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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news
UK High Court Rules That Declining to Bake ‘Gay Cake’ Isn’t Discrimination
The highest court in the United Kingdom has ruled that a Christian bakery’s refusal to make a cake supporting same-sex marriage does not constitute discrimination. In a unanimous decision Wednesday, the U.K. Supreme Court said the Northern Ireland-based family bakery, Ashers Baking Co., did not discriminate against a gay customer in 2014 by declining to… -
opinion
China’s Economy Isn’t What It’s Cracked Up to Be
China is a rising economic power that will threaten the United States’ place as the world’s biggest economy. At least, that’s the narrative we’ve become familiar with. But does it really hold up? Economists use gross domestic product to measure the size and growth of national economies. GDP is based on the real value of… -
news
Pro-Palestine Professor Who Rescinded Letter to Let Student Study in Israel Is Punished by University
The University of Michigan at Ann Arbor punished a pro-Palestine professor who rescinded a recommendation letter for a student wanting to study in Israel. John Cheney-Lippold, an associate professor of American culture at Michigan, originally supported writing a recommendation letter for a student to study abroad. The professor, however, rescinded his support after claiming he… -
news
4 Questions About Nikki Haley’s Departure as UN Ambassador
The Trump presidency has been full of surprises, but personnel changes typically are telegraphed or leaked well in advance. Nikki Haley’s announcement of her resignation as U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, however, was a genuine surprise. A major player in the administration’s foreign policy and a revered figure among many conservatives, Haley said Tuesday… -
news
‘Lenin Is Kaput’: Ukraine’s War for Its Future Continues as Citizens Look Toward Europe, Not Russia
KYIV, Ukraine—A statue of Vladimir Lenin stood over Kyiv’s Bessarabska Square from 1946 until pro-democracy protesters tore it down on Dec. 8, 2013—more than 22 years after Ukraine’s independence from the Soviet Union. Today, a metal trident now tops the denuded black granite pedestal. The trident is Ukraine’s national emblem. It’s a powerfully symbolic juxtaposition:… -
opinion
A Better Solution for People in the ‘Gap’ Who Need Health Insurance
Idaho voters will face a choice on Election Day about an issue that is fraught with emotional and political consequences. Voters will be asked whether to follow 34 other states in expanding Medicaid, a safety net program designed to finance health care for the poor. The initiative would allow nondisabled, childless adults to qualify for… -
news
24 Photos of First Lady Melania Trump’s Trip to Africa
First lady Melania Trump is in Africa on her first solo international trip. The first lady has visited Ghana and Malawi, with plans to visit Kenya and Egypt next before her weeklong trip wraps. According to a statement put out by her office, she will "focus on maternal and newborn care in hospitals, education for… -
opinion
The History Russians and Communists Want Us to Forget
The Soviet Union did not free the world of tyranny in World War II. It merely helped defeat one evil while ruthlessly attempting to supplant it with another one. But you wouldn’t know that from reading an Associated Press article from early September. The Associated Press originally stated that the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany… -
opinion
Prosecution of Woman Who Rescued Animals Amid Hurricane Florence Shows No Good Deed Goes Unpunished
During Hurricane Florence, a North Carolina woman, Tammie Hedges, graciously took more than two dozen animals into a warehouse that she is converting into an animal shelter. Using supplies purchased with private donations, Hedges offered the space—as part of her nonprofit, no-kill animal shelter, Crazy’s Claws N’ Paws—for animals to stay in while their owners evacuated…. -
news
Michigan Professor Refuses to Write Letter of Recommendation for Student Who Wants to Study in Israel
A professor at the University of Michigan has come in for criticism after initially supporting a student’s application to study abroad and then rescinding that support after discovering the student’s intended destination was Israel. The Washington Post reported that John Cheney-Lippold, an associate professor of American culture, received a student’s request for a letter of… -
news
With US and British Support, Ukraine Pushes Back on Russian Aggression in the Sea of Azov
KYIV, Ukraine—The U.S. Coast Guard was set to hand over two of its decommissioned 110-foot armed cutters to Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko at a ceremony Thursday in Baltimore. The move comes amid escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine over the free movement of merchant ships to Ukrainian ports in the Sea of Azov. “The transfer… -
opinion
The Daily Signal Podcast: In UN Speech, Trump Makes Powerful Case for American Sovereignty
President Donald Trump was the center of everyone’s attention at the United Nations on Tuesday, where he delivered a formal address defending his policies. Brett Schaefer of The Heritage Foundation joins us to discuss. Plus: Protesters harass Ted Cruz and his wife during their private night out. We also cover these stories: Trump defended Supreme… -
news
7 Top Takeaways From Trump’s UN Speech for Friends and Foes Alike
President Donald Trump defended the sovereignty of America—and every other country—before the 73rd United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday, in his second address to the world body. To the other world leaders and diplomats, Trump delivered an unpopular message against globalism, while also calling for cooperation. He delivered tough talk to America’s enemies, while also… -
opinion
Concerns Regarding Rising Religious Persecution in China Merit a Response
From Beijing to Tibet, the Chinese Communist Party is engaging in a violent crackdown on religion, employing tactics reminiscent of the Cultural Revolution. The recent intensification includes the burning of Bibles and forced closure of major churches, as well as mass detentions of Uighur Muslims and coercive quartering of party officials in their homes in… -
opinion
Some Are More Equal Than Others in Socialist Venezuela
It’s amazing how similarly “real” socialism turns out, every time it’s tried. In George Orwell’s book, “Animal Farm”—essentially the story of the Bolshevik Revolution in Russia, told through farm animals—there is an incredible moment where the animals, who suffer under the system of communism that they’ve created, come to a horrible realization that everything has… -
news
Ukraine Rebuilds Its Military Muscle to Repel a Russian Invasion
KYIV, Ukraine—For the past four and a half years, Ukraine’s military has prioritized rebuilding land warfare units to meet the immediate needs of the ongoing war in the country’s embattled, eastern Donbas region. This year, however, Ukraine has stepped up efforts to rebuild its air force and navy, too. This emphasis reflects a national security… -
news
NATO Chief Credits Trump for Allies’ Boosting Defense Spending, Rules Out Naming HQ for McCain
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg says allies are stepping up in their commitments to defense spending, and gives some of the credit to President Donald Trump. Stoltenberg also told an audience at The Heritage Foundation in Washington on Friday that the international defense alliance likely would not name its headquarters after Sen. John McCain, the veteran… -
opinion
How the Chinese Government Is Suppressing Religious Groups
The following is a lightly edited transcript from The Daily Signal’s Sept. 11 podcast episode. Katrina Trinko: Modern China has never been friendly to religion, but according to the Associated Press, things have been getting worse under President Xi Jinping. The AP reports: “Experts and activists say that as he consolidates his power, Xi is… -
opinion
Daily Signal Podcast: Religious Persecution on the Rise in China
In China, men and women of faith are facing increasing hostility from the state. The Heritage Foundation’s Olivia Enos shares what the Chinese are facing—from internment camps to having to share their home with a government official to seeing their Bibles seized. Plus: We discuss the rise of suicides in the United States in recent… -
news
House Leaders Question Environmental Group’s Ties With China
Congressional leaders are pressing their case against environmental activists who are closely aligned with Chinese government officials. In a letter Wednesday to the Washington-based World Resources Institute, Reps. Rob Bishop, R-Utah, and Bruce Westerman, R-Ark., ask the leader of the nonprofit international research group to document compliance with federal law covering agents of foreign powers….