· January, 2008

Stories about International Relations from January, 2008

The difference between Senegal and China

Blog politique au Senegal explains the difference between Senegal and China [Fr]: “Aside from the obvious differences like the color of their skin, the enormous disparity in the size of...

31 January 2008

Bosnia & Herzegovina: New Blogs by Public Figures

A few interesting blogs have emerged in the Bosnian blogosphere recently, showing the growing interest in blogging and Web 2.0 in the Balkans. Elia Varela Serra introduces the newcomers: a president, an ambassador, and a travelguide writer.

30 January 2008

Armenia: Russian Masters

After a visiting Russian official effectively endorsed the candidacy of the prime minister ahead of next month's presidential election in Armenia, Nazarian asks if it isn't time Armenians started to...

30 January 2008

Louis Michel Heckled by Congolese Protestors at the London School of Economics

Le renouveau congolais posts a YouTube video which shows Louis Michel, European Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid and formerly Belgian's foreign minister, as he was confronted by Congolese protesters during a talk given earlier this month on the EU and Africa at the London School of Economics. Read the reactions from Congolese netizens and a video response that will make you move your feet.

30 January 2008

Belarus, Latvia: “Ploshcha”

Marginalia watches Ploshcha (“The Square”), a film about the March 2006 mass protests in Minsk – “and watching it is a good way to mark Ceauşescu's birthday and Suharto's death”...

29 January 2008

Poland: New Government's Problems

The beatroot reports: “‘Civic Platform are clueless.’ That’s what many are saying of Poland’s still fledgling government. It must be the shortest political honeymoon in history.”

29 January 2008

Ukraine: Tymoshenko's Ideologies

Ukrainiana is somewhat confused about Yulia Tymoshenko's position: “Here we go again, cruising the ideological avenues of the world: from solidarism to Thatcherism; from pondering membership in the Socialist International...

29 January 2008

Bahrain: Are Gulf Arabs Lazy?

Earlier this week the Bahraini Labour Minister Majid Al Alawi was interviewed in the pan-Arab newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, and in the interview he said that the Gulf was facing an 'Asian tsunami' because Gulf nationals are 'lazy' and 'spoilt' and depend on imported labour to do even simple tasks. He said that that the nearly 17 million foreign workers in the Gulf, mostly Asian, represented 'a danger worse than the atomic bomb or an Israeli attack'. What do Bahraini bloggers think?

29 January 2008

Afghanistan: Lord Ashdown Steps Down

Afghanistan Watch reports that Lord Paddy Ashdown has withdrawn his name from consideration as the UN envoy to Afghanistan, after President Hamid Karzai and other officials expressed opposition last week,...

29 January 2008