in Greece
It was seventy years ago almost to the day, when the British Army at war with Germany switched their allegiance, opening fire upon a civilian crowd in Syntagma Square, and arming Greeks who had collaborated with the Nazis, to do the same.
The Big Chill: Tensions in the Arctic
As the climate warms and the ice melts, the Arctic could become the next great theater of global cooperation—or a battlefield that holds 13% of the world’s oil reserves and 30% of its natural gas.