The immigration crisis facing Europe may be set to become more complex as plans leaked to a German newspaper indicate that the German state is preparing to reinstate border control, bringing a halt to the ‘open-door’ policy that saw almost 1.5 million refugees arrive in 2015. German Chancellor Angela Merkel
A senior US official has stated that an upcoming ruling on a case, brought by the Philippines to arbitrate territorial claims in the South China Sea, will also be binding on China despite its boycott of the proceedings. White House Asia policy director Daniel Kritenbrink affirmed on Friday that
Oil ministers from three OPEC member nations – Qatar, Venezuela and Saudi Arabia – met with Russia in Doha on Tuesday, and have reportedly reached an agreement to freeze oil production at January levels. The deal is aimed at addressing the almost 1 million barrel per day surplus that
Plans to end hostilities in Syria within a week, revive peace talks, and deliver humanitarian aid to civilians have been unveiled during a press conference after the International Syria Support Group (ISSG) meeting in Munich, Germany on the 12th of February. These plans, whilst optimistic, have been hailed as a
On Saturday, the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency confirmed that Iran has undertaken the necessary steps to restrict its nuclear program. This will provide immediate access to more than $50 billion in frozen assets, and will allow for Iranian oil to re-enter the international marketplace. As part of ensuring that no
For the first time in four-and-a-half years of war, the Syrian conflict is showing signs of a possible diplomatic and political solution. The Syrian government has indicated that it is willing and ready to attend peace talks with opposition groups in Geneva later this month. During a press briefing in
France’s Socialist government has been both praised and criticised for submitting proposed laws, which would allow for the citizenship of convicted terrorists to be revoked. This legislative power could only be exercised upon dual-nationals, as France’s obligations under international law prevent it from leaving a person stateless. However this proposal,
Attackers have fired rockets into Mali’s northern city of Gao, which serves a base for U.N. peacekeepers and a French regional security force. Whilst there have been no reports of injuries or damage, this attack is only the latest amidst escalating tensions between Western and Malian forces and Islamist militants.
With the international community focused on the conflict in Syria, reports of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant’s (ISIS) activities in Libya have gone effectively unheeded. However this may be set to change, as last week the UN reported that Libya has become ISIS’ effective fall back position.
