YPF petrol station in Argentina.

Argentina: The beginning of a wave of resource nationalism

Despite the Arab Spring, it was not a Middle Eastern country which grabbed biggest headlines for resource nationalism in 2012. It was Argentina, where populist President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner proposed a bill on April 16 to renationalize Yacimientos Petrolíferos Read on! →

USA: Liberals lax on Obama’s foreign policies [op-ed]

Nobel Peace Prize winning President Barack Obama has recently reiterated his desire to close Guantanamo Bay. The news was warmly welcomed by US liberals keen to show their conservative counterparts that their man in the White House is a force Read on! →

Presidents Macky Sall and Mahmoud Ahmadinejad

Senegal: Tumultuous relations with Iran enter new chapter

Iranian diplomats were all smiles as they resumed ties with a rising African country at the 12th Islamic Summit in Cairo. The event on the evening of February 6th included a photo-op handshake and a signing ceremony, but the historic Read on! →

Police hold hands to contain protesters.

Jordan: All the King’s Men

Jordan’s monarchy weathered the Arab Spring. Yet all is not well in the Hashemite Kingdom. The monarchy’s decades-long high wire act might be set for a fall.

African Heads of State at the summit held in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea 2011.

The African Union: Challenges of a Pan-African Project

This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of the Organisation of African Unity (OAU), a pan-African organisation, replaced in 2002 by the African Union (AU).

Mali hopes to develop the wealth of resources in the Taoudeni basin.

Mali: Why France is fighting for West Africa

Officially, French soldiers are fighting in Mali for security reasons. But is it out of charity that leads the French Government to do so?    “We want to be sure that Mali is safe when we withdraw our troops. We want Mali Read on! →

Olives grown in Jaén

Spain: Poor olive harvest spells problems for farmers

Spain is the largest producer of olive oil in the world, but as the olive harvest draws to a close, farmers are worried about the low crop yield.

Bashir visits South Sudan in January 2012

Sudan: The clock ticks for Bashir on oil

Why Sudan’s economic problems – not its political ones – may pose the greatest threat to al-Bashir’s regime.