Section: The Conversation (USA)
Russia: a global energy powerhouse that’s much more than a petro-state
Energy empire? A Gazprom facility in Moscow. imagesbywestfall/flickr, CC BYRussia is not what you think. Most discussion about its energy influence has focused on oil and gas, particularly gas. Russia can be described, and is routinely described, as a petro-state. This is only partly accurate. In truth, Russia has been building an altogether new...
David Cameron’s Panama nightmare cuts to the core of his image problem – as EU referendum looms
What a long week it’s been for David Cameron. And as with so many political crises, when this one began, it apparently had little to do with him at all. While the super-rich have long been criticised for creatively minimising their tax burdens, the actual details of these arrangements have usually been hidden. But then the German newspaper...
The Dutch referendum on EU-Ukraine treaty doesn’t signal a step towards Nexit
The European Union’s treaty with Ukraine was rebuffed by Dutch voters on April 6 with over 60% rejecting it in a low turnout referendum. The government must now reconsider the treaty. Initiators of the referendum hope that it will be a step towards a “Nexit” – the exit of the Netherlands from the EU. But even if more Dutch referendums are...
Panama Papers: it’s the drip-drip effect Vladimir Putin will be worrying about
The early Russian media reaction to the claims from the Panama Papers that Putin’s close associate channelled more than $2 billion to offshore companies has been quite predictable: a combination of denial, counter-claims of poor journalism and, of course, silence. In a country where the state has significant control over media outlets and...
The geopolitics of real estate: how Russia learned the political value of property
Oscar W. Rasson/Flickr, CC BYOver the past three decades, real estate has gained a new significance on the world stage. Many states have relaxed laws to open up national property markets to international buyers. This has not only intensified international business activities, but also offered states a new way of pursuing their global political...
How war in Nagorno-Karabakh could spread – and become a major problem for Europe
Every now and then, the West is reminded of a quarrel in a far-away country between people of whom it knows nothing (as Neville Chamberlain once said). Nagorno-Karabakh is such a place, a tiny enclave that has caused strife between neighbouring Azerbaijan and Armenia even before they gained independence from the Soviet Union. While recognised as...
Tony Abbott’s open contempt for international human rights law
Reuters/Dinuka LiyanawatteFormer Prime Minister Tony Abbott has penned an essay in Quadrant defending his government’s stance on national security. It betrays an extraordinarily open contempt for international human rights law. Mr Abbott starts by saying that he is proud that his government was committed to “uphold[ing] our values around...
Who cares about Batman v Superman? Wonder Woman finally steals the show
© Warner BrothersBatman v Superman: The Dawn of Justice has received a frosty critical reception, to say the least. Despite this, I found myself coming away from the cinema filled with hope. Certainly not for either of the titular characters – who have never been less inspiring. Instead, the future finally seems bright for superwomen. Although...
Everything you need to know about mini nuclear reactors
Because knowledge is power FooTToo/ShutterstockNuclear power can be a touchy subject, one that seems to divide opinion. Many people believe it is unclean, controversial and costly – and the 2011 Fukushima disaster showed the world just how unsafe nuclear can be; the meltdown of the power plant was the worst nuclear disaster since Chernobyl in...
Terror attacks put journalists’ ethics on the front line
h Everyone along the street seemed to be watching the same thing. The evenings were still light and curtains were not yet drawn, so people’s TV sets were visible through their ground-floor windows. All the screens showed the burning Twin Towers. This mass consumption of the same news – as happened on September 11, 2001 – is rarer now. The...
