Tuesday, May 14

Author: Patti Mohr

Patti Mohr is a U.S.-based journalist. She writes about global diplomacy, economics, and infringements on individual freedom. Patti is the founder of the Global Economic Report. Her goal is to elevate journalistic principles and share the pursuit of truth in concert with others.
Iran Protests Spark Bigger Diplomatic Conflicts
4Jan By Patti MohrNo Comments
Geopolitics, Middle East, Sanctions, Types of News: Analysis

Iran Protests Spark Bigger Diplomatic Conflicts

January 4, 2018 - In the aftermath of the multinational fight against ISIS-Daesh forces who had held large parts of Iraq and Syria, geopolitical divides are emerging as regional powers turn their focus to economic issues, sanctions and security alliances. One sign of the shift is the near week-long demonstrations in Iran, which started Dec. 28 near Iran's border with Afghanistan and Turkmenistan. The protests started in Mashhad, Iran's second most populous city, and quickly spread to other parts of the country. They are the largest mass demonstrations the country has seen since 2009 when protesters in Tehran disputed the presidential election. Most media outlets reporting on the recent unrest say the government has not used violence to tamp down on the protests as it did in 2009. The gove...
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UN Gives New Authority to Implement Sanctions on North Korea
29Dec By Patti MohrNo Comments
International Law, Legal Battles, Sanctions, UN Security Council

UN Gives New Authority to Implement Sanctions on North Korea

Dec. 29, 2017 - The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a new resolution tightening sanctions against North Korea. It is the tenth Security Council resolution on North Korea since 2006 and the fourth in 2017. It follows 20 ballistic missile tests by North Korea (DPRK) in the past year that violate UN resolutions against the proliferation of nuclear weapons. The consensus language in the December 22 resolution was opaque and loose enough to bring together the 15-member council. While it is too soon to know how effective new resolution will be, it is already having an effect. The latest resolution gives countries added authority to implement previous sanctions, and today South Korea put the new authority to use when it seized a Hong Kong-flagged ship suspected of illega...
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UN Announces $5.4 Billion Budget for 2018 & 2019
27Dec By Patti MohrNo Comments
Organizations, IMF, WTO, G7, UN Security Council

UN Announces $5.4 Billion Budget for 2018 & 2019

The United Nations General Assembly approved a $5.4 billion budget for the next two years, reducing its operating budget by $286 million, or roughly 5 percent, from its current 2016-2017 period. The budget funds general operations for the U.N., including political affairs, international justice and law, regional cooperation for development, human rights and humanitarian affairs and public information. Most of the budget savings comes from operational expenses such as the use of consultants, travel expenses and information technology. Cut in U.S. Contribution? In announcing the budget cut in a Dec. 24 statement, U.S. Amb. to the UN Nikki Haley said, "We will no longer let the generosity of the American people be taken advantage of or remain unchecked." That spurred speculation b...
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UN Security Council At Odds Over North Korean Sanctions
19Dec By Patti MohrNo Comments
Diplomacy, International Law, Legal Battles, Sanctions, Types of News: Brief

UN Security Council At Odds Over North Korean Sanctions

Even as world leaders tried to display a united front against a nuclearized North Korea in the wake of 20 ballistic-missile tests this year by that country, UN Security Council members remained deeply divided on their willingness to engage economically with the rogue nation. The divide was clear at a December 15 UN Security Council meeting called by Japan after a North Korean intercontinental ballistic missile crashed into the Sea of Japan on Nov. 28. Sanctions U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called on countries to take unilateral action beyond the minimum requirements of the UN resolutions. In contrast, Russia, China and Bolvia positioned themselves against unilateral sanctions and said "sanctions had been imposed in order to spark negotiations, and were not an end in th...
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Foreign Policy: Trump Recognizes Jerusalem As Israel’s Capital
6Dec By Patti MohrNo Comments
Diplomacy, Middle East

Foreign Policy: Trump Recognizes Jerusalem As Israel’s Capital

Following up on a campaign promise he made to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in a September 2016 meeting, U.S. President Trump announced on Dec. 6 that he recognizes Jerusalem as the "ancient capital of the Jewish people" and as the state of Israel. “While previous presidents have made this a major campaign promise, they failed to deliver. Today, I am delivering,” Trump said. "Israel is a sovereign nation with the right like every other sovereign nation to determine its own capital. Acknowledging this as a fact is a necessary condition for achieving peace." The announcement drew immediate rebuke from leaders in Turkey, Jordan, the Vatican, the United Nations and across the Middle East and was seen as a shift in U.S. policy that could invalidate the U.S. role in negotiating...
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U.S. Grand Jury Indicts Two in Counterintelligence Investigations
30Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Corruption, Bribes, Illicit Finance & Money Laundering, United States

