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Mahmood Hasan

FROM A BYSTANDER

Former Ambassador and Secretary

OP 1.jpg

Aung San Suu Kyi at ICJ / Nobel peace laureate will defend genocide

The Myanmar military and the civilian government of Aung San Suu Kyi are literally between a rock and a hard place. Two cases of violation of the Genocide Convention filed against Myanmar have shaken its leaders.
9 December 2019, 18:00 PM
9 December 2019, 18:00 PM
Hongkongers.jpg

Hongkongers’ search for an identity

Protests and demonstrations are not new in Hong Kong. Even before returning to Chinese control in 1997, Hongkongers had demonstrated on different demands. When Chief Executive Carrie Lam wanted to push an extradition bill—that would allow both Hong Kong residents and visitors to be sent to China for trial—through the Legislative Council in March, it immediately triggered criticism and protests, particularly from the millennials of Hong Kong, demanding immediate withdrawal of the law. It is not surprising that the current protests that began in June continues with violent weekend street battles with the police.
13 October 2019, 18:00 PM
13 October 2019, 18:00 PM
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Recounting the Brexit drama in five acts

It’s been more than three years that the Brexit drama is being enacted in Britain—dividing the country, its political parties and the parliament.
29 September 2019, 18:00 PM
29 September 2019, 18:00 PM
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Will the US-Iran relations ever normalise?

It is amazing that the United States and Iran have maintained an extremely bellicose relation for the past four decades, much to the anxiety of nations of the Middle East. It all began when the Islamic Republic of Iran was proclaimed under Imam Ayatollah Ruhollah
23 September 2019, 18:00 PM
23 September 2019, 18:00 PM
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G7 Summit: Semblance of unity

The two-day 45th G7 Summit concluded recently at the French resort in Biarritz. What was unusual this time was the fact that the summit ended without issuing a final communique, essentially because there was hardly any consensus on any of the major issues
28 August 2019, 18:00 PM
28 August 2019, 18:00 PM
HONG KONG PROTEST.jpg

Hong Kong Protest / Beijing’s Catch-22

It’s been just 22 years since Hong Kong reverted to Chinese sovereignty in 1997, after 156 years of British colonial rule. Recent events in Hong Kong suggest that the long British rule has left considerable English influence on the ethnic Chinese of the region. Though the older English-speaking generation is on the wane, the young English-speaking millennials seem to be spearheading a political movement for democracy and social justice.
5 August 2019, 18:00 PM
5 August 2019, 18:00 PM
Rohingyas return Myanmar.jpg

Will the Rohingyas ever return to Myanmar?

Since the massive exodus of Rohingyas from Rakhine to Bangladesh in 2017, a lot has been written and said about the plight of these unfortunate people. After nearly two years, it appears that the outraged world community has forgotten about this persecuted ethnic minority.
23 May 2019, 18:00 PM
23 May 2019, 18:00 PM
arab spring.jpg

Dawn of the second phase of Arab Spring

The second phase of Arab Spring has dawned on the Arab world. It is not a surprise that people in Algeria and Sudan have risen to demand changes in the leadership in their countries, while Libya is also locked in serious conflict over who should rule the country.
24 April 2019, 18:00 PM
24 April 2019, 18:00 PM
President Obama's TPP is as good as dead

President Obama's TPP is as good as dead

Nobel Laureate President Barack Obama wanted to leave behind three foreign policy legacies – the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal (TPP), the Iran nuclear deal and the normalisation of relations with Cuba. Sadly, TPP is now as good as dead.
27 November 2016, 18:00 PM
Modi's war on blackmoney

Modi's war on blackmoney

Midway Through his tenure, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has declared war against blackmoney holders. On November 8 he declared Indian currency notes of Rs 500 and Rs 1000 denomination were no longer legal tenders.
18 November 2016, 18:00 PM
Donald Trump

Populism carries Trump to presidency

Will he [Donald Trump] carry out all the threats he made during the campaign? What will he do for the powerless groups in the American society? That is something we shall have to wait and see.
13 November 2016, 18:00 PM
Rohingya

Rohingya crisis deepens in restive Rakhine

The incident is a serious challenge to Suu Kyi's fledgling democracy as she tries to establish civilian authority over the powerful military. The military continues to ignore Suu Kyi's call to abide by the rule of law and respect human rights.
6 November 2016, 18:00 PM
US Presidential Election

Trump threatens to challenge election results if he loses

The American Federal Election Commission (FEC) has already started the Presidential Election process, which will culminate on November 8, 2016.
31 October 2016, 18:00 PM
Brics leaders.jpg

