Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Amid the global gallop towards economic protectionism, there’s the political temptation to use tariffs which undeniably produce a feel good factor for politicians and polemists, but whose bottom line is paid by the consumers. The current trade tensions between the United States and China has […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Amid a widening food shortfall affecting up to forty percent of its population, North Korea has resumed testing short-range missiles in a risky bid for humanitarian aid and political attention. The rocket tests, which don’t directly violate UN resolutions or prior diplomatic agreements, are nonetheless […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — From the appalling murders of 300 Sri Lankan Christians celebrating Easter, to the killings of Coptic Egyptians, Syrian Catholics, and Nigerian faithful, the grisly wave of anti-Christian violence worldwide is rising. Add the formal state repression of Christianity in places like China, North Korea and […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Attempting to revive political links with Russia, endeavoring to break the “Big Brother” syndrome with China, and seeking diplomatic standing after its failed summit with the USA, North Korean dictator Kim Jong-Un met with Vladimir Putin. The meeting in the gritty Far Eastern port of […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Despite the terrible fire which collapsed the roof and destroyed large parts of the fabled Gothic Cathedral, despite the collapse of its iconic spire in the midst of the inferno, and despite the near apocalyptic pyre which engulfed the medieval church, Notre Dame de Paris […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Faced with an entrenched dictatorship, challenged by a deepening political crisis, and undermined by an escalating humanitarian catastrophe, Venezuela is careening towards the edge of the cliff. The once-prosperous Latin American country has entered an explosive political limbo which threatens both Venezuela as well as […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — For nearly two months, large popular demonstrations have rocked Algeria protesting the candidacy of incumbent President Abdelaziz Bouteflika who planned to run for a fifth five-year term in national elections. The protests evoked the so-called Arab Spring in which demonstrations and later armed revolts reverberated […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Responding to the Berlin Blockade, the communist coup in Czechoslovakia, and the looming threat from the Soviet Union, the U.S. and Western European states formed the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). On 4 April 1949, the foreign Ministers of twelve countries including the USA, Britain, […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Beijing’s ambitious “Belt and Road” infrastructural initiative has scored its first significant beachhead in the Mediterranean, as Italy has signed on to the expansive Chinese globe-spanning project. China’s President Xi Jinping was feted in Rome with a grandiosity fit for an visiting Emperor as the […]
Special to WorldTribune.com By John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Following the failed Hanoi Summit with the USA, North Korea is now sending mixed messages concerning its denuclearization and missile testing intentions. Pyongyang’s deliberately cryptic policy is likely meant to sow confusion and gain a negotiating advantage with the U.S. over Washington’s efforts to denuclearize […]