International

Can the Left Triumph in Colombia, Latin America’s Country with the Harshest Oligarchy?

ON June 19, 2022, the people of Colombia will vote in a second round to elect their president and vice president. In the first round on May 29, the candidates of the Left – Gustavo Petro (president) and Francia Márquez (vice president) of the Pacto Histórico (Historical Pact) – led the way. Coming second was Rodolfo Hernández, a millionaire former mayor of Bucaramanga, and his running mate Marelen Castillo, both of the League of Anti-Corruption Governors.

Outcomes of the QUAD Meeting

THE month of May ended with a flurry of diplomatic activity from the US side in the Asia-Pacific region. Starting from US President Joe Biden, US administration officials made a beeline to our part of the world. Apart from his bilateral visits to Japan and Republic of Korea (RoK, South Korea), Biden’s time was occupied in meeting the leaders of Quad in Tokyo, launching a new initiative – the Indo-Pacific Economic Forum for Prosperity (IPEF).

Mali Ejects the French Military

IN the first two weeks of May 2022, the Malian military government ejected the French military and withdrew from the French political project, G5 Sahel. Deep resentment spread across Mali because of the civilian casualties from French military attacks and because of the French government’s arrogant attitude towards the Malian government. Colonel Assimi Goïta, who leads the military junta, said that the agreement with the French ‘brought neither peace, nor security, nor reconciliation’ and that the population aspires ‘to stop the flow of Malian blood’.

The Ignored Dilemmas of Humanity

A NEW report comes out with a troubling headline: that annual global expenditure on weapons has gone over $2 trillion. The United States leads the pack, with its spending greater than that of the next ten countries combined. If you add in the US intelligence budget and the money that the United States spends on its nuclear arsenal, then US annual military spending by itself is above $1 trillion. This is an astronomical amount of money, a colossal waste of human resources and ingenuity.

US Strategy in Indo-Pacific

DAYS before the Ukrainian war commenced, the US announced its new Indo-Pacific Strategy (February 2022). This document is not only about China, but is also about India. Viewed along with the recently concluded US-India 2+2 ministerial talks (11 April), it becomes clear that the Indo-Pacific strategy of the US and its various defence deals with India binds both the countries inseparably together.

Sri Lanka’s Aragalaya

ARAGALAYA in Sinhala broadly means struggle. The country is struggling to meet its fuel, food and financial commitments. People are on the streets, in struggle against the government that had failed them. They are demanding immediate resignation of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and all the 225 members of the parliament, including Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. The catchy slogan of this popular struggle is, ‘Gota Go Home’, implying President Gotabaya should leave office. All attempts made by the president to appease the protesters have failed.

The War in Ukraine is a War over Europe

THE war in Ukraine is not a simple war. This is not a war merely between two neighbours about a border dispute, for instance. It is a complex war, a war not only between Russia and Ukraine but also a war that involves the United States and NATO (the Trojan Horse of the United States). The battlefield is Ukraine, but it is not only Ukraine. The battlefield, in fact, is all of Europe.

EUROPE AS A SUBORDINATE ALLY OF US

Could Colombia Have a Left-Wing Government?

ON March 13, 2022, Colombia’s Left-wing electoral coalition (Pacto Histórico por Colombia) held its primary election. The Pacto Histórico (or Historical Pact) is a coalition of twenty different political parties and formations from the far-Left, Comunes, to the centre-Left’s Todos Somos Colombia and the Communist Party of Colombia. It includes the Left formation Humane Colombia, led by Gustavo Petro, who won the primary with more than 80 per cent of the vote.

Left Turn in Chile

GABRIEL Boric took oath as the president of Chile on March 11. This marks the ushering of a new chapter in the history of Chile.
Boric is the youngest president of Chile, elected at the age of 35 years (the minimum age required to contest for presidency). He represents the alliance, Apruebo Dignidad, which includes Boric’s party Frente Amplio (Broad Front), the Communist Party of Chile and other smaller social movements. After Salvador Allende, Boric is the first to win the election in alliance with the Communist Party.

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