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
How Putin Hoodwinked the Political Right
It’s easy to see why Vladimir Putin has emerged as the lodestar of certain elements of the political right across the West. Russia’s president poses as the champion of nationalism vs. rampant transnationalism, of Christianity vs. secularism, and of European identity in general. These are battles that set conservatives’ teeth on edge. The political left… -
news
Russia’s Pattern of Influencing Foreign Politics
KYIV, Ukraine—If the FBI proves Russia is behind Friday’s leak of embarrassing Democratic National Committee emails, the revelation would be consistent with Russia’s pattern of clandestine and overt gambits to influence the politics of its perceived adversaries. “In the Putin era, Russia has been aggressive on many fronts, including invasions of Georgia and Ukraine,” said… -
opinion
The Man Who Tried to Kill Reagan Is Going Free. Americans Should Be Outraged.
The decision to release John Hinckley Jr. from St. Elizabeth’s psychiatric hospital after his attempted assassination of President Ronald Reagan is outrageous, disgraceful, and a travesty of justice. No matter how much supervision he has, Hinckley cannot be trusted to move and function in society. Even though his victims, Reagan and White House press secretary… -
news
Undercover Filmmaker Who Exposed Planned Parenthood Calls His Case a ‘Huge Win’ for Journalists
Two undercover filmmakers whose videos exposed abortion provider Planned Parenthood won’t face criminal charges after all. Instead, they’re hailing the news as a First Amendment victory for citizen journalists. On Tuesday, the Harris County district attorney’s office dismissed all charges against David Daleiden and Sandra Merritt. The duo worked undercover to produce a series of… -
opinion
The UN Funds Repressive Regimes at the Expense of US Taxpayers
A new report shows how the U.S. contributes more money to the U.N. than it spends on shipbuilding for the Navy, yet there is a huge disparity in what it receives back compared to many repressive countries. The United Nations recently released a report detailing the countries of registration of the recipient vendors of $17.6… -
opinion
Why the United States Must Continue to Embrace NATO to Answer Aggressive Russia
Sixty-seven years ago yesterday, the U.S. Senate ratified the North Atlantic Treaty, creating NATO. Ravaged by two world wars, and faced with the very real existential threat of the Soviet Union, European democracies allied with the U.S. and Canada created a security pact with collective defense at its core. The United States lost over half… -
opinion
US Allies Must Embrace Advanced Missile Defense to Counter North Korea Nuclear Threat
North Korea provocatively conducted missile tests on Wednesday, a clear warning to the United States and its allies that nuclear defense systems must remain a priority. North Korea launched one Scud and two No Dong missiles 500-600 kilometers and announced it was a practice drill for preemptive nuclear attacks on South Korea and U.S. forces… -
opinion
Who Determines Computer Crimes? Court Says Congress. Congress Is Unclear.
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has handed down its opinion in Facebook, Inc. v. Power Ventures, Inc., that seems to suggest, as George Washington University Law Prof. Orin Kerr writes, that “It’s a federal crime to visit a website after being told not to visit it.” Although this case arose in the civil context, violations… -
news
‘Back to the Soviet Era’: Putin’s New Law Could Lead to Religious Crackdown
In signing a new anti-terrorism law, Russian President Vladimir Putin could have authority to crack down on non-government-aligned churches, said Archbishop Andrew (Maklakov), administrator of the Russian Orthodox Autonomous Church of America. The law that Putin signed on July 6 restricts religious proselytizing and imposes heavy fines for doing so. While the law exempts the… -
opinion
The Attempted Coup Reveals Turkey’s Instability. That’s Bad News for the US.
An attempted military coup in NATO member Turkey was foiled over the weekend. At the time of writing, at least 265 people have been killed and another 1,400 wounded. Thousands of judges have been dismissed or arrested. Tanks shelled the parliament in Ankara and at one point President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was forced to address… -
opinion
How Will China’s Economic Slowdown Affect the US?
Since the 2008–2009 global recession, China has accounted for roughly one-third of global economic growth, by far the highest in the world. With a GDP of roughly $11 trillion (current prices), the second-largest in the world after that of the United States, any economic slowdown in this Asian juggernaut is bound to have enormous global… -
opinion
Russians Turn Up the Diplomatic Heat on US Broadcasting Chief
The Russian government just turned the heat up a notch on U.S. officials in what is an already heated diplomatic climate. In the past few weeks, Russia and the U.S. have expelled several of each other’s diplomats. This past Tuesday night, U.S. Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) chairman Jeff Shell was summarily detained by Russian… -
opinion
How the US Must Respond to China’s Rejection of South China Sea Court Decision
An arbitration court accepted claims made by the Philippines against China in the South China Sea, however, China’s refusal to obey the court’s decision requires a swift, but measured response from the United States. On Tuesday, the Permanent Court of Arbitration based in The Hague, Netherlands, handed down its final decision in The Republic of… -
news
While NATO Discussed Russian Aggression, Fighting Spiked in Eastern Ukraine
KYIV, Ukraine—Over the weekend, as NATO leaders in Warsaw, Poland, were discussing ways to counter Russian aggression, the conflict in eastern Ukraine concurrently spiked to its worst level in months. “I don’t think it’s a coincidence,” Stephen Blank, senior fellow for Russia at the American Foreign Policy Council, told The Daily Signal. “It makes sense… -
news
Administration Defends UN-Funded, Anti-Israel Textbooks for Palestinians
U.S. taxpayers provide nearly $400 million a year to a United Nations program that critics say sends anti-Semitic, anti-Israel textbooks to schools for Palestinian refugees. An elementary school textbook calls the 1948 establishment of Israel a “disaster,” and a high school text tells of the “End of Days” when “Muslims fight the Jews,” among other… -
opinion
Phony Brexit Woes: Britain Should Tell EU Elite to Take a Hike
Many political pundits are upset over Brexit because they believe that Europe—the entire world, actually—needs more “harmonization” of financial regulators. They see Brexit as a threat to EU bureaucrats’ efforts to “police” global derivatives. But why should Britain—or any other country for that matter—follow the same international blueprint that harmonized bank capital requirements? The Basel… -
news
Russian Threat Takes Center Stage at NATO’s Warsaw Summit
WARSAW, Poland—Russian aggression, radical Islamist terrorism, the refugee crisis, Brexit, Afghanistan. The list of challenges NATO leaders faced at the biennial summit here over the weekend was diverse, highlighting what some consider to be a post-Cold War moment of truth for the alliance to prove it still matters. Speaking to reporters Saturday, President Barack Obama… -
news
Could Putin Face Resurgent NATO? Russian Aggression a Top Issue for Obama’s Final Summit
Increased Russian aggression will be among the central issues when President Barack Obama attends his final NATO Summit in Warsaw, as the United States and its allies will announce a stronger security presence in the Baltic states. “NATO must be the largest deterrent to Russian meddling,” Thomas Donnelly, a senior fellow in security studies at… -
opinion
US Sanctions North Korea for Human Rights Violations
On July 6, the Obama administration imposed sanctions on North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and other senior North Korean individuals and organizations for human rights violations. This is the first time that the U.S. has designated North Korean entities for human rights abuses. The administration should be commended for finally acting upon the February… -
opinion
Banks Face Serious Cyberthreat From North Korea
In February, hackers pulled off one of the largest bank heists in history. Hackers gained access to the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication, or SWIFT, the system used by central banks to authorize monetary transfers. From there they sent money transfer requests to the tune of $951 million from the Central Bank of Bangladesh to…