World Politics News   Articles for World Politics Course

I posted several articles on recent provocative statements coming out of North Korea.  The rhetoric has been unusually fierce over the last few days, including threats against Hawaii and Guam.   Suspicions are that the fiery rhetoric is in response to changes in UN policies South Korean policies.  Whether the rhetoric is indicative of a definite change in previous behavior remains to be seen.  But it is clear that the states in East Asia, including China, are not at all sympathetic to North Korea.

There have been protests in Cyprus against the troika bailout plan.  At this point it does not appear as if the plan is in jeopardy, but the Cypriot people are looking at the end of their main economic advantage–offshore banking for rich clients.  Experts are predicting that the GDP of Cyprus may decline as much as 23% in the coming year if the financial industry in Cyprus collapses.

Violence against Muslims has erupted again in Burma.  A few  months ago, violence against Muslims known as Rohingyas broke out in one of provinces of Burma.  The communal violence has been simmering for years, and the outbreak of violence is most likely correlated with the loosening of the power of the military.  Dealing with the violence, however, has to be a top priority for the government.