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
With North Korea’s 5th Nuclear Test, Time for Obama to Pressure China
On Sept. 8, North Korea conducted its fifth nuclear test, the second since January 2016. The regime confirmed the nuclear test, claiming to now have “a variety of smaller, lighter, and diversified nuclear warheads of higher strike power … standardized [to be] mounted on strategic ballistic rockets. The U.S. Geological Survey reported a 5.3 magnitude… -
news
Journalists Caught in the Crossfire of the Ukraine-Russia Conflict
KYIV, Ukraine—There is a memorial to murdered Ukrainian journalists on Khreshchatyk, Kyiv’s central boulevard. It’s a simple, nondescript metal plaque flanked by flowers on the side of a building. Some of the names are faded now, worn down by the years and the elements. The names date from 1992, the first year after Ukraine gained… -
opinion
2 Years Ago, I Thought the War in Ukraine Was Over. I Was Wrong.
KYIV, Ukraine—Two years ago, on Sept. 5, 2014, the Ukraine war’s first cease-fire went into effect. For a brief moment, the guns fell silent along the front lines in Ukraine’s embattled southeastern Donbas region. These areas included the outskirts of the southern port city of Mariupol, where Ukrainian and combined Russian-separatist forces were engaged in… -
news
Russia’s Military Exercises Fuel Fears of Continued Aggression
KYIV, Ukraine—As the late summer weather begins to cool, Russian military exercises have kept the tensions hot in Ukraine and across Eastern Europe. Periodic flare-ups in the ongoing war in Ukraine’s embattled Donbas region this summer have renewed fears of a full-on Russian invasion and spurred an unprecedented post-Cold War redeployment of NATO military forces… -
opinion
I’m an African-American Woman. Here’s My Advice to Conservatives Wooing My Community.
The moment Donald Trump urged black voters to consider supporting him—asking, “What do you have to lose?”—the consultants and pundits sprang into coordinated action, bombarding the airwaves with their “r” and “b” words. “Donald Trump is a racist,” posted Daily Kos. “Donald Trump is a bigot,” piped in The New York Times’ Charles Blow. There’s… -
opinion
North Korean Sub-Launched Missiles Threaten US Allies
North Korea conducted its most successful test launch of a submarine-launched ballistic missile on Tuesday. The missile traveled 500 kilometers (300 miles), a considerable improvement over the 30-km range of the previous launch, and landed within Japan’s air defense identification zone. South Korean military officials report that North Korea used an unusual 500-km high trajectory… -
news
‘The War Won’t Be Over Soon’: Ukraine’s Long Fight Against Russia for Freedom
MARIUPOL, Ukraine— For more than two years, Ukraine’s military has been fighting a ground war against a combined force of pro-Russian separatists and Russian regulars in the Donbas, Ukraine’s embattled southeastern territory. As Ukraine prepares for the 25th anniversary of its independence from the Soviet Union this Wednesday, the ongoing war in the Donbas highlights… -
opinion
Violence in Burundi Highlights the Fragility of Democracy in Africa
The small central African country of Burundi is approaching its 17th month of violence sparked by President Pierre Nkurunziza’s decision to seek a third term in office. Once a relative success story, Burundi’s democracy is now on life support. Its plight is a reminder of the fragile state of African democracy, and is part of… -
opinion
‘I Thought You’d Forgotten’: Visiting My Friend, a Wounded Ukrainian Soldier
KYIV, Ukraine—There were three beds in the hospital room. Two were empty and in the middle bed was my friend Nemo. He was naked except for a white sheet haphazardly draped over his crotch. A mess of tubes extruded from his chest and torso. A long bandage went down his abdomen where the surgeons had… -
opinion
The US Should Halt UN Aid for Hamas
Shin Bet, Israel’s internal security service, has arrested two aid workers this summer and charged them with funneling funds to Hamas, the terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip, according to reports. A substantial amount of these funds were provided by the U.S. government for charitable, humanitarian, and development purposes. But, if these charges are… -
opinion
Doing Business in Asia: It’s Complicated
On June 23, The Heritage Foundation welcomed a delegation from the Asia Pacific Council of Chambers of Commerce (APCAC), a forum of 29 American Chambers of Commerce spanning the Asia–Pacific. APCAC members manage trade volumes in excess of U.S. $400 billion, and direct investments of more than U.S. $200 billion. This year’s group included business… -
news
Rigged Election? A History of Presidential Candidates Who’ve Made Allegations
The current election is not the first time a candidate has charged that the game was rigged. The new book, “Tainted by Suspicion: The Secret Deals and Electoral Chaos of Disputed Presidential Elections,” delves into the common thread regarding the most controversial presidential elections in history. The focus is on elections that dragged well beyond… -
opinion
Russia Continues to Dominate Arctic as US Struggles to Procure Icebreakers
The Arctic is shaping up to be one of the most strategically important regions in the 21st century. However, the United States has fallen far behind in building the specialized ships necessary to traverse the region’s treacherous waters. On June 10, Russia launched its first new military icebreaker in half a century. The Ilya Muromets,… -
opinion
Russian Olympics Cheating Is Emblematic of the Nature of Putin’s Regime
The Games of the XXXI Olympiad open tonight in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. As you watch the parade of nations, you may notice Russia’s contingent of Olympians is noticeably smaller. That’s because well over 100 Russian athletes have been banned from competing in the Olympics for their use of performance-enhancing drugs. In December 2014, the… -
opinion
Obama Seeks to Circumvent Congressional Opposition by Advancing Nuclear Agenda at UN
President Barack Obama has supported a ban on nuclear testing since his earliest days in office, but has been unable to rally support for ratification of a nuclear test ban treaty in the U.S. Senate. Frustrated with this opposition and facing the end of his second term, The Washington Post reports, Obama will bypass Congress and seek a United… -
opinion
A Year After His Death, What I Wish I Could Tell the Ukrainian Soldier I Befriended
KYIV, Ukraine—One year ago on Saturday, a 19-year-old Ukrainian soldier named Daniel Kasyanenko died on a battlefield in eastern Ukraine. He died alongside one of his friends, a fellow Ukrainian volunteer soldier, when a mortar fell on them. They were among 18 Ukrainian soldiers to die in a 10-day stretch from Aug. 1 to Aug…. -
news
Russia’s Moves, Terrorism Fuel Talk of War in Europe
KYIV, Ukraine—Whether referring to Russian aggression in the east or to the threat of Islamist terrorism in the West, Europe’s political, media, and religious elite are increasingly using the word “war” to describe the Continent’s security challenges. The day after the July 14 terror attack in Nice, in which a man drove a large truck… -
opinion
Hostage Deal Is Latest Example of Obama’s Sell-Out to Iran
The only thing more pathetic than the Obama administration paying the Islamist Republic of Iran ransom for American hostages, and thereby ensuring more Americans will be taken hostage by thug regimes around the world, is that they expect us to believe, despite evidence to the contrary, that they didn’t. Right. First, President Barack Obama and… -
opinion
With a Domestic Economy Slowing Down, China Doubles Down on Foreign Investments
China is the world’s largest exporter of merchandise. What is not well known: it is the world’s second largest net creditor nation, increasingly acquiring western companies and technology. According to the China Global Investment Tracker from the America Enterprise Institute and The Heritage Foundation, Chinese global outbound foreign direct investment (defined as having at least a…