· January, 2009

Stories about International Relations from January, 2009

Russia: Putin in Davos

  31 January 2009

Leopolis writes about Putin's appearance at this year's World Economic Forum in Davos: “Despite being lost in translation, the Putin-Dell exchange illustrates the fact that Russia and the West are speaking at two completely different wavelengths, if not from two completely different planets.”

Georgia: Armenian Activists Detained

  31 January 2009

Blogian comments on the arrest of two ethnic Armenians in the Georgian region of Samtskhe-Javakheti allegedly for espionage and the formation of an armed gang. The blog says calls for autonomy or independence from Georgia are once again being heard.

Czech Republic: Jobless Foreign Laborers

  31 January 2009

The Czech Daily Word writes about the situation with several thousand foreign workers in the Czech Republic, who have lost their jobs and are now stuck in the country: “And according to a friend of mine from the Foreign Ministry, a calculation is being made, as to what is cheaper:...

Egypt: Hijacked ship will be blown up

  30 January 2009

A few weeks after confirming the hijacking of an Egyptian ship by pirates of Somalia, Zeinobia reminds us again with the current status. On one hand, according to the crew's families, negotiations have stopped regarding the ransom because the pirates refuse to lower it and because the owners of the...

India: Blogger silenced

  30 January 2009

Chyetanya Kunte is an Indian blogger living in the Netherlands. On 27th of November, 2008 during the terror attacks in Mumbai he wrote a blog post (now available through Google cache) criticizing Indian private television channel New Delhi Television (NDTV) and particularly their group editor Barkha Dutt's coverage of the...

Rohingya Muslims facing cultural genocide

  30 January 2009

Prof. Marranci writes that Rohingya Muslims are “victims of their lack of strategic value, both for their native Southeast Asia and the wider international community.” The Rohingyas are also “facing a slow, silent cultural genocide.”

Cuba: Hope and Change

  30 January 2009

On hearing the news that two black Cubans were arrested “after they were heard making favorable comments” about the Obama presidency, Uncommon Sense has these words for the new president: “Please do not let their faith in you, and their faith in real hope and change for their country, be...

MENA: Reflections on Obama's Al Arabiya Interview

  30 January 2009

It came as a surprise to many people that US President Barack Obama gave his first formal interview as president to an Arab television channel. Some were optimistic with Obama's replies, while others were disappointed. Yet, almost everybody was more concerned about the decision to have the interview conducted for Al Arabiya.

China: Sino-French Ties in 2009

  30 January 2009

Mr. Song Luzheng (宋鲁郑), a Chinese blogger who specializes in international politics, recently listed the five factors that have undermined the Sino-French relations (zh). He asserts that it is too hard to improve the bilateral relations to a mutually satisfying level unless the mutual trust is effectively enhanced.

Tajikistan: Terrible Tajik-Uzbek relations

  30 January 2009

Vadim says that Tajikistan and Uzbekistan have chronically had bad relations since early history of the two countries, and the most recent actions of Uzbekistan made these relations even worse.

Ukraine: KGB Archive

  30 January 2009

Sean's Russia Blog writes this about Ukraine's plans “the entire KGB archive dating 1917-1991″: “These materials will certainly be employed in the further crafting of Ukraine’s ‘imagined community’ of victimization by, rather than a participant in, the Soviet regime. Sadly, using these documents for this purpose has little to do...

Moldova: A “Stable” Economy

  30 January 2009

Moldova's economy has been declared “well-protected […] from the slowdown” by London-based magazine The Banker. Eternal Remont comments: “This one gets filed under, ‘I've been down so long it looks like up to me’.”

EU: Investing in Ukraine's Gas Pipeline?

  29 January 2009

Wu Wei quotes a Kyiv Post editorial, which urges the EU to consider investing in Ukraine's gas pipeline system, and posts this comment: “But on what terms will this be offered? Will the EU (or the corporation it says it will set up for pipelines) enter into a bidding war...