U.S. Grand Jury Indicts Two in Counterintelligence Investigations

October 30, 2017--Six months into a counterintelligence investigation into Russian involvement in the 2016 U.S. presidential election, Special Counsel Robert Mueller has filed a criminal indictment against Paul J. Manafort, Jr., and Richard W. Gates, former campaign manager and deputy campaign manager to the Donald Trump presidential campaign from June to August 2016. The 31-page indictment speaks to the shadowy inner workings of Washington and the interplay between the political and for-profit lobbying worlds. The charges involve hiding and laundering "tens of millions of dollars" through foreign nominee companies and offshore bank accounts across the globe, including Cyprus, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the Seychelles. According to the indictment, more than $75 million flowed ...
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American Populism Gains Strength Under Trump
26Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
United States

American Populism Gains Strength Under Trump

Nine months into President Trump's term in office as head of the U.S. Executive Branch, the populist movement that led him to power is shaking the very foundation of the Republican party. The political fracture is relevant not only for the health of America's two-party system, but also because the outcome determines the course of American leadership in the world. In contrast to past presidents who championed democratic ideals and a global rules-based trading system, President Trump promotes economic nationalism, tighter borders, realpolitik and trade protection. Moreover, Trump's verbal assaults on media outlets and his use of Twitter to attack political opponents and comment on foreign policy have some led members of his own party to assert that American democracy itself is at risk....
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Xi Asserts China’s Authority to Lead
18Oct By Patti MohrNo Comments
Communism, Dictatorship, Diplomacy, Globalization, Global Disintegration

Xi Asserts China’s Authority to Lead

China is set to be “a global leader in terms of comprehensive national strength and international influence” by 2050, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced on Oct. 17 as he addressed the country's Communist Party congress in Beijing. Mr. Xi outlined his vision for providing global leadership using the Chinese Socialist Democracy model of growth. International observers are calling the marathon three-and-a-half-hour speech to the party's 2,300 delegates and the world at large a "sweeping," "ambitious" and "epic" agenda. President Xi's address is significant not only for its embrace of global economic integration at a time when many in the West are turning inward, but also because China is seen as adopting an increasingly more authoritarian approach to governing. Since taking of...
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Amid Protests, Brazil Passes 20-Year Austerity Plan
16Dec By Patti MohrNo Comments
Currency, Debt, National Budgets & Interest Rates, Domestic Politics, Global Economics

Amid Protests, Brazil Passes 20-Year Austerity Plan

News Brief Damaged by a two-year recession, corruption scandals and protests at home, Latin America's largest economy turned to constitutional reforms to control its rising debt and spending. Brazil's Senate voted 53-16 in favor of a 20-year cap on spending increases for social welfare programs. The House has already passed the bill, which becomes law. The constitutional amendment, PEC 55, will cap government spending on health care, education and social security through 2036 at current rates adjusted for inflation. Supporters said it will create certainty in fiscal budgets, control rising debt, and attract foreign investment. They said the amendment also guarantees a floor for the spending programs. Opponents, however, said the spending caps would hurt the poorest and lock fu...
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Peaceful transfer of power in America
9Nov By Patti MohrNo Comments
Corruption, Bribes, Illicit Finance & Money Laundering, Democracy, Domestic Politics, United States

Peaceful transfer of power in America

America's 18-month presidential election has come to a close, with Hillary Clinton conceding defeat to Donald Trump. It was an election that at times felt like a reality-TV show gone wrong, with one candidate fending off multiple investigations and the other communicating one outlandish comment after another. It was a low period for America. With 61 percent of Americans reporting an "unfavorable" opinion of Donald Trump and 52 percent reporting an "unfavorable" opinion of Hillary Clinton, Trump and Clinton set records for the worst and second-worst liked U.S. presidential candidates in Gallup-polling history. Issues took a backseat, but they were, nonetheless, there: Deficiencies with the Affordable Care Act, Obama's signature healthcare law, that were never fixed and that ca...
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