Donald Trump recently claimed that the United States is being “ripped off” by the Panama Canal’s administrators and alleged that “Chinese soldiers” are operating the canal. He has threatened to “demand the return of the Panama Canal” to the United States. On December 23rd, Panama’s president, José Raúl Mulino, responded by asserting that “every square metre of the Panama Canal” is the country’s property, a stance supported by opposition parties. Trump’s actual objectives might be less extreme, but their specifics remain unclear
Tag: United States
Justin Trudeau Resigns as Canada’s Prime Minister
On January 6th Justin Trudeau, Canada’s prime minister, announced his resignation. Over the past year he has became an isloated and deeply polarising figure as supporters have abondoned his Liberal Party, angry that it has failed to tackle inflation, housing costs and the strains from high immigration. In the coming weeks the Liberals will be gripped by a leadership struggle. Potential replacements include Mark Carney, who ran the Bank of England, and before that the Bank of Canada; Chrystia Freeland, whose surprise resignation as finance minister precipitated the crisis that forced Trudeau out; and Dominic Leblanc, who succeeded Freeland as finance minister.
Trump to Mediate Peace between Russia and Ukraine
Nobody expects Donald Trump to end the Ukraine war in 24 hours, as he has claimed he could in the past. However, the new administration, which takes office on January 20th, is highly invested in bringing both sides to the negotiating a peace deal. But even that may prove difficult. In an Interview on December 30th the Russian foreign minister, Sergei Lavrov, slammed leaked proposals from Trump’s team for a peace deal. Putin, who believes Russia is winning, has given no sign of retreating from his maximalist goals.
Islamic State is back in the United States
On New Year’s Day Shamsud-Din Jabbar, a 42-year-old American, rammed a pickup truck into a crowd in New Orleans, killing at least 14 and injuring 35. The FBI says it was terrorism; Jabbar had an Islamic State flag. If Jabbar was inspired by the ISIS, the Jihadist group can add the attack to its recent successes. Exactly a year ago, an ISIS terrorist killed 95 civilians in Iran during a ceremony to commemorate Qassam Soleimani, a top general assassinated by America.
African Economies will Flourish in 2025
In October the IMF described a “two-track growth pattern” in sub-Saharan Africa. On one track are most of the 23 countries with sizeable exports of non-renewable commodities such as oil, gold or diamonds. These include Angola, Nigeria and South Africa. As prices for their exports sagged, their GDPs per person have dropped in the past decade. Most resource-rich countries have also been focused more on dividing the spoils of the boom years than on using the proceeds to build resilient economies.
The Biggest Election Surprises this Year
Donald Trump’s first presidential win, in 2016, was shocking. His victory in 2024, was even more extraordinary. It came after he had incited his supporters to try to violently overturn the result of the 2020 election. He then had to weather about 90 felony indictments. In April 2024 he became the first former president to stand in a criminal trial. Drama in the courtroom aside, by early summer the presidential contest seemed almost dull. Trump easily secured the Republican nomination and held a clear lead over his 81-year-old Democratic opponent, Joe Biden.
Why Nuclear Weapons Remain the Privilege of the Few?
While a lot of countries associate the possession of nuclear weapons as a huge plus to their geopolitical power, there are still some that fear the consequences and stay within the protected boundaries of conservatism while going international. No matter how awed we can be when seeing nuclear missile tests or new launches happen, we still have a long way to go to see what constitutes hegemony very easily here and how only 9 countries in the world have gone nuclear so far. The problem with this distinction is, it is no longer dependent on resources or military strength, but rather a very calculative set of steps that go beyond what a simple human can imagine.
Dispute over Military Operation Planning between the US and Ukraine
A war of words has broken out between the outgoing Biden administration and Ukraine’s president. Several US senior ranking officials have recently argued that Ukraine’s biggest problem is lack of manpower, and that it needs to lower the minimum age of conscription from 25 to 18. A government spokesman said that if Ukraine changes its policy, America will arm and train the recruits. Zelensky retorted that allies had fully equipped only a quarter of the ten brigades that he had requested earlier in the year.
Assad’s Fall: An Outcome of the US-Russia Extended Cold War
Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and now Syria, the list of nations now in chaos after the fall of its governments is growing. There is a common pattern to the beginning of political storms in all these nations, which is the external interference in their domestic affairs by the United States. This model of toppling governments and replacing it with friendly options have failed everywhere. But the US is not reluctant to meddle with the affairs of other nations and especially when it comes to Asia, where they have geopolitical interests.
South Korea’s President Faces a Reckoning
Welcome back to the World Brief, the flagship newsletter of The Viyug delivered to you directly from the Editor’s desk, catching you up on 24 […]