Author: Philip Walsh

Europe’s new “Iron Lady”, Estonia’s Kaja Kallas, is one of the strongest voices for an uncompromising stand against belligerent Russia. Brussels (30 June – 28). Having grown up under the Soviet occupation of Estonia, Kaja Kallas was urging EU leaders to take the Russian threat seriously long before the invasion of Ukraine On Saturday, the Reform Party chose climate minister Kristen Michal to replace outgoing Kaja Kallas, who is the EU’s new High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The unanimous decision to nominate Michal was made following a closed-door meeting by the party’s governing board only two days after…

The head of Britain’s domestic intelligence agency warned the country’s leading research universities on Thursday that foreign states are targeting their institutions and imperiling national security. “We know that our universities are being actively targeted by hostile actors and need to guard against the threat posed to frontier research in the most sensitive sectors,” said the deputy prime minister Oliver Dowden, who also attended the briefing. The threat requires “further measures,” said the deputy PM, who announced that the government was launching a consultation with the sector so it could “do more to support our universities and put the right…

Shares in Donald Trump’s media company soared as the firm made its formal debut on the stock market. Shares surged past $70 in early trade, giving the firm a market value of more than $9bn. They ended the day at about $58, still up more than 16%. The long-awaited moment will inject more than $200m into Trump Media & Technology Group and hands the former president a stake worth more than $4bn. Analysts say that is far more than the firm’s performance warrants. Trump Media’s Truth Social, a Twitter-like service, brought in just $3.3m in revenue in the first nine…

A Pole, a German, a Frenchmen, and a Swiss meet in a bar, or was it a Swiss, a French, a German, and a Slovak, I forgot. However, what otherwise sounded like the beginning of a quirky joke was in fact an informal luncheon by some of the brightest analysts of the European Union in early December last year. Nationalities aside, the topic of the lunch was, of course, the Ukraine. The basic question was simple, Are We at War? Will Russia win? What’s the consequence for Europe if Russia wins? What is the European Union willingness to defend the…

The market stage is set for what looks to be a very bumpy ride ahead, as a series of fluid situations are ramping toward inflection points that could bring about some abrupt fallout and ramifications regarding the U.S. economy, in the midst of a key presidential election year, plus new trends within our society. We’re only halfway through January, but there is already plenty to chew on for the year ahead. First, the widening out of the war in the Middle East has become more interesting after some 130 attacks on U.S. targets finally generated a response. Houthi attacks on…

American publications are discussing the prospects for adopting a new aid package to Ukraine in light of the debate that has flared up in the US Congress on the immigration issue. Aid to Ukraine continues to be at the center of discussions in the US Congress, but the adoption of an aid package for Kyiv now largely depends on reaching a compromise on the sensitive issue of domestic immigration policy for Republicans. According to the Washington Post , one of the main reasons for the Republicans’ ultimatum position was dissatisfaction with the immigration policies pursued by the Biden administration. The reforms they proposed were never…

Canada has released a new draft plan that the government says will help cut methane emissions from the country’s oil and gas sector by at least 75 per cent. Federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault made the announcement Monday at the ongoing UN climate conference, also known as COP28, being held in Dubai. Two years ago at COP26, as part of the Global Methane Pledge, Canada committed to developing a plan to reduce oil and gas methane emissions by at least 75 per cent below 2012 levels by 2030. Canada is one of more than 150 countries signed onto the 2021 Global Methane Pledge, which…

London (15/11 – 67) Colombo Supreme Court rules that former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his brother, former Prime Minister Mahinda, were among several government officials whose conduct contributed to Sri Lanka’s worst economic crisis in decades. The court was ruling on a petition filed against 13 former officials by rights group Transparency International Sri Lanka (TISL) which said the Rajapaksa brothers and others were responsible for the crisis. “Their actions, omissions and conduct contributed to the crisis,” the ruling said. The court did not order any punishment, according to a statement by TISL. The two Rajapaksa brothers, two former central…

Canadians across the country joined the millions around the world celebrating Diwali on Sunday. Diwali is a five-day festival of lights — commonly celebrated globally by Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and some Buddhists — that occurs in October or November each year based on Panchangam, or the Hindu calendar. This year, Diwali is celebrated on Nov. 12. The origin story of Diwali varies depending on the region. All these stories have one underlying theme — the victory of good over evil. Sikhs also celebrate Bandi Chhor Divas — which commemorates the release of Guru Hargobind, a revered figure in the faith, who…

The Council of the State Duma of the Russian Federation at its next meeting will discuss the issue of revoking ratification of the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. The head of the State Duma, Vyacheslav Volodin, wrote about this in a telegram. It follows from his words that ratification will be revoked: according to Volodin, this “corresponds to national interests.” Volodin referred to President Vladimir Putin’s speech at a meeting of the Valdai Discussion Club. At that meeting on October 5, Putin said there was no need to change Russia’s nuclear doctrine, but that he might consider withdrawing ratification of the nuclear test ban…