In the rush to analyze the outcome of Israel’s 51-day war in Gaza, dubbed Operation Protective Edge, some may have neglected an important factor: this was not a war by traditional definitions of warfare, thus the conventional analyses of victory and defeat is simply not applicable.
There is an immense amount of diplomacy going on these days concerning the quasi-civil war in Ukraine. But the only actors who really matter are Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel and Russia’s President Vladimir Putin.
The armed violence within Ukraine and the tensions between NATO and the Russian Federation are increasing. There are real dangers of the situation slipping out of control.
It is the failure of the WTO to deliver meaningful outcomes for poorer countries which is the real obstacle to a functioning multilateral trade system.
Can the BRICS wrest control of the global economy from the United States and Europe, or will their internal contradictions tear them apart?
Some Arab rulers continue to declare their strong support of Palestine and its cause. ‘Operation Protective Edge,’ however, has exposed beyond a doubt that such solidarity is just a mere show of words; and that, although discretely, some Arabs wish to see Israel crush any semblance of Palestinian resistance, in Gaza and anywhere else.
Copyright Toward Freedom 2019