Bharat Bhushan The sudden ceasefire after Operation Sindoor showed Narendra Modi that the support of the Hindutva base is not unconditional. It is predicated on giving no quarter to Pakistan. That is why he needs the blessing of the RSS to move forward with Pakistan Bharat Bhushan The call for keeping open the doors of dialogue… Read More Why Modi needs RSS cover for dialogue with Pakistan
For decades, many Chinese viewed the United States with a mix of admiration, envy and resentment. President Trump’s volatile second term shattered that image. Li Yuan When President Trump visited China in late 2017, Xi Jinping welcomed him with a grand display of Chinese history and culture: a four-hour private tour of the Forbidden City culminating in… Read More China Increasingly Views Trump’s America as an Empire in Decline
Nothing can stop Germany’s moral panic over antisemitism It would be hard to surpass the absurd spectacle of a Jewish philosopher being blocked from speaking at a German Holocaust memorial because he intended to say that the lessons of “never again” should be applied universally. And yet such perverse distortions of Germany’s ‘memory culture’ have… Read More Bad memories
Families turn to dirty fuels such as firewood, bringing fears over air pollution and fragility of energy transition…“When prices rise, it’s the poorest who are forced to switch back to biomass,” said Harjeet Singh, the director of the Satat Sampada Climate Foundation. “Biomass burning is a major source of fine particulate pollution. In dense urban areas,… Read More Public health at risk across Asia as price of gas for cooking soars
Source: Adam Tooze, Chartbook Source: Krishn Kaushik and Chris Kay in Mumbai and William Sandlund in Hong Kong from FT +++++++++++++++
Germany was the world’s largest exporter of plastic waste in 2025 and sent more than 810,000 tonnes abroad, according to analysis of trade data carried out for the Guardian. Leana Hosea The UK followed close behind, according to the analysis by Watershed Investigations and the Basel Action Network. It exported more than 675,000 tonnes, its highest level… Read More Germany was largest exporter of plastic waste in 2025, sending 810,000 tonnes overseas
Colombia president Gustavo Petro tells 57-country talks on a green energy transition that fossil fuel interests could destroy humanity Jonathan Watts and Fiona Harvey in Santa Marta, Colombia The world is threatened by a “suicidal” model of capitalism that is leading to war, fascism and the potential extinction of humanity, Colombia’s president has said, as he convened 57 governments… Read More ‘Suicidal’ model of capitalism leading to war and fascism, climate summit told
If Donald Trump fails to end the Iran war soon, its effects could last for decades, with unpredictable consequences Paul Rogers It is now clear that the war against Iran is going badly for Donald Trump. Binyamin Netanyahu and the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) may be determined to carry on, but Trump is the war… Read More The US is facing its Suez moment – the outcome could change the world order
What do melting Arctic ice, a war for farmland in Ukraine, and the panic of Gulf petro-states have in common? Arthur Snell exposes the terrifying new geography of global conflict and how humanity can adapt to survive it. By In Solidarity Podcast and Sian Norris The climate crisis is changing the way nations think about food, energy, resources,… Read More The Climate Wars: How Superpowers Are Carving Up the Earth | With Arthur Snell
U.S. bases and equipment across the Middle East came under attack — including from an Iranian F-5, despite American air defenses — and repairs could cost billions of dollars. NBC News dropped a bombshell report on Saturday that multiple government officials say damage to U.S. military bases was much more extensive than President Donald Trump’s officials have… Read More Iran caused more extensive damage to U.S. military bases than publicly known
After the truth-shower 