A diplomatic argument has erupted between Germany and Russia over a German politician’s criticism of President Putin and his crackdown on Russian civil society. Russia protested, but Chancellor Angela Merkel’s own spokesman retaliated, saying the Kremlin’s position “astonished us.”Berlin’s relationship with the Kremlin has “for decades oscillated between realpolitik and values,” says the Economist. But Russia […]

Greece is still driving Europeans bananas. For the umpteenth time, international talks about a Greek rescue package have come to an impasse, this time regarding a dispute between Brussels and the IMF over the size of the package and how the burden should be divided. Northern European lending countries like Germany have already ruled out taking […]

In the past two days alone, six Tibetans have set themselves on fire in protest of Chinese oppression, adding to an already alarming death toll. The AP reports: A total of 69 Tibetans have set themselves on fire since February 2009, of which 54 have died, according to the government in exile, which has been based […]

China’s response to the Obama administration’s pivot to Asia is now enshrined in Communist party documents as official policy, the FT reports: Hu Jintao, China’s outgoing president, has called for China to become a “maritime power” in language that will fuel concerns among its neighbours and in the US over how it deals with a […]

As we’ve said in the past, The U.S. and Iran are already involved in a very real, if covert, war. But Iran is also waging secret wars with other countries, most notably with Israel. We’ve covered many of these clandestine battles individually as they have come to light, but it’s worth taking a step back to […]

It sure looks like the US has some more leading from behind in Africa ahead of it. Reuters reports that plans are solidifying for what Theodore Roosevelt might have called a “splendid little war” in Mali: “International forces will not do the ground fighting, that role will belong to the Malian army,” a military officer […]

For the first time in its long history as an American territory, Puerto Rico has voted to join the union. Naturally, it’s not a done deal. The measure was non-binding, and although both presidential candidates stated that they would be in favor of statehood for the island should residents support it, statehood would still have […]

The question posed by my title doesn’t quite hit the mark. Just as one cannot really speak of a single “America”, there is no one “Russia” anymore but rather several Russias. But while each different Russia has its own interests, attitudes and moods, there is something that unites them all with respect to America: The […]

Barack Obama’s sweeping triumph in the presidential elections, including in critical battleground states, prompted a sigh of relief in numerous quarters and most capitals of Europe, where Obama, despite his emphatic orientation away from Europe, is seen as representing more closely the ethos and Weltanschauung of the old continent.In his victory speech, which described the […]

Because of an unlikely alignment of the Chinese and American political calendars, both countries are going through leadership changes in the space of a few weeks. But the two transitions look wildly different. Consider the tight restrictions on life in Beijing these past few weeks: Kitchen knives and pencil sharpeners reportedly have been pulled from store shelves. […]