Section: The Conversation (USA)
Trump’s vision of US-Russian relations must confront reality
Donald Trump has more than once expressed his admiration for Vladimir Putin, and both men have expressed hopes of “restoring” US-Russian relations after their countries’ relations hit rock bottom in recent years. Those ties seriously deteriorated after Obama’s 2009 “reset” policy gradually fizzled out, and hit a serious low even...
How to manage Russia becomes one of the most pressing questions in US, and world, affairs
President-elect Donald Trump has conceded that Russia sought to influence last year’s US presidential election. Reuters/Lucas JacksonAt last Donald Trump has conceded publicly that Russia sought to influence last year’s US presidential election by hacking the website of the Democratic National Committee and distributing material...
Russia’s headlong rush into populism
Vladimir Putin has developed populism across many fields, from his own image to Russian sport and media. Kremlin Press officeIt’s very possible that, in 2017, Donald Trump will attempt to bring Russia back into the fold of civilised nations by lifting sanctions. So understanding the populism of Vladimir Putin’s government is more...
Why Russia, Turkey and Iran are natural allies
The ceasefire in Syria brokered by Russia, Turkey and Iran has opened the way to peace talks in Kazakhstan between the Syrian government and opposition. The Kazakh president, Nursultan Nazarbayev, will play peacemaker and the timing of the conference will enable participation by the new US administration. However it’s not yet clear how this...
Terrorism, the far-right and Russian meddling: the biggest threats to Europe in 2017
The European Union endured a series of political shocks and strains in 2016 that threatened to tear the bloc apart: an ongoing migration crisis; the United Kingdom’s vote in June to exit the union; lacklustre growth and stubbornly high unemployment in the eurozone; terrorist attacks that killed and injured scores; and surging support for...
How the UN’s new secretary general can help the world’s most vulnerable
As António Guterres takes over as the ninth secretary general of the United Nations, he inherits some of the most pressing global and institutional issues ever to confront the organisation. Given his background, which includes being prime minister of Portugal from 1995-2002 and then the UN’s High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) from...
Will Obama’s offshore drilling ban be Trumped?
Activists in Seattle practice for demonstrations against Royal Dutch Shell’s plans to drill in the Arctic, April 17, 2015. AP Photo/Elaine ThompsonPresident Obama gave environmental advocates a Christmas present when he announced in late December that he was banning oil and gas drilling in huge swaths of the Arctic and Atlantic oceans. This...
Turkey and Russia’s relationship is strong enough to survive ambassador’s murder
When Russia’s Ambassador to Turkey, Andrey Karlov, was shot dead during a photo exhibition in the Turkish capital of Ankara, it threatened to deal a terrible blow to one of the world’s most important and most sensitive diplomatic relationships. During the attack, the gunman, 22-year old Mevlüt Mert Altıntaş, shouted about...
Crime and Punishment is 150 – and its politics are more relevant than ever
Fyodor Dostoyevsky. It is now 150 years since the publication of Fyodor Dostoevsky’s Crime and Punishment. An incredibly influential novel, Crime and Punishment also has a particularly contemporary political significance. The plot hinges on how, one summer’s day in St Petersurg, a penniless student, Raskolnikov, murders an old woman...
War and Democracy in the Age of Trump
The ancient Greek historian Herodotus once observed that Persian rulers indulged the habit of getting drunk when making important decisions. When sober and sensible next morning, their custom was to reconsider their decision, and either stick to it, or revise or reject it outright. They had another method of decision-making, he noted: they took...
