Kristof Titeca, University of Antwerp The current conditions in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) resemble the situation during the Second Congo War between 1998 and 2003. This resulted in millions of deaths, with neighbouring countries – especially Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi – playing a significant role. The pan-African weekly The Continent has
Stephen Clear, Bangor University It has been less than a month since Donald Trump retook the Oval Office. But with dozens of executive orders, every day has brought substantial change. While Trump claims he has a democratic mandate to cut government waste, it is the unelected Elon Musk who has been behind the
Ph. Shutterstock/gopixa Francesco Grillo, Bocconi University To European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, Europe is like a Volkswagen Beetle – an iconic car produced by a once-mighty German manufacturer which has been struggling to adapt to a new world. “Europe must shift gears,” she urged in a speech to business executives gathered
by Ana Beatriz Assam for Global Investigative Journalism Network President Donald Trump’s return to the White House was marked by a flurry of executive orders, from pardons for those involved in the January 6 insurrection at the Capitol to withdrawing the US from the World Health Organization and the Paris Climate Accords. But
Kulusuk village in East Greenland. Shutterstock/Muratart Gustav Agneman, Norwegian University of Science and Technology In 2018, a colleague and I, together with a team of Greenlandic research assistants, conducted one of the most comprehensive surveys to date on public opinion in Greenland. We travelled to 13 randomly selected towns and settlements across the
Jennifer Mathers, Aberystwyth University North Korea is believed to be preparing to send another group of soldiers to come to Vladimir Putin’s aid in the war in Ukraine, despite heavy combat losses already suffered by troops from the east Asian country. When Ukrainian forces crossed the border into the Kursk region of Russia
Elon Musk, right, has moved to take the reins of the U.S. government. Brandon Bell/Getty Images Allison Stanger, Middlebury Elon Musk’s role as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency, also known as DOGE, is on the surface a dramatic effort to overhaul the inefficiencies of federal bureaucracy. But beneath the rhetoric
Eric Storm, Leiden University Over the past few weeks the new US president, Donald Trump, has repeatedly claimed that the United States should “take back” the Panama Canal and that it should assume control of Greenland – one way or another. He has talked of Canada becoming America’s 51st state and now he
Ed Turner, Aston University A vote in Germany’s national parliament (Bundestag) has led to fears that the firewall supposedly separating mainstream political parties and the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) has been blown apart. Until now, Germany’s largest parties, including the union of Christian democratic parties the CDU and CSU, and the social
Jan Pospisil, Coventry University Sudan’s civil war has devastated the country and strained relations with neighbouring South Sudan. Events in January 2025 have stirred up xenophobic feelings in Sudan and outrage in its southern neighbour, heightening the risk of regional instability. Early in the year, the Sudanese Armed Forces captured Wad Madani, a