The Russian ‘special military operations’ in Ukraine, starting 24 February,with the intention of making Ukraine amenable to Russian rather than NATO overtures, has created a crisis in Europe. Besides the rising oil and gas prices it is creating a
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi kept up the tradition of Chinese leaders visiting Africa at the beginning of the year. For 32 years, this tradition has been in vogue and the Chinese FM, between 4 and 7 January, visited Eritrea, Kenya and Comoros in
There is a change afoot in the normally placid politics of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), which governs Japan. On Friday 17 September, four candidates emerged with varied views. This includes two women candidates. Their multiple candidacies,
On 9 August, Prime Minister Modi had the unique distinction of being the first Prime Minister of India to chair a session at the UN Security Council. It was carefully crafted to focus on the important issue of maritime security. It was debated at hig
July 2021 was envisaged as a turning point in current Ethiopian history. The results of the partial elections held in June1 provided a resounding victory for the Prosperity Party led by Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed. This was preceded by a withdrawal of
The Parliamentary elections in Ethiopia held on 21 June 2021 come at a very important time for the future of Ethiopia, and the Horn of Africa. With 120 million people, Ethiopia is the second most populous African country. It was economically growing
The ASEAN leaders meeting on 24 April overcame expectations of its viability. Despite hesitations it achieved more than anticipated.1 Initially, ASEAN Chair Brunei was reluctant to have the first ASEAN summit of 2021. Preparatory work was undertaken
The emergence of Samia Sulu Hassan as the President of Tanzania has gone quietly unnoticed.1 She was the incumbent Vice President, who has succeeded to the presidency, following the demise of President Magfuli,2 who had won an election last year. How
The Ministry of Defence of India has undertaken useful initiatives in engaging with partners mainly on a south-south basis over the last year. The Indian Ocean Region Defence Ministers’ Conclave held on February 4, 2021 alongside Aero India 2021 wa
The 38th Summit of the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD) held in late December 2020, has been a focus of attention. This is unusual for the organisation. The IGAD is headquartered in Djibouti and was formed in 1986. The IGAD was revi