OPINION

Photo: Joe Biden with Bernie Sanders who has endorsed his presidential candidature. Source: Twitter.

Biden's Foreign Policy Leaves Enough Room for Revamping

Viewpoint by Jonathan Power

LUND, Sweden (IDN) – Joseph Biden for president! His main rival for the Democratic Party's nomination, Bernie Sanders, endorsed him on April 13. If the world could vote, the overwhelming majority would vote for Biden, despite some misgivings. My reservations would be on his foreign policy. Like President Barack Obama he would be good on domestic policy but mistaken on much of his foreign policy.

Obama made Biden responsible for dealing with the Ukraine crisis where he fashioned an anti-Russian policy based on little evidence that this was fair to the facts. He writes now of the need to "counter Russian aggression" and that "we must impose real costs on Russia for its violations of international norms".

: Jonathan Power; OPINION; 14 April 2020

Photo: Pyramids are the backbone of Egyptian tourism. Credit: IFPRI.

Economic Impact of COVID-19 on Tourism and Remittances – Insights from Egypt

Viewpoint by Clemens Breisinger, Abla Abdel Latif, Mariam Raouf and Manfred Wiebelt

WASHINGTON, DC (IDN) – The economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis are increasingly hitting low- and middle-income countries and the poor. International travel restrictions and the full or partial closure of businesses and industries in Asia, Europe, and North America have led to a collapse in global travel and are expected to reduce the flows of remittances. Tourism and remittances are important sources of employment and incomes for the poor, respectively. This post assesses the potential impacts of the expected reductions in these income flows by using Egypt as a case study.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 13 April 2020

COVID-19: Are the World's "Leaders" up to the Challenge?

Viewpoint by Roberto Savio*

CASAPROTA, Rieti, Italy (IDN) – The letter of 7 April 2020 calling for immediate international action to address issues arising from the COVID-19 crisis sent to the G20 by more than 200 former world leaders, leading economists and global health experts, makes sad reading.

The letter, sent by a group that claims the right to speak on behalf of humanity – when the United Nations was founded for this – demonstrates how a diverse group of personalities, some of whom such as the former Argentine president Mauricio Macri, are the opposite example of good governance and close the circle on the status quo.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 13 April 2020

Photo: US President Lyndon Johnson addresses the UN General Assembly during the signing of the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, 1968. Eventually, 188 countries signed the treaty, which was made into law in 1970. Photo credit: Screen capture from the documentary 'Good Thinking, Those Who've Tried To Halt Nuclear Weapons'.

An Unexpected Chance for the Success of Postponed NPT Review Conference

Viewpoint by Sergio Duarte

The writer is Former UN High Representative for Disarmament Affairs and current President of Pugwash.

NEW YORK (IDN) – It took patience from the President-designate of the 2020 NPT Review Conference, a sober assessment of the situation by a number of states, particularly from the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) and help from the UN Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA). In the end, the parties to the Treaty agreed to postpone the Conference to next year, "as soon as circumstances permit, but no later than April 2021".

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 12 April 2020

Photo: President Vladimir Putin at the virtual meeting with regional heads on combatting the spread of the coronavirus in Russia. Credit: en.kremlin.ru

The Pandemic of Fear Haunts Moscow

Viewpoint by Lyubov Sharkova*

MOSCOW (IDN) – In just a short period of time, the world in Russia has changed for everyone. I've started to notice how people around me are going mad. They've started blaming and avoiding other people, making social distance the priority of their lives. These people are well-educated, well-off, with flexible minds. It doesn't matter who they were in their life "before corona". Now all of them are afraid. And that's the reason for their madness.

: Opinion Editor; THE WORLD; Russia; 12 April 2020

Photo: A collage of pictures from the World Economic Forum and the International Institute for Environment and Development, indicating that the future of the world economy will be influenced by OVID-19.

Welcome to the Viral Desert – Coronavirus and the Reinvention of Communism

Viewpoint by Slavoj Žižek*

LJUBLJANA (IDN) – The current spread of the coronavirus epidemic has also triggered a huge contagion of ideological viruses, which had been lying in a dormant state in our societies: fake news, paranoid conspiracy theories, outbursts of racism, and so on.

The founded and real need for the implementation of quarantine has reverberated, manifesting itself in the ideological pressures that invite us to erect clear borders and put down "enemies" that would represent a threat to our identity and the conditions of isolation.

: Phil Harris; OPINION; 12 April 2020

Photo credit: Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine

COVID-19: A Global Buddhist Network Contributing to Overcoming the Pandemic

Viewpoint by Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada

Following is the text of a press release conveying President Harada's Message in response to the COVID-19 Pandemic. [Read in Spanish, Traditional Chinese, and Simplified Chinese.]

TOKYO (IDN) – Japan, where until recently we hoped that we would contain the spread of COVID-19, has now entered into a state of emergency, facing a surge in the number of confirmed cases and redoubling its efforts to save precious lives.

In these most difficult times, on behalf of the Soka Gakkai, I would like to express our most sincere condolences and deep sympathy to all victims, their families and loved ones, and show heartfelt gratitude and respect to all health workers and those fighting on the frontline throughout the globe.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 11 April 2020

Photo: A drone photo of Mumbai from the series highlighting wealth inequality in cities around the world. Credit: MatadorNetwork

Ponder Who We Are and the World We Live In

Viewpoint by Roberto Savio*

ROME (IDN) – If you could fit the entire population of the world
into a village consisting of 100 people,
maintaining the proportions of all the people living on
Earth, that village would consist of

: Roberto Savio; SUSTAINABILITY; Reduced Inequalities; 10 April 2020

Photo: Screenshot of YouTube streaming on 8 Apr 2020 by Bernie Sanders announcing his exit from Presidential campaign. Credit: Bernie Sanders' Website.

The End of Bernie Sanders' Socialist Agenda

Viewpoint by Somar Wijayadasa*

NEW YORK (IDN) – The Socialist-Democrat Presidential candidate, Sen. Bernie Sanders, ended his campaign as it lost momentum – and the coronavirus pandemic changed everything. Claiming that he is a democratic socialist, he wanted to stage a political revolution in America.

The dreaded words "socialist" and "revolution" are anathema to Americans even though they may be quite familiar with their modern day color revolutions, regime changes, and Arab Springs abroad – in the name of democracy and freedom.

: Opinion Editor; OPINION; 10 April 2020

Photo: President Trump addressing a press conference. Credit: The White House.

COVID-19: Trump's Bizarre Performance Blocked His Emergence as a 'Hero'

Viewpoint by Dr. Alon Ben-Meir

The writer is a professor of international relations at the Center for Global Affairs at New York University (NYU). He teaches courses on international negotiation and Middle Eastern studies.

NEW YORK (IDN) – For a man who is a self-absorbed, power hungry narcissist who wants to be recognized as one of the greatest presidents of the United States while desperately trying to be reelected, Trump failed miserably to rise to the occasion precipitated by the unfortunate advent and spread of the coronavirus.