The first sentence of the story: Aung San Suu Kyi
Myanmar’s ousted leader has been sentenced to four years in prison; more guilty verdicts are expected soon. That will only fuel unrest that has not ceased since a coup in February. Scrutiny of Interpo...
6 Dec 202122min
Taiwan thing after another: the Solomon Islands
The archipelago’s diplomatic pivot to China has added an international dimension to the latest flare-up of domestic tensions. We ask how this tiny state figures into far larger geopolitics. British la...
3 Dec 202120min
Roe blow? SCOTUS weighs abortion rights
The conservative supermajority on America’s Supreme Court looks likely to strip back rights enshrined since the Roe v Wade ruling in 1973. Beset by natural disasters, Puerto Rico did not seem ready fo...
2 Dec 202124min
The house that Jack built: Twitter’s founder departs
Jack Dorsey’s departure from the social-media giant reflects the growing primacy of engineering talent, and the waning mythology of the big-tech founder. Ukraine’s military has become much better at b...
1 Dec 202119min
Centrifugal forces: Iran nuclear talks resume
Things were all smiles after negotiations resumed—but it is difficult to see how a middle ground can be reached in Iran’s nuclear ambitions. Apple’s surprise move to permit repairs to its hardware ref...
30 Nov 202122min
Priority letter: the Omicron variant
Governments’ rapid responses to a new coronavirus strain were wise. But much is still to be learned about the Omicron variant before longer-term policies can be prescribed. Vietnam’s government wants ...
29 Nov 202121min
A cut-rate theory: Turkey’s currency spiral
As President Recep Tayyip Erdogan keeps pushing his upside-down economic ideas, the currency plummets and an immiserated population grows restless. Sunday’s presidential election in Honduras will be a...
26 Nov 202122min
You put your left side in: Germany’s shake-about
A three-way coalition has struck a deal to govern. We ask who’s who among top ministers and what’s what on the newly centre-left agenda. A shortage of lorry drivers has sharpened Britain’s supply-chai...
25 Nov 202123min
