U.S. fatigue and distraction in the Middle East has made ample room for Russia to step in as the new patron, power-broker and custodian of the region. Washington should think twice about welcoming this development.

In Donetsk, an industrial city in eastern Ukraine, there are no protestors in the streets. There are no roadblocks, no barricades, no riot police. People there have a message for the protestors in Kiev, as Andrew Roth writes in the New York Times: Go back to work.

Far reaching reforms like those passed last night in Mexico make it likely that our neighbor will see a huge job-creating bonanza in oil and gas production. The United States stands to benefit in several ways.

Representatives from China and Dominica put pen to paper on a multi-million dollar investment deal last month in what observers are calling a virtual takeover of the Caribbean island. Call it the Caribbean arm of China’s “cabbage” strategy.

Ukranian President Viktor Yanukovich announced that he does, in fact, plan on signing an agreement with the EU despite rejecting it last week. However, he wants something in return—about €20 billion. He appears to be holding an auction, but will power slip from his hands before all the bids are in?

Across the Middle East, Kurdish politics are growing more assertive and self-confident. The status quo is increasingly untenable, but the United States appears to have no game plan.

Obama and Code.org have taken some flak for suggesting that every child needs to learn to code. But while it’s true that not every child is a programmer-in-training, Americans could still deal with a good deal more computer literacy than they have now. Schools need to start thinking seriously about how to integrate computer eduction into their curricula. It’s becoming a more important skill than ever before.

The top Western-supported rebel commander in Syria has been run out of town by Islamist fighters in the latest setback to US policy in the Syrian civil war. General Salam Idris, the commander of the Free Syrian Army, was forced to flee to Turkey after fighters belonging to the Islamic Front overran his offices and took control of warehouses that stored gear sent by the US to help Idris and his men fight the Assad regime.

MOOC critics have been making hay over some studies and interviews suggesting that the movement may be losing steam. But despite some setbacks, “blended” MOOCs that mix online courses with in-class instruction are still on course to transform higher-ed.

The future of the Trans Pacific Partnership hangs by a thread. Partnership members can’t settle severe disagreements on sensitive issues like rules on intellectual property, state-owned enterprises, agriculture, and much else. The TPP, for better or worse, has become the symbol of American economic engagement in the Pacific region. If the TPP fails it would be seen as a significant setback for Washington’s relationship with Asia at a critical time.