By Carl Bildt July 17, 2026 In the corridors of the Kremlin, the atmosphere is one of stifled anxiety masked by performative defiance. For Vladimir Putin, the war in Ukraine has transitioned from a projected three-day "special military operation" into a grinding, multi-year quagmire that has fundamentally altered the geopolitical…
By Kai Guo | July 17, 2026 For decades, the prevailing consensus in Western economic circles regarding China’s industrial rise was defined by a singular, persistent variable: the state subsidy. From the solar boom of the mid-2000s to the rapid proliferation of electric vehicles (EVs) in the 2020s, the narrative…
By Koffi Alle | July 17, 2026 WASHINGTON, DC – In a move that signals a seismic shift in Africa’s economic trajectory, Nigerian industrialist and continent-topping billionaire Aliko Dangote is reportedly in advanced negotiations to replicate the success of his landmark Lekki refinery project. Following the operational triumph of his…
By Adekeye Adebajo Johannesburg, July 17, 2026 As the United States marks its 250th anniversary—the semiquincentennial—the atmosphere is not merely one of celebratory introspection, but of profound global skepticism. For much of the world, particularly within the Global South, the American experiment has long been viewed through a bifurcated lens:…
In the landscape of 21st-century geopolitics, the definition of "development cooperation" is undergoing a profound and potentially damaging transformation. As OECD nations pivot toward inward-looking policies characterized by defense spending, industrial protectionism, and energy security, the traditional mechanisms of foreign aid are being repurposed. What was once intended as a…
By Arvind Subramanian July 13, 2026 For decades, the global economic narrative has been tethered to the pulse of Washington, D.C., and the boardrooms of Wall Street. Analysts, policymakers, and historians alike have traditionally viewed the United States as the gravitational center of the global economy—the primary architect of trade…
By Brahma Chellaney July 10, 2026 The self-immolation of exiled Tibetan activist Lobga Rangzen outside the United Nations headquarters in New York on July 2 was not a spontaneous act of personal despair. It was a harrowing, final plea—a desperate attempt to jolt an indifferent international community out of its…
