House Speaker Kevin McCarthy had to beg, plead and deal to get his current job. One of the agreements struck on the House floor with the most conservative faction of the Republican caucus was a promise to keep the next spending bill at levels that were agreed to in fiscal 2022. If McCarthy keeps his word, $130 billion in federal discretionary spending would be cut from the recently passed budget package. And if defense spending were to be included, $76 billion in military expenditures would be

President Yoon Suk Yeol’s recent visit to the United Arab Emirates achieved a huge result. It was one of the best results from a state visit, with Korea gaining $30 billion in investment commitments from the UAE. However, there is little discussion about this achievement in Korea. Instead, there is a backlash over diplomatic conflicts with Iran over President Yoon’s “Iran enemy” remarks. They came during a visit to South Korean military units dispatched to the UAE on Jan.

People sometimes ask, “Does the USA more closely resemble ancient Greece or the Roman Empire?” The answer is “Both,” because America has characteristics of both Greece and Rome. Like ancient Greece, for example, America is devoted to noble ideas such as democracy and human rights. At the same time, however, like the Roman Empire, America embraces commercialism and pragmatism. As had ancient Greece, so too does America have internationally famed scholars, scientists and un

According to Russian President Vladimir Putin’s grand plan, this was to be the hard winter that would break Ukraine and divide its allies in the West. That hasn’t happened. Putin unleashed missile attacks on Ukraine’s cities and its electrical grid, but the Ukrainians repaired their transformers and fought on. Putin unleashed a mercenary force, the Wagner Group, which used convicts to try to take the eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. They’re still trying. Putin cut natur

Russia’s war in Ukraine has affected political life in countries around the world, and this influence has been greater in the countries that are politically closest not to Ukraine but to Russia. Because Ukraine is a democracy and Russia is an authoritarian kleptocracy, the war has highlighted a fundamental clash between alternative political systems. This dynamic raises the stakes considerably, because a military defeat for the democracy could be an invitation to dictators elsewhere to p

Amid the fractious relationship between Seoul and Tokyo, a heartwarming event illuminated a path forward, paying homage to courageous individuals past and present. The occasion: presentation of an award memorializing a legendary Korean independence fighter. The recipient: former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama, who has advocated his country’s “infinite responsibility” as a former colonizer. For years, Hatoyama has been the most vocal -- and solitary -- mainstream Japanes

In an annual exercise since 1947, the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists sets its Doomsday Clock to provide an educated guess of how close humanity is to the apocalypse. The organization will announce its 2023 clock this month, and I expect the outlook is bleaker. If the United States responds to rising nuclear danger with more arms control instead of more weapons, it could help push the clock’s hands back again. Last year was a reminder that the nuclear threat most of us spend little time

Merriam-Webster has announced that “gaslighting” is the official word of the year for 2022. Indeed, the term “gaslighting” and various examples of it were part of a popular meme that circulated the internet last year. This suggests that many people all over the world had reason to pay attention to gaslighting last year because it had affected their lives in one way or another. What, then, is gaslighting? Evan Hecht, writing in USA Today, provides a concise definition from

As we begin the New Year and approach Chinese New Year, we need to reflect on how to face a grimly uncertain future. Gold prices are back up, the Ukraine war grinds on horrendously, politics are messier than ever and most analysts signal a recession ahead. The World Bank’s latest outlook sees the global economy growing by only 1.7 percent in 2023 and 2.7 percent in 2024. That’s a full one percentage decline from the IMF forecast in October 2022 for 2023 of 2.7 percent. The World Bank

The transition of Croatia into the euro currency zone these days can teach us a lot about bitcoin in the US. According to the ideology of bitcoinism, the citizens of Croatia are making a huge mistake in obeying this transition and abandoning their legacy currency, the kuna. According to bitcoinism, the kuna will become ideal money for the people of Croatia because the government of Croatia decided to kill it. If that seems strange, then you haven’t spent enough time in the upside-down worl

Polish ambassador Piotr Ostaszewski said he expects to see further development in bilateral relations this year, noting that the two countries have seen their ties rapidly developing in the wake of $14.7 billion worth of deal to export Korean defense systems and weapons to the European country last year. "The best partnership emerges when both partners understand each other," said Ostaszewski applauding 34 years of Polish-Korea relations that flourished in the 1990s and went through tr

Canadian Embassy reaffirmed its commitment with Korea to address global challenges at an event hosted to mark the 60th anniversary of Canada-Korea diplomatic relations in Seoul on Thursday. Canada established diplomatic relations with Korea on Jan. 14, 1963. Delivering a welcoming address at the event, the Canadian Embassy's Charge d'Affaires, Tamara Mawhinney highlighted the significance of the 60 years of Canada-Korea relations. She expressed Canada's commitment to the Comprehen

There is something pathetic about the gangs of crazed supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro that stormed Brazil’s congressional building, presidential offices and Supreme Court on Sunday. Congress was not even in session. The mutineers were late: President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva had been inaugurated a week before. He wasn’t even in the capital on the day, but in Sao Paulo, 1,000 kilometers. away. If they hoped to topple democracy and prevent the peaceful transfer of power

Normally, the election of a speaker of the US House of Representatives doesn’t make much news, but not this year. After four days of voting and 15 ballots, Republican Kevin McCarthy was elected speaker in the early hours of last Saturday. To get over the top, McCarthy gave into a long list of demands from far-right members of his paper-thin Republican majority. Starting Monday this week, the new Republican majority began exerting its control over the House. Votes on the rules package, th

For the past few years, the US and the UK have followed strikingly similar political trajectories. Against all odds, populist uprisings captured both countries’ conservative parties, secured power and embarked on projects of national transformation. These efforts went badly (to put it generously), and in due course support for the rebellions subsided. Lately voters have been calling for a rethink. In both countries, this is proving harder than you’d suppose. In 2016, Americans stunne