Charles Taylor, the brutal warlord in the 1989-96 Liberian civil war and former President of that country, was convicted of war crimes by the International Criminal Court. There is little question that justice has been served but many are concerned that the conviction also sends a message to similar criminals that they have little to lose by attempting to stay in power (you can bet that Syria’s Assad is well aware of this conviction). Nonetheless, the conviction is also an important step in institutionalizing the international law of war crimes.
The credit rating agencies have downgraded Spain’s credit rating. The move was not unexpected, but damaging to any hope for a Spanish recovery. Spain will now have to pay higher interest rates in order to attract investors for needed funds, and the banks that hold Spanish government debt will have to protect themselves against the downgrade by raising additional capital to buffer their reserves. There probably won’t be a panicked reaction just now, but as the Greek and French elections move closer, then the downgrade will begin to resonate.
World Politics News 
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