In January 2025, Indonesia – the world’s fourth-largest country by population (282 million) with the seventh-largest Gross Domestic Product by purchasing power parity – joined the BRICS+ bloc.  Eleven countries are now in this expanded grouping. The original...

Since US President Donald Trump signed an executive order in February to impose a 10% tariff on all imports, the world has witnessed a confounding series of unilateral tariffs placed on both friends and foes of the US. On self-declared ‘Liberation Day’, on...

In 1964, during the second summit of the Non-Aligned Movement in Cairo, Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (then Ceylon) Sirimavo Bandaranaike proposed that the Indian Ocean be turned into a ‘zone of peace’ that was free of military bases and nuclear weapons. In...

As the political West struggles to maintain cohesion in what often resembles a dysfunctional marriage – one seemingly heading toward an inevitable divorce – events unfolding on the other side of the world are fostering optimism and belief...

On Thursday, 3 April, Sri Lankans woke up to the alarming news that the United States, the country’s single largest export destination, would be applying 44% tariffs. These tariffs will hit Sri Lanka just months after it officially exited sovereign default status in December 2024. ...

The radical return to protectionism is not only possible but necessary for an empire facing an undeniable decline. It has been denounced by critical analysts but certified by leading intellectuals of the US establishment, such as Zbigniew Brzeziński in a 2012 text and,...

Driven by geopolitical interests and the scramble for resources, the Ukrainian conflict has already claimed countless lives and displaced millions. The idea that more weapons will bring peace is a dangerous illusion ...

US President Donald Trump called Russian President Vladimir Putin and told him that the US government is committed to a peace process in Ukraine. As part of the deal, Trump’s administration made it clear that sections of eastern Ukraine and the Crimea would remain in...

Donald Trump’s second term may not be all bad for all nations, especially China. According to many Chinese internet users, Trump’s policies have unwittingly strengthened their country. This is why he has earned the popular nickname “Chuan Jianguo,” which means “Make China Great.” ...

On a clear morning in June 2023, I arrived in the city of Dali, located in China’s southwestern province of Yunnan, and was received by He Licheng, a local resident and farmer from nearby Gusheng Village. Like others of older generations of the region, He...