Stories about International Relations from April, 2008
Peru: MRTA No Longer on US Terrorist List
Silvio Rendon of Gran Combo Club [es] notices that the guerrilla group MRTA (Revolutionary Movement Tupac Amaru) is no longer listed on the U.S. list of terrorist groups, and that its declassification was made with little fanfare.
Southeast Asia: Rice and food price crisis
The Southeast Asian region, home to several emerging and developing economies, is also struggling to cope with the global food price crisis. Bloggers discuss the impact of the crisis in the region.
St. Lucia: Inflation
Blogging from St. Lucia, Looshan Ramblings notes that “Oil is set to go up again. If the trend continues the first casualties of this spiraling inflation are the poor nations of the developing world.”
Kazakhstan: NATO Coop. and Regional Integration
Patrick Frost reports that amidst failure of the initiative of Central Asian Union's creation, NATO’s Special Representative recently visited Kazakhstan to discuss the railway transit project.
South Korea: Olympic Torch Relay Protest
R. Elgin from Marmot's Hole blog about the Olympic Torch relay protest in Seoul.
Japan: Nagano red for Olympic torch relay
The Japanese leg of the Olympic torch relay came to an end on Saturday without serious incident, but many Japanese bloggers who attended the event were left with lasting -- and often bitter -- impressions. With all the red flags, many bloggers pointed out how Nagano, for one day, seemed to transform into China.
Iran:Toilets and Nuclear technology
Kaghz Pareh (means a piece of paper) says[Fa] that according to news sites Spain signed a contract with Iranian government to construct 1000 toilets in Iran. The blogger says I got surprised by this piece of news because each day government announces new inventions and progress in nuclear technology but...
Angola: The voting weapon
Cazimar [pt] echoes the news that the Chinese An Yue Jiang ship was allowed to dock in Luanda only to unload merchandise destined for Angola. The blogger asks Angolan president José Eduardo dos Santos why he wants weaponry and call people to react: “Be careful with this delivery of weapons....
Hong Kong: Tibet Journal Article
David Webb posted an article that have been rejected by the Journal of Law Society in Hong Kong. The article discusses about the history of Tibet and the issue of self-determination.
Syria: Explosive Nuclear News
Yesterday, the CIA released footage of an alleged Syrian North-Korean-built nuclear reactor. The footage "exploded" all over the news. Yazan Badran brings us the reactions of Syria's bloggers.
Armenia: Djulfa
Blogian comments on a recent interview given by a former presidential candidate in Armenia on the destruction of an ancient Armenian cemetary in the Azerbaijani exclave of Nakhichevan. The blog says that while the eradication of Djulfa should not result in Armenia pulling out of peace talks with Azerbaijan to...
Japan: Yomiuri article on Japanese chemical weapons buried in Chinese land
Sayonara, Mata Ashita comments on an article in Yomiuri shimbun, Japan's largest newspaper, about chemical weapons buried in Chinese land at the end of the Second World War.
Lithuania: Stance on EU-Russia Partnership
Lituanica reports that Lithuania “is not interested in vetoing or blocking Brussels-Moscow talks over commencement of strategic EU-Russia partnership treaty.”
Russia: Anti-NATO
Streetwise Professor writes about Russia's anti-NATO stance: “Fighting the last war is dangerous if you really have one. Preparing to fight the last war is not so deadly if no conflict is in prospect. The Russian leadership acts as if that is the case, and feels just fine about living...
Estonia: “The Rubik's Cube of the Soviet Legacy”
Itching for Eestimaa writes about Estonia: “This country is complicated, but attempts to explain it to the outside world often fail. […] Estonia is closer than you think to solving the Rubik's Cube of the Soviet legacy. Let them work it out by themselves.”
Armenia: Black Dog of Fate
On the occasion of the 93rd Anniversary of the Armenian Genocide, The Armenian Odar Reads reviews Peter Balakian's Black Dog of Fate. Although the book has been around for some time , the review is quite timely given yesterday and is an interesting account of not just the Armenian Genocide,...
Armenia: April 24 — Genocide Memorial Day
Yesterday marked the 93rd Anniversary of the Armenian Genocideand the deaths of approximately 1.5 million Armenians in Ottoman Turkey. Every year on 24 April, a date marking the roundup of Armenian intellectuals and community leaders in what is now Istanbul, Armenians commemorate the massacres and deportations worldwide. In Yerevan, this is particularly the case with hundreds of thousands marching up to the Tsitsernakaberd memorial overlooking the capital to lay flowers and pay their respects.
South Korea: Pro Tibet Mobilization
CINA forecasts a pro-Tibet protest during the Olympic Torch relay in Seoul the coming Sunday. According to the blogger, the extreme right to the left and the liberals will have a united front in supporting a free Tibet.
China: Biggest Carrefour in the World
Xueyong criticized the Carrefour boycott and pointed out that the rise of China is related to the growth of global retailing stores like Carrefour as most of their products are made in China. In fact China is the biggest Carrefour in the World [zh].
Ukraine: Labor Migration
Ukrainiana explains why a social ad against labor migration currently being aired in Ukraine is actually no good: “Forget it, say millions of skilled blue-collar and thousands of white-collar Ukrainians who work abroad. Known as zarobitchany, they sent an estimated $8.4 billion worth of remittances to Ukraine in 2006, a...
Russia: Oil and Gas Industry
Two extensive posts on the Russian oil and gas industry – at White Sun of the Desert, here and here.
