Conversations about Foreign Policy and World Affairs
It has been a very intense few weeks of diplomacy at the United Nations. Even before Russia mounted its full scale invasion of Ukraine there were several meetings at the Security Council intended to deter and dissuade Russia from doing so. And…
It has been one week since Russia mounted a massive invasion of Ukraine. The Ukrainian people have thus far mounted a valorous defense of their country and have thwarted Vladimir Putin’s plans for a swift victory. Still, the situation on…
It was 7 pm Ukraine time on the evening of Friday February 25 when I caught up with my guest today, journalist Cátia Bruno. She had recently arrived in Lviv, a city in Western Ukraine not far from the Polish border. She…
I caught up with Ambassador Karen Pierce in the middle of a very intense day of diplomacy on February 22. She is the United Kingdom’s Ambassador to the United States and earlier that morning Boris Johnson announced new British sanctions on certain…
I last spoke with Zuhra Bahman in early September 2021. She happened to be out of Afghanistan on a business trip when the Taliban overran Kabul a few weeks prior. Despite the apparent danger and uncertainty, Zuhra Bahman told me that she…
Over the last few days, there has been a flurry of diplomatic activity between Russia, Ukraine, the United States, Germany and France — among others. Meanwhile, the messaging coming from the White House indicates that they believe a Russian attack…
There have been a spate of coups in Africa over the last 18 months. Most of these coups have taken place in West Africa, but not all. This includes Burkina Faso, Guinea, Chad, Sudan and two coups in Mali. This…
For about two weeks now, truck driving protesters have snarled traffic and otherwise disrupted daily life in downtown Ottawa, ostensibly to protest covid related restrictions and vaccine mandates. These protests have spread elsewhere in Canada and for a time, forced…
The 2022 Winter Olympics have kicked off in Beijing. Meanwhile, in the northwestern Xinjiang region of China, the government is implementing policies that many human rights organizations and foreign governments have determined amount to crimes against humanity and even genocide…
On January 31, the United Nations Security Council held a meeting about Russia’s military buildup on the border of Ukraine. Here to help understand what happened at this meeting and any potentially significant outcomes is Ashish Pradhan, who covers Security Council…
