International News
Coverage of international events and global policy shifts. The Daily Signal offers news reporting with opinion and commentary on world affairs.
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opinion
Pompeo’s Hong Kong Declaration Shows US Will Hold Chinese Communist Party Accountable
Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has told Congress that Hong Kong is no longer sufficiently autonomous from the People’s Republic of China, which may mean it will no longer receive different legal treatment from the United States. Pompeo’s statement was simply a reflection of reality. The People’s Republic of China is taking away the territory’s autonomy. The… -
opinion
The End of the Rule of Law in Hong Kong? What China’s New Crackdown Could Mean
China is proposing a “national security” law that is sparking protests across Hong Kong. Mike Gonzalez, a senior fellow at The Heritage Foundation, joins the podcast to discuss what is at stake with this proposed law, how it would effectively nullify the “one country, two systems” model between Hong Kong and China if enacted, how it… -
opinion
What US Leaving Open Skies Treaty Means for US-Russia Relations
When making foreign policy decisions, one must be careful not to view the world prescriptively (the way we want it to be), but rather to view it descriptively (the harsh reality of what is). That’s easier said than done. After President Donald Trump announced May 21 that the United States would withdraw from the 1992… -
opinion
WHO Is a Mess, but America Can’t Reform It Alone
President Donald Trump has sharply criticized the World Health Organization and its director-general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, for months. The administration’s dissatisfaction resulted in a decision last month to “halt funding of the World Health Organization while a review is conducted to assess the World Health Organization’s role in severely mismanaging and covering up the spread… -
news
Lawmakers Seek Sanctions Against Chinese Communist Party Officials for Human Rights Abuses
Republican lawmakers are pushing for sanctions on Chinese Communist Party officials over China’s “duplicitous, ineffective, and cruel” response to the coronavirus outbreak. Republican Reps. Jim Banks of Indiana, Dan Crenshaw of Texas, and Lance Gooden of Texas sent a letter Monday to Secretaries Mike Pompeo and Steven Mnuchin asking that Magnitsky Sanctions be imposed on seven Chinese… -
opinion
In Excluding Taiwan, Politics Overrides Health at the World Health Organization
The World Health Organization, the premier health organization in the United Nations system, is charged with “the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of health.” A key part of that objective is to detect potential pandemics, alert member governments about potential threats, and help coordinate an effective response. Effectively fulfilling those objectives… -
opinion
This Nonprofit Empowers the African American Community During COVID-19
COVID-19 is a great equalizer in many ways. Almost everyone is susceptible to the new coronavirus, no matter race or socioeconomic status. But some, including African Americans, the elderly, and the recently incarcerated, are more at risk. Clovia Lawrence, co-founder of Project Give Back to Community, a nonprofit based in Richmond, Virginia, joins The Daily… -
news
PBS Stations That Received Millions in Federal Funds Partnered With Chinese Foreign Agent on Pro-Beijing Film
PBS affiliates that receive millions of dollars in federal funding each year are airing a pro-Beijing documentary produced in conjunction with CGTN, a Chinese government-controlled media outlet that is registered as a foreign agent with the Justice Department. The film “Voices from the Frontline: China’s War on Poverty” did not disclose CGTN’s links to the… -
opinion
It’s Time for an Economic Freedom Partnership With Africa
In the context of a strong plea for reparations and debt relief from China for its recent predatory behavior in Africa, Obiageli Ezekwesili, a former vice president of the World Bank and former Nigerian Cabinet minister, made a startling admission. In a recent opinion piece for The Globe and Mail newspaper of Toronto, she wrote:… -
opinion
Reopening South Africa Through Greater Economic Freedom
South Africa’s overall economic freedom score increased slightly in the 2020 Index of Economic Freedom. Its score is well above the regional average, but its economy remains in the mostly unfree category into which it dropped in 2019—after 24 years in the ranks of the moderately free. Even before the pandemic, South Africa’s gross domestic… -
news
Trump to End Federal Retirement Investments in Chinese Equities
President Donald Trump will cut the federal government’s retirement fund investments in Chinese equities, according to a Monday letter obtained by Fox Business. The White House does not want federal employee retirement funds to have money invested in Chinese equities, national security adviser Robert O’Brien and National Economic Council Chair Larry Kudlow said in a letter to U.S. Labor… -
news
18 Attorneys General Demand Congressional Probe Into How China Willfully ‘Misled the World’
Eighteen Republican attorneys general called Friday for a congressional probe into China’s deliberate concealment of the severity of the coronavirus outbreak at its onset. “Recent reports suggest that the communist Chinese government willfully and knowingly concealed information about the severity of the virus while simultaneously stockpiling personal protective equipment,” stated the letter from South Carolina Attorney General… -
opinion
In a Retaliatory Move, the US Shortens Visas for Chinese Journalists
The Department of Homeland Security is throwing the next punch in the escalating journalism battle between the U.S. and China. The U.S. is shortening the validity period of visas for Chinese journalists to a maximum of 90 days to reciprocate for China’s recent expulsion of American journalists and nonrenewal of visas. This journalism visa tit-for-tat… -
opinion
Justices to Decide If Religious Schools Can Choose Who Teaches the Faith
The Supreme Court’s final week of oral arguments for its 2019-20 term this week included two cases that involve an important religious freedom issue. In a 2012 decision, Hosanna-Tabor Lutheran Church and School v. EEOC, the Supreme Court said that federal employment discrimination laws do not apply to cases where churches or religious schools fire… -
opinion
Chinese Leadership Corrupts Another UN Organization
Chinese influence in the United Nations and its affiliated international organizations has been expanding significantly over the past decade. China watchers long have hoped that the communist nation’s integration into the international system would “normalize” China. They hoped China would come to appreciate the value of observing international rules and norms and become freer economically… -
news
Nurse Fires Back at White House Reporter Who Shamed Her for Not Wearing a Mask
A nurse pushed back when a reporter asked President Donald Trump Wednesday why she and several other nurses gathered in the Oval Office during a press conference were not wearing masks or social distancing. “We’re all COVID-19-free. We were all tested,” said the nurse, identified by ABC News as American Association of Nurse Practitioners President Sophia Turner. The reporter… -
news
‘They’re Going to Need to Pay’: Ron DeSantis Says China Hoarded Protective Equipment
Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis said Wednesday that China is “going to need to pay” for hoarding personal protective equipment during the coronavirus pandemic. “As many people know, this PPE was a major crunch, particularly in March. China had known what was going on—they specifically bought up a lot of the stuff, really to try… -
opinion
Australia and New Zealand Differ on COVID-19. The Economic Fallout Could, Too.
Australia and New Zealand are two of just six economically free countries in the world, according to The Heritage Foundation’s 2020 Index of Economic Freedom, but they have chosen dramatically different paths in dealing with the coronavirus health crisis. Australia has been far more mindful of the economic freedom of its people. Both nations have… -
opinion
New York Mayor’s Tweet Directed at Jews Betrays Unconstitutional, Un-American Outlook
In a shocking tweet, New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio threatened that police would issue summonses or make arrests after abut 2,5000 Hasidic Jews gathered for a funeral service in violation of the city’s social distancing measures. “My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has… -
opinion
10 Steps America Should Take Now to Respond to the China Challenge
The growing chorus to “punish” China for how it has handled the COVID-19 crisis is understandable and justifiable. We need to be smart about how we do this, building up American strength even as we hold China accountable. If the challenge of our era is a multidecade great-power competition with China, the United States can…