Written by Camden Hanley - September 5, 2022 Two major events occurred in Chinese news this past week that require attention. The date of the 20th Party Congress has been announced and the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights office released its report on the PRC’s actions in Xinjiang. The 20th Party Congress will be... Continue Reading →
Elections and the Peaceful Transfer of Power in Africa
Written by Osetemega Iribiri - September 5, 2022 The peaceful transfer of power is not a reality in all African countries. For instance, some elections result in military coups in Burkina Faso, Chad, Guinea, Mali, and Sudan, and protests in Eswatini. Nevertheless, the situation is not all gloomy as countries like Zambia and Malawi have... Continue Reading →
The Importance of the Tokyo International Conference on African Development
Written by William Lucht - September 5, 2022 In Tunis, Tunisia’s capital, stands Tunisian President. Kais Saied and Japan’s foreign minister Yoshimasa Hayashi side by side at the eighth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD8), the first to be held since the start of the dynamistic COVID-19 pandemic. The conference, which has aligned developmental... Continue Reading →
Colombia and the United States Renegotiate Extraditions
On August 24th, President Petro took the first steps to make good on his campaign promise regarding the extradition of drug traffickers to the United States. Petro's proposal follows a series of failed attempts by previous administrations to deal with drugs within Colombia. Petro pointed out that “despite billions of dollars in security spending and decades of U.S. pressure to reduce drug production, Colombia remains a top global supplier of cocaine” (Vargas, 2022). In fact, a White House study reported in 2021, Colombia produced around 972 tons of cocaine, most of which was exported to the U.S., while 234,000 hectares were planted with coco, the plant used to make cocaine.
The Russia-Ukraine War: How Russia Violated the United Nations Charter
When representatives from the United Nations signed the UN Charter on June 26, 1945, those representatives bound their governments to the entirety of the Charter, including provisions regarding sovereignty. Article 2 is organized with the understanding that nations would respect the sovereignty of other nations. Specifically, Article 2 states, "The Organization is based on the... Continue Reading →
Enlargement and Article 10: NATO, Finland, & Sweden
Last week, the United States Senate voted to ratify adding Finland and Sweden to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (hereinafter "NATO"). The resolution passed the Senate with a 95-1 vote after Senators Schumer (D-NY) and McConnell (R-KY) urged lawmakers to support the measure as Russia's aggression threatened national security. While President Biden hosted the leaders... Continue Reading →
Kidnappings, Assassination Attempts, Military Coups, and a Humanitarian Crisis: Patterson Students Take on the Crisis Simulation
The 2022 Patterson Spring Crisis Simulation consisted of five teams: Venezuela, Peru, China, Colombia, and the United States. While each team had a set of red lines they were forbidden to cross, teams worked together to not only advance their own interests in the region but to also aid in the humanitarian crisis. While some of this aid came in the form of direct monetary payments, the majority of the aid consisted of resources used to fight the COVID-19 pandemic (e.g. vaccines, PPE, etc.).
The Poland-Belarus Border Crisis: Asylum Rights Altered as Troops Guard Border
As the migrants trapped in "no man's land" begin to face the winter months, the European Union ("EU") recently proposed emergency measures to allow Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania to derogate from EU asylum rules. According to Human Rights Watch, while the measures would still need to be approved by the European Council, they would "systemize... Continue Reading →
The Poland-Belarus Border Conflict
As instability rises in the Middle East, migrants are looking for different avenues to safety, and one of these avenues is seeking passage through Eastern Europe. On September 2, 2021, The Economist reported a large influx of migrants were crossing into Poland, Lithuania, and Latvia at the direction of the Belarusian government (https://www.economist.com/europe/2021/09/02/europes-latest-migrant-crisis-leaves-refugees-stuck-between-two-borders). Belarus' dictator,... Continue Reading →
The World This Week 9/21/21
This is a brief overview of the week's top news stories organized by region. LATIN AMERICA - Covered by Daniel Stephens In El Salvador, massive protests have erupted over Bitcoin becoming legal tender. Thousands of demonstrators in the capital San Salvador have expressed frustration over the controversial decision, emphasizing that it will bring instability and inflation to the developing... Continue Reading →
The Patterson Journal of International Affairs 