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Image: Myanmar military chief Snr Gen Min Aung Hlaing (left), exchanged gifts with Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha on a visit to Government House in 2018. (Photo courtesy Thai Government House and Bangkok Post)

ASEAN Unity Continues to Crumble on Myanmar

By Jan Servaes*

BRUSSELS (IDN) — On December 22, 2022, Thailand hosted a meeting in Bangkok to discuss the Myanmar crisis. This meeting was attended by the foreign ministers of the Myanmar junta, Laos and Cambodia, as well as the deputy foreign minister of Vietnam. Significantly, Malaysia, the Philippines, Indonesia and Singapore did not attend.

It could therefore not be called an official ASEAN summit. After all, there is disagreement among the 10-member group about whether or not to cooperate with the junta.

: Asia Editor; OPINION; 31 January 2023

Image: Harris and Biden. Source: Democrats.org

Biden Wielding DNC to Guard Against Progressive Challenge

By Norman Solomon*

SAN FRANCISCO (IDN) — When the Democratic National Committee convenes its winter meeting on February 2 in Philadelphia, a key agenda item will be rubber-stamping Joe Biden’s manipulation of next year’s presidential primaries. There’ll be speeches galore, including one by Biden as a prelude to his expected announcement that he’ll seek a second term. The gathering will exude confidence, at least in public.

But if Biden were truly confident that Democratic voters want him to be the 2024 nominee, he wouldn’t have intervened in the DNC’s scheduling of early primaries.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 31 January 2023

‘Debt Trap Diplomacy’ Blamed For Zambian Debt Crisis

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — China, the builder of roads, energy, railways and telecom across Africa, came under fire from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen during her recent three-country African friendship tour when she singled out the Asian giant for Africa’s looming debt crisis.

Driving past Lusaka, the capital city, with its renovated international airport and newly built firms bearing Chinese signage, Yellen urged Zambian leaders to address Zambia’s heavy debt burden with China immediately.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 30 January 2023

No US Visas for Nigerians Threatening Democracy Back Home

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — Nigerians planning to visit the US will be barred from entry if officials believe they pose a threat to upcoming elections in Nigeria, according to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement.

The announcement also extends to the families of those accused of anti-democratic efforts, according to Sec’y Blinken. Nigeria’s Februray 25 elections will determine who will replace President Muhammadu Buhari, who has reached the country’s two-term limit after serving eight years in office.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 30 January 2023

Killing Of Prodemocracy Activist in Eswatini Condemned

By Lisa Vives, Global Information Network

NEW YORK (IDN) — Hundreds of mourners around the world paid tribute to a renowned human rights activist, Thulani Maseko, brazenly shot dead in front of his wife and two children at their home in Eswatini, formerly Swaziland, on January 21.

His murder drew widespread condemnation, including from the United States, the United Nations, the European Union and political activists in Eswatini, a landlocked nation in southern Africa.

: Global Information Network; THE WORLD; Africa; 30 January 2023

Image: Vasili Arkhipov and Soviet submarine B-59, forced to the surface by U.S. Naval forces in the Caribbean near Cuba, with a U.S. helicopter overhead. Source: U.S. National Archives.

The Man Who Saved the World from a Nuclear War

By Glen Milner and Leonard Eiger

The man who saved the world from thermonuclear annihilation in 1962 was born on January 30, 1926. Ground Zero Center published this article.

POULSBO | WASHINGTON, USA (IDN) — At a time when the probability of nuclear war is as nearly as high as it was during the Cuban Missile Crisis, it is crucial that we recall the story of Vasili Arkhipov, a Soviet submarine officer who prevented a Soviet nuclear strike against U.S. surface warships during that very crisis in 1962.

: Ramesh Jaura; OPINION; 30 January 2023

Image: New Zealand’s Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern hugs friends and colleagues. Source: DAWN / AFP

What the Resignation of New Zealand's Inspirational Prime Minister Means

By David Robie*

AUCKLAND (IDN) — Aotearoa New Zealand has been shaken to the core by the sudden resignation of one of its most iconic and revered prime ministers amid a fierce controversy over misogyny and death threats stirred by the global coronavirus pandemic.

Jacinda Ardern, the world’s youngest female prime minister at 37 when she was elected in 2017 on a stardust wave of “Jacinda mania”, stepped on January 19 after emotional scenes at her last official function wrapped in a traditional Māori feathered cloak at the historic Ratana church.

: Asia Editor; THE WORLD; Asia-Pacific; 30 January 2023

Image: Nuclear Power Plant in Cattenom. CC BY-SA 3.0

As Tensions Rise, WHO Updates its Radiological & Nuclear Emergencies

By Thalif Deen

UNITED NATIONS (IDN) — The rising nuclear threats over the Russian invasion of Ukraine—and the growing tensions in the Korean Peninsula triggered by a nuclear-armed North Korea—have prompted the Geneva-based World Health Organization (WHO) to update its list of medicines that should be stockpiled for radiological and nuclear emergencies along with policy advice for their appropriate management.

: Thalif Deen; SUSTAINABILITY; Health & Well Being; 29 January 2023

Image: Chief of the Croatian Criminal Police and Deputy Chief Director of the Croatian Police Antonio Gerovac. Credit: HINA/ Damir SENČAR

Beyond the 'Blue Curtain of Secrecy' in Croatia

Conversation with the Head of the Croatian Criminal Police

By Aurora Weiss

VIENNA (IDN) — The esprit de corps, the misunderstood sense of togetherness, means that the police officers cover for one another. In such a culture, valuing loyalty over integrity facilitates misconduct by keeping it concealed. That’s why The United Nations Convention against Corruption calls for independent bodies or persons specialized in combating corruption through law enforcement that can “carry out their functions effectively and without any undue influence”.

: Europe Editor; THE WORLD; EU & Europe; 28 January 2023

Image: The historic Ukrainian city of Odesa. Credit: Alexander Alabin

UNESCO Protects Odesa Amid Threats of Destruction from War

By Jaya Ramachandran

PARIS (IDN) — Russia, which invaded Ukraine in February 2022, has denounced the decision of the UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) to designate the historic centre of Odesa a World Heritage in Danger site.

Russia, a permanent member of the UN Security Council, criticised the designation, saying the only threat to Odesa came from the "nationalist regime in Ukraine".