Mexico’s President Andrés Manuel López Obrador on Feb. 9 called for a “pause” in relations with Spain, in a speech that explicitly invoked the legacy of colonialism going back to the Conquest. But the speech was clearly aimed principally at… Read moreControl of oil behind Mexico-Spain tensions
Amid quickly escalating tensions over Ukraine, Russia has lodged a diplomatic protest with the US embassy in Moscow, claiming that a US nuclear submarine penetrated Russian territorial waters near the Kuril Islands. According to Moscow’s Defense Ministry, a Virginia-class US… Read moreSubmarine incident in flashpoint Kuril Islands
More than 100 Russian writers, activists and academics have signed a petition in protest of the war drive on Ukraine, which was published on the independent news site Echo of Moscow on Jan. 30. The “Declaration by supporters of peace… Read moreGlimmers of anti-war dissent in Russia
Peru’s authorities declared an environmental emergency on Jan. 20 after announcing that 21 beaches around the Lima area were contaminated by an oil spill at a refinery run by Spanish multinational Repsol, calling it the “worst ecological disaster” in the… Read morePeru demands Repsol pay in coastal oil spill
Hundreds in India’s conflicted eastern state of Nagaland began a two-day cross-country march Jan. 10 to protest the Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA), which gives the military broad power to use deadly force in areas where it is declared… Read moreNagaland: cross-country march against ‘special powers’
A new assassination of a campesino leader is reported from the self-declared “peace community” of San José de Apartadó, in Colombia’s conflicted northern Urabá region. On Dec. 17, Uber Velásquez was slain by unknown assailants in the vereda (hamlet) of La… Read moreAnother assassination at Colombian ‘peace community’
As Trump and Hegseth explicitly broach the surrender of Ukrainian territory to Russia, a poorly positioned Zelensky is acceding to demands that he turn a large portion of his country's strategic mineral wealth over to the US in compensation for military aid. Especially at issue are Ukraine's significant reserves of lithium—critical to de facto "co-president" Elon Musk's e-vehicle interests. In announcing a new lithium refinery in Texas, Musk called the mineral "the new oil." The premium on Ukraine's strategic minerals is elevated by China's perceived design to establish control over the planet's rare earth elements. However, as Zelensky is quick to emphasize, nearly 20% of Ukraine's mineral resources are in areas under Russian occupation. (Map: ResearchGate)
Hindu militant groups disrupted Christmas celebrations and vandalized decorations in parts of India this season, local media report. The most serious incident was in Silchar, in the northeastern state of Assam, where apparent followers of the Bajrang Dal “manhandled” Hindu youth who attempted… Read moreWar on Christmas (yes, really) in Modi strongholds
Amnesty International called on Tunisia to put an immediate end to racist and xenophobic attacks targeting Black African migrants. The wave of violence began in early February and was exacerbated by a racially-charged speech by President Kais Saied at a National Security Council meeting. President Saied's statements sparked street protests in Tunis, in defiance of an official ban on demonstrations. Activists also opposed a widening crackdown on dissent since Saied seized near-total powers in July 2021. The Tunisian National Salvation Front has vowed continued weekly protests. (Photo: Chahd Lina Belhadj/Meshkal)
As Trump and Hegseth explicitly broach the surrender of Ukrainian territory to Russia, a poorly positioned Zelensky is acceding to demands that he turn a large portion of his country's strategic mineral wealth over to the US in compensation for military aid. Especially at issue are Ukraine's significant reserves of lithium—critical to de facto "co-president" Elon Musk's e-vehicle interests. In announcing a new lithium refinery in Texas, Musk called the mineral "the new oil." The premium on Ukraine's strategic minerals is elevated by China's perceived design to establish control over the planet's rare earth elements. However, as Zelensky is quick to emphasize, nearly 20% of Ukraine's mineral resources are in areas under Russian occupation. (Map: ResearchGate)
Russia’s Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov on Dec. 13 warned that Moscow will deploy intermediate-range nuclear weapons if NATO does not accede to demands to stop arming Ukraine and guarantee an end to eastward expansion of the alliance. His remarks came… Read moreRapid nuclear escalation, East and West
In a referendum Dec. 12, voters in the French overseas territory of New Caledonia rejected independence by an overwhelming 96%. The vote was the final of three mandated by the 1998 Nouméa Accord with the Kanak Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS), which had… Read moreChina factor in New Caledonia anti-independence vote
