The trade war, unilaterally launched by Donald Trump on April 1, 2025, will go down in global history as a hostile act against globalization and international rules — rules that were once defended by the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the United States themselves. This act also marks one of the first official signs of… Read more »
Tag: Africa
The Transatlantic Rift in the Global Disorder of Trumpism
The advent of COVID-19 and the global lockdown of 2020 allowed us to write an article in which we highlighted that the post-COVID world would remain unknown and uncertain[1]. One thing is certain: we are currently experiencing a transitional phase between the world order established after 1945 and a new, yet undefined global order. This… Read more »
Africa in the Global Disorder of Trumpism
Africa is not a homogeneous entity. Unlike the United States or China, it does not have a unified political power capable of defending a common interest. Its cultural, economic, and political diversity presents both a complexity and a competitive advantage in globalization.
Russia Remains Stubborn on Non-Renewal of Ukraine Grain Deal
It has been almost two months since Russia terminated the United Nations–approved deal ensuring the safe export of Ukrainian wheat and corn from its Black Sea ports. And following his most recent meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on September 4 in Sochi, Russian President Vladmir Putin seems resolute on continuing to deny Ukrainian… Read more »
Seeking New Leadership? Military Coups in Africa and Their Implications
In a 2021 op-ed, we predicted that military coups and political unrest in West African countries like Guinea, Mali, and Burkina Faso signaled a recurring pattern of semi-democratic military rule. Recent military takeovers in Niger on July 26 and Gabon on August 30 have now affirmed this prediction. This raises a crucial question: are we… Read more »
Curtains for Wagner: Can Russia’s Show in Africa Go On?
The fall of Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner Group and its impact on Russian activities in Africa: diminished authority of President Putin, fading diplomatic influence, and declining mercenary power pose challenges to sustaining interventions on the continent. The abrupt end to the spectacular career of Yevgeny Prigozhin, the boss of the Wagner Group and the proprietor of a… Read more »
Ukraine’s ‘Counteroffensive’ in the Global South
The low-profile and high-impact meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on August 5 and 6 was never intended to produce a road map for ending the war in Ukraine; neither was it a summit, since the invitations sent to some 40 countries specified the level of representation as national security advisers. It can, nevertheless, be called… Read more »
Hollow Words and Apparent Setbacks at the Russia-Africa Summit
Concerted diplomatic efforts were invested during preparations for the Russia-Africa Summit in St. Petersburg, formally held on July 27 and 28, and President Vladimir Putin was grandstanding, networking and entertaining his guests non-stop from Wednesday afternoon to Saturday evening. His main intention was to demonstrate the width and depth of Russia’s ties with the continent…. Read more »
Russia Escalates War by Breaking Ukraine Grain Deal
The decision to withdraw from the international arrangement guaranteeing the safety of grain exports from Ukrainian ports, announced in Moscow on July 17, signifies a significant effort to escalate non-kinetic hostilities to break the pattern of slow-moving defeat in this war of attrition. Russian President Vladimir Putin repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the benefits that Ukraine… Read more »
The Wagner Mutiny Damages Russia’s Policy in Africa
The resonance from the June 24 mutiny attempted by Yevgeny Prigozhin, the boss of the notorious Wagner group, remains strong, despite the attempts by President Vladimir Putin to demonstrate a swift restoration of stability in Russia.