Set to embark on the first overseas trip of his term, President Joe Biden is eager to reassert the United States on the world stage, steadying European allies deeply shaken by his predecessor and pushing democracy as the only bulwark to rising forces of authoritarianism. Read More Here
The G7 agreement on taxation of global corporations still needs formal approval from a wider set of countries, and there remain many details to be worked out for it to be effective. Nonetheless, it would not be farfetched to describe the deal as historic. Read More Here
By allowing Beijing more control over the strategically situated naval base, which could provide China a new southern flank in the contested South China Sea, the US perceives Phnom Penh is dangerously close to adopting a full-fledged pro-China foreign policy. Read More Here
Chinese lawmakers are making progress on legislation to retaliate for foreign sanctions amid the country’s growing rivalry with the U.S. A National People’s Congress committee filed the second draft of legislation aimed at countering sanctions imposed by foreign governments, the official Xinhua News Agency reported. Read More Here
Cryptocurrencies might turn out to be a massive speculative bubble that ends up hurting many naive investors. Indeed, many cryptocurrency fortunes have already evaporated with the recent plunge in prices. But whatever their ultimate fate, the ingenious technological innovations underpinning them will transform the nature of money and finance. Read More Here
There is growing public support among the world’s scientific community for fully exploring the possibility the coronavirus may have emerged from the Wuhan Institute of Virology, leading to the global outbreak that has killed more than 3.7 million people worldwide. Read More Here
In recent months… there have been disturbing signals that Beijing is reconsidering its peaceful approach and contemplating armed unification. Chinese President Xi Jinping has made clear his ambition to resolve the Taiwan issue, grown markedly more aggressive on issues of sovereignty, and ordered the Chinese military to increase its activity near the island. Read More Here
The Biden administration held its first summit-level meeting with Quad allies in March but is only now stepping up its ASEAN-related diplomacy, notably with less robust senior-level engagement. Washington has paid lip service to “ASEAN centrality” in recent statements, but in practice is it really aiming for “Quad centrality?” Read More Here
Leading analysts argue, for example, that the United States should take advantage of new leadership in Washington, impending U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, and a growing Pakistani need for foreign investment, not just to engage Pakistan, but to reset U.S.-Pakistani relations. Read More Here.
There is wide agreement that vaccinating the world is the only way to end the pandemic. But no one has yet operationalized a plan or marshaled the support to achieve it. The result is a world divided into two parts: one vaccinated and the rest threatened by COVID-19 for years to come. Read More Here
looking beyond borders 