Natasha Lindstaedt, University of Essex Over three years after Russia invaded Ukraine, the countries are finally meeting for direct peace talks in Istanbul. Vladimir Putin will be not be attending. Ironically, given his no-show, it was Putin who suggested the peace talks instead of immediately agreeing to a proposed 30-day ceasefire. But like
Shahram Akbarzadeh, Deakin University US President Donald Trump’s visit to Arab states in the Middle East this week generated plenty of multibillion-dollar deals. He said more than US$1 trillion (A$1.5 trillion) worth of deals had been signed with Saudi Arabia alone, though the real total is likely much lower than that. Qatar also
Massimo D’Angelo, Loughborough University Pope Leo XIV has been elected as the 267th pontiff, leader of the Catholic church and spiritual guide to more than 1.4 billion Catholics. He is the first pope in history to come from the United States. Since the 19th century, the influence of the United States within the
A member of the Indian Border Security Force stands guard near the India-Pakistan border. Narinder Nanu/AFP via Getty Images Farah N. Jan, University of Pennsylvania India and Pakistan have seen the scenario play out before: a terror attack in which Indians are killed leads to a succession of escalatory tit-fot-tat measures that put
Ph. William Barton/Shutterstock Linda Yueh, University of Oxford “Iron-clad” and “non-negotiable” is how UK prime minister Keir Starmer recently described the country’s fiscal rules. The government has been coming under pressure to relax the rules and cut itself some financial slack. But according to the PM, these self-imposed restrictions are vital for maintaining
Linggong Kong, Auburn University When Donald Trump pulled back on his plan to impose eye-watering tariffs on trading partners across the world, there was one key exception: China. While the rest of the world would be given a 90-day reprieve on additional duties beyond the new 10% tariffs on all U.S. trade partners,
James Scott, King’s College London The “liberation day” tariffs announced by US president Donald Trump have one thing in common – they are being applied to goods only. Trade in services between the US and its partners is not affected. This is the perfect example of Trump’s peculiar focus on trade in goods
Ph. US alcohol has been removed from sale in the Canadian province of British Columbia. lenic/Shutterstock Alan Bradshaw, Royal Holloway University of London and Dannie Kjeldgaard, University of Southern Denmark As politicians around the world scramble to respond to US “liberation day” tariffs, consumers have also begun flexing their muscles. “Boycott USA” messages
A cargo ship and containers are seen at the Port of Keelung in Taiwan on April 3, 2025. I-HWA CHENG/AFP via Getty Images Jay L. Zagorsky, Boston University What would the United States stand to lose economically if its current access to the Taiwanese market were upended or totally restricted? This seemingly theoretical
Eric Strikwerda, Athabasca University https://audio.adauris.ai/v2/widget/RvjICRaqgSFBJozV1NoK/3stndkeUGqpGh6qanbaH?distribution=true During Donald Trump’s first term as president, the United States lurched from the absurdity of his lies to the use of his office for personal financial gain, his schoolyard insults and his utter contempt for critics. His term ended with his irresponsible and dangerous incitement of the assault