Goa BRICS Summit

India hosted the eighth BRICS summit in Goa on October 15-16 amid much fanfare. The group was formed with five major emerging economies - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - with a view to challenging the existing global financial architecture (World Bank, IMF, etc) dominated by the West, particularly the US. These five economies - representing 43 percent of world population, 30 percent of global GDP (over USD 17 trillion) and 17 percent of world trade - held its first summit in Russia in June 2009.
22 October 2016, 18:00 PM
Antonio Gueterres (1).jpg

Antonio Guterres - The next UN Secretary General

The hunt for a successor to Ban Ki-moon has come an end at Turtle Bay, New York. Ban Ki-moon completes his second five-year term by the end of December 2016. As the 71st General Assembly went into session, UN corridors were abuzz with three issues –
8 October 2016, 18:00 PM
b&w india pak.jpg

Jingoism should not get out of hand

Over the past couple of weeks, relations between India and Pakistan have taken a nasty turn. Rhetoric emerging from Delhi and Islamabad has not only deeply worried people in the sub-continent, but also leaders around the world. The heightened military tension between the two nuclear neighbours of South Asia did not come suddenly. It was in the making since July, 2016.
1 October 2016, 18:00 PM
Kofi Annan.jpg

Can Kofi Annan restore Rohingya rights in Myanmar?

There seems to be a very thin light of hope that the lot of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine state of Myanmar may change for the better.
24 September 2016, 18:00 PM
g20 china.jpg

China takes its place on the international stage

China hosted the 11th G20 summit from September 4-5, 2016 at Hangzhou for the first time since the group formally started holding
17 September 2016, 18:00 PM
Euorpe

Will Project Europe survive Brexit?

Since Britain decided to quit the EU, there has been lots of analysis about the economic fallout on what will happen to Britain and the European Union. But, what about the future of Project Europe?
27 August 2016, 18:00 PM
Thai rescue workers attend to an injured victim

THAILAND - Referendum, a new Constitution and bombs

When the “Land of Smiles” was celebrating Queen Sirikit's 84th birthday on August 11, 2016, eleven bombs went off in five popular tourist towns in southern Thailand, killing four locals and injuring dozens, including foreign tourists.
22 August 2016, 18:00 PM
OP1.jpg

SAARC meeting and Indo-Pak spat over Kashmir

Indian Home Minister Rajnath Singh was in Islamabad to attend the 7th SAARC Home Ministers Meeting, which discussed SAARC conventions on “Suppression of Terrorism” and “Additional Protocol and Convention on Mutual assistance in Criminal Matters”.
13 August 2016, 18:00 PM
oped 4 source istocking.jpg

The homestretch begins

The Democratic Party Convention - which ended in Philadelphia on July 28, 2016 - nominated for the first time a woman, Hillary Clinton, for the White House.
6 August 2016, 18:00 PM
nepalese org.jpg

Oli's ouster engineered?

Nepal has set a record in changing prime ministers; in the past 26 years the country had 23 prime ministers. Sticking to the tradition, the nine-month old incumbent government resigned on July 23, 2016 to make way for a new administration.
30 July 2016, 18:00 PM
Donald Trump

Donald Trump to “Make America Great Again”

As expected, billionaire Donald Trump was formally nominated as the Republican Party presidential candidate at the Republican Party Convention held from July 18-21, 2016 at Cleveland, Ohio.
24 July 2016, 18:00 PM
tony blair.jpg

Tony Blair indicted, Hillary Clinton still under the cloud

Two investigative reports have been published recently. The US FBI on July 5 revealed its report on Hillary Clinton's e-mail
9 July 2016, 18:00 PM

The tussle over South China Sea

Defence ministers and military chiefs of the Asia-Pacific region were in Singapore from June 3-5, 2016 for the 15th session of the
18 June 2016, 18:00 PM

Rise of regional political parties in India

What is revealing is that both BJP and Congress have not contested the recent State Assembly Elections on their own. They have invariably tied up with one or more state level parties. It reflects that these two national parties do not have enough vote-share in those states to go alone.
12 June 2016, 18:00 PM

Economic clout of G7 waning

What is striking is that finance ministers of the G7 countries, who met from May 20-21, 2016, could not agree on the fiscal policy that the G7 should adopt collectively to address global economic weakness. Japan and the US called members to boost fiscal stimulus, but Germany and Britain insisted on fiscal austerity.
5 June 2016, 18:00 PM

Pagination

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