Asia

• April 5, 2021

When Vietnam started its term as an elected member of the United Nations Security Council in January 2020, it also had to take on the role of the monthly rotating president. Back then, it sold itself as a bridge builder among the Council’s major powers. Vietnam’s second presidency, which started on April 1, is …

Asia, Gender Violence, Myanmar, Security Council Presidency

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THIS WEEK @UN

Growing Crises in Myanmar and Tigray; Getting to Know the US Envoy; Will the UN’s Top Humanitarian Job Go to the UK Again?

Ivana Ramirez

• March 6, 2021

Continuing crises in Myanmar and Ethiopia; the US envoy to the UN’s first week; why Britain has held the top humanitarian job for so long; and women’s gains in the African Union. You are reading This Week @UN, a summary of the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from the UN …

Africa, Asia, Human Rights, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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THIS WEEK @UN

The New US Envoy Begins Working; Iran’s Threatening Nuke Actions; Murders in the Congo

Ivana Ramirez

• February 26, 2021

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the United States envoy to the UN, starts her job; Iran’s troubling nuclear developments; UN-convoy murders in the Congo. You are reading This Week @UN, a summary of the most pressing issues facing the organization. The information is gathered from the UN spokesperson’s press briefings, PassBlue reporting and other sources. As International Women’s …

Africa, Asia, Nuclear Disarmament, Secretary-General, Security Council, This Week @UN, US-UN Relations

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Can the Issue of Climate-Induced Wars Stick to the UN Security Council Agenda? The UK Tries It Out

Stéphanie Fillion

• February 18, 2021

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is scheduled to preside over a Security Council meeting virtually on climate and security risks on Feb. 23. The British introduced the topic to the Council in 2007, but with Washington’s 180-degree turn toward climate change action and certain new Security Council members that are climate-friendly, 2021 could be …

Africa, Asia, Climate and Environment, Security Council

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WORLDVIEWS

Danger Still Lurks in Jammu and Kashmir

Munir Akram

• February 2, 2021

The Jammu and Kashmir dispute is one of the oldest unresolved issues on the agenda of the United Nations Security Council. At the heart of the dispute is India’s illegal occupation and persistent refusal to allow the people of Kashmir to exercise their inalienable right to self-determination. Several resolutions of the Security Council have …

Asia, Security Council, UN Peacekeeping, WORLDVIEWS

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WORLDVIEWS

The Congo, Afghanistan and the Limits of Outside Intervention

Alan Doss

• January 18, 2021

This year, two expansive — and expensive — international peace and security entities will pass a significant milestone. The United Nations peacekeeping operation in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the NATO operation in Afghanistan have been deployed for two decades. Although these missions differ in many respects, notably in the scale and …

Africa, Asia, Security Council, UN Peacekeeping, WORLDVIEWS

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THIS WEEK @UN

Still No Aid Into Tigray; Linda Thomas-Greenfield and Africa; Western Sahara Left Hanging by US

Ivana Ramirez

• December 11, 2020

A United Nations convoy was shot at in Ethiopia’s Tigray region; Southeast Asia’s progress on the women, peace and security agenda; the United States brokers a deal with Morocco in exchange for loss of Western Sahara’s sovereignty. You’re reading This Week @UN, a summary of the most-pressing issues facing the international organization. The information …

Africa, Asia, Climate and Environment, Governance, Health and Population, This Week @UN

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WORLDVIEWS

Southeast Asia, Forging Ahead on Women, Peace and Security

Noeleen Heyzer

• December 8, 2020

SINGAPORE — With two Asean members, Vietnam and Indonesia, currently sitting in the United Nations Security Council, the region has advanced Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security. This is the first global framework that addresses the changing nature of conflicts, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, the issues of …

Asia, Gender Violence, Security Council, WORLDVIEWS

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WORLDVIEWS

The Vanishing Democracy in Hong Kong

Alan Doss

• December 1, 2020

Recent events in Hong Kong should alert those people who hope that economic development can lead to democratic change. A few weeks ago, the territory’s fragile democratic order took another hit when opposition members of Hong Kong’s Legislative Council resigned to protest the disqualification of four of their members, labeled by the Chinese authorities …

Asia, Governance, Human Rights, WORLDVIEWS

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Myanmar Votes in a Sea of Troubles at Home and Abroad

Barbara Crossette

• October 20, 2020

A decade after the first democratic reforms began taking shape after long years of harsh military rule in Myanmar, its citizens are preparing to vote in a national election on Nov. 8. It will be an important test for the country and its leader, Aung San Suu Kyi. Her once-shining image as she swept …

Asia, Governance, Refugees

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

Indonesia’s Legacy in the Security Council: Daring to Save Lives

Stéphanie Fillion

• August 3, 2020

A big power in Southeast Asia and a middle power globally, Indonesia plays a “bridge builder” role in the United Nations Security Council, it says. It’s a strategy that is getting harder and harder to embody, however, with rising tensions among the five big powers in the Council: Britain, China, France, Russia and the …

Asia, Security Council, Security Council Presidency

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COVID-19

Suddenly, Singapore’s Coronavirus Cases Skyrocketed: Here’s Why

Noeleen Heyzer

• April 23, 2020

SINGAPORE — Singapore now has the highest number of Covid-19 cases in Southeast Asia, at 11,178, as of April 23. The daily coronavirus infection rate reached a new high of 1,426 as I write. Just over a month ago, Singapore, with 5.7 million people living in the limited space of 720 square kilometers (278 square …

Asia, Covid-19, Health and Population

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COVID-19

North Korea Claims No Coronavirus Cases. Experts Detect Another Reality.

Barbara Crossette

• April 16, 2020

Something is missing from the statistical charts and maps of Covid-19 in East Asia: credible data on the People’s Democratic Republic of Korea. The country, North Korea as it is commonly known, has always been a singularly secretive state controlled since its founding in 1948 by a savagely brutal dynasty. It is also next …

Asia, Covid-19, Health and Population

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SECURITY COUNCIL PRESIDENCY

Vietnam’s Pivotal Month as Leader of the Security Council and of Asean for 2020

Stéphanie Fillion

• January 8, 2020

With tensions becoming more and more serious in the Middle East and with two crucial leadership roles to play internationally, diplomats in Hanoi are probably working hard to make sure Vietnam’s big diplomatic month of January is a success. Vietnam’s diplomacy has arrived at a critical moment, as it presides over the United Nations …

Asia, Security Council Presidency

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BOOKS

The All-Female Korean Hockey Team That Won the World’s Heart

Sonah Lee-Lassiter

• December 28, 2019

“A Team of Their Own: How an International Sisterhood Made Olympic History,” unfolds like the cinematic story of Disney’s 1992 hit “The Mighty Ducks,” except in Seth Berkman’s debut book this team of hockey players —South Korean, North Korean, American and Canadian, all female and of Korean descent — don’t win a single game. …