Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler PARIS — A year ago France was on edge. Islamic Jihadi terrorists had killed 86 people with a truck ramming incident at a Bastille Day celebration in Nice. Shortly thereafter a elderly priest was murdered as he said Mass. These attacks following a spate of earlier shootings in […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — After a bitter eight-month fight, the Iraqi military has finally freed Mosul from the brutal grip of Islamic State. This victory in retaking this key northern city has shattered the terror organization’s invincibility and moreover liberated one of the so-called Caliphate’s twin capitals. The fight […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Nearly six hundred years ago, huge Chinese fleets plied the Indian Ocean sailing as far as Arabia and the East African coast. The epic seaborne expeditions carried out between 1405 and 1432 under Adm. Cheng Ho and during the glorious Ming Dynasty were larger and […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler NEW YORK — We have seen this movie before and it never ends well. An arrogant and boastful dictator snubs the world and threatens his neighbors. The international community frets in rightful indignation but does little to respond. As tensions rise, the world appears hostage to a bully. […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi returned to the USA not quite knowing what to expect from planned summit meetings with President Donald Trump. After all while both leaders are known as brash and outspoken figures, the visitor from New Delhi was particularly nervous over trade […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — In an impassioned appeal to the media, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres decried the rising tide of refugees worldwide, but advised that ultimately political solutions to the crises remain the key to stem the tide creating chaotic human displacements. While more than 65 million people […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Thirty years ago this week in 1987, President Ronald Reagan visiting Berlin, made his famous challenge, “Mr. Gorbachev, Tear Down This Wall.” Alongside the American President stood German Chancellor Helmut Kohl. A few years earlier I met Helmut Kohl campaigning in his native Rheinland. Kohl, […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler NEW YORK — It’s political May Day for Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May after what appeared as a massive miscalculation in calling a general election which she narrowly won. Though the ruling Conservative party gained the largest share of seats and votes in the 650 seat Parliament, the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The annual election to choose five new non-permanent members of the UN Security Council produced both the expected and the near preposterous. The elections, actually selections by the 193 member General Assembly, saw no opposition for any of the two- year Council terms. Candidates were […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — President Donald Trump has scolded some members of the Atlantic Alliance for not paying their “fair share” in defense spending. Addressing the NATO Summit in Brussels, the American president followed in the footsteps of many of his predecessors in saying that some members of the […]
