Advertisement
Advertisement
-
Opinion /

World Opinion

Related Topics:
My Take
Macroscope
Iranians work as smoke rises from an oil refinery struck in Tehran, on March 8, amid joint Israeli-US attacks. Photo: EPA
US, Israel war on Iran

Macroscope | Trump hasn’t counted on financial blowback from his war with Iran

As Washington fights a war with global economic ramifications, allies may soon begin to reassess their financial support of US coffers.

US, Israel war on Iran

As I see it | Trump and Netanyahu’s Iran quagmire is wrecking the global economy

videocam
12
War and conflict

Opinion | US-Israeli war on Iran makes a mockery of global governance rules

videocam
12
Climate change

Outside In | The end of an era at sea offers us a grim reminder on land

One of the biggest icebergs in recent memory is melting out of existence. Its silent fate mirrors the neglect of our biosphere.

Nasa’s Aqua satellite shows an iceberg with the designation A23a heading towards the island of South Georgia off the coast of Antarctica on January 15, 2025. Photo: Nasa Worldview/dpa
Nasa’s Aqua satellite shows an iceberg with the designation A23a heading towards the island of South Georgia off the coast of Antarctica on January 15, 2025. Photo: Nasa Worldview/dpa
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | Iran war marks return to strongest states assuming special rights

International law still exists, but it no longer reliably restrains actors as states increasingly act first and justify those deeds later.

videocam
4
US, Israel war on Iran

Macroscope | Iran war disruption just one of many threats to global markets

The danger from the Iran war cannot be assessed in isolation. Rather, it is one of several major vulnerabilities that could trigger a much sharper sell-off.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Middle East

Opinion | Data centres are a symbol of the Gulf’s economic future and weakness

AI data centres, financial hubs and tourism are not peripheral to the Gulf’s growth; they are central to both opportunity and vulnerability.

videocam
Foreign workers look on as a large smoke plume rises from the Fujairah industrial zone in the UAE on March 3. Photo: AFP
Foreign workers look on as a large smoke plume rises from the Fujairah industrial zone in the UAE on March 3. Photo: AFP
Artificial intelligence

Opinion | Why state capacity matters in an era of AI-driven inequality

Warnings that AI-driven wealth concentration could trigger economic collapse overlook the state’s role – governments can renegotiate the social contract to preserve stability.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | How America’s Iran miscalculation hands China a strategic advantage

A preventive war waged without allied consensus risks undermining Washington’s legal and moral standing – strengthening Beijing’s hand.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

As I see it | Iran war exposes the risks of being a US ally

Iranian attacks on US partners in the Gulf should make America’s allies in Asia rethink their security ties with Washington.

videocam
21
Flames rise during a fire caused by debris from an intercepted drone at the oil refinery hub in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 4. Photo: EPA
War and conflict

Opinion | Iran strikes are a wake-up call to regulate military AI

Amid a lack of regulations and binding agreements on the use of artificial intelligence in war, the risks to civilians will only increase.

A group of men inspect the ruins of a police station, bombed during US-Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, on March 3. Photo: AP
A group of men inspect the ruins of a police station, bombed during US-Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, on March 3. Photo: AP
Technology

Opinion | Journalists must confront the real risks of AI: fabricated facts

We don’t trust journalists because they type sentences; we trust journalists because they verify the truth.

videocam
War and conflict

Opinion | Superpower contest puts Iran, Panama, Venezuela and Greenland on one map

When one crisis touches canal access, another hits crude and a third touches the Strait of Hormuz, it is hard to call these a coincidence.

videocam
China-EU relations

Opinion | How Europe and China can rise above paralysis and mistrust

Together, Brussels and Beijing can reshape global power into a balance where Europe matters and China gains legitimacy as a responsible power.

videocam
A China-Europe goods train departs from Tongjiang, Heilongjiang province, on December 9, 2025. Photo: Xinhua
Banking & finance

Macroscope | How global debt is sowing the seeds of financial collapse

Markets have so far shrugged off wars and trade conflicts, but the rapid rise of already massive debt should alarm investors.

People with smartphones walk through the business district of Jakarta, Indonesia, in June 2022. Debt stocks have reached new highs across both advanced and emerging economies. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images
People with smartphones walk through the business district of Jakarta, Indonesia, in June 2022. Debt stocks have reached new highs across both advanced and emerging economies. Photo: NurPhoto via Getty Images
United States

As I see it | Why Melania Trump’s UN speech is an affront to decency

From her husband’s wars that harm children abroad to her ties to Jeffrey Epstein, Trump is far from an authority on children’s interests.

19
China-Middle East relations

Opinion | US-Iran conflict puts China’s pragmatism to the test

For Beijing, the danger is less about losing Iran as a partner than losing stability in the energy-rich Middle East.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
China economy

Opinion | China’s energy transition proves a boon in the Iran crisis

China is expected to face no significant disruption but as the ‘two sessions’ open in Beijing, energy security is staying a top focus.

videocam
Fire and smoke rise from the Fujairah oil industry zone, caused by debris from an intercepted drone, according to the Fujairah media office, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 4, as Iran launched retaliatory attacks across the region. Photo: EPA
Fire and smoke rise from the Fujairah oil industry zone, caused by debris from an intercepted drone, according to the Fujairah media office, in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 4, as Iran launched retaliatory attacks across the region. Photo: EPA
United States

Opinion | Eileen Gu and Alysa Liu don’t deserve to be caught in culture wars

The issue is not that one chose to represent China and another the US but that both have been dragged into culture wars not of their making.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | Are investors spooked by Iran violence? Market response suggests not

Renewed fighting in the Middle East bodes ill for the global economy, but it is not yet enough to counterbalance other short-term factors.

videocam
US, Israel war on Iran

Macroscope | Why even bullish investors can’t ignore the Iran war

Investors have grown used to brushing off geopolitical threats, but turmoil in the Middle East poses a greater risk to the global economy.

videocam
Flames rise during a fire caused by debris from an intercepted drone at the oil refinery hub in Fujairah, United Arab Emirates, on March 4. Photo: EPA
US-China relations

Opinion | China waits and watches as the US fights all its tigers at once

Far from freeing up resources to focus on China, Trump’s administration finds itself fighting fires on several fronts, sapping its resources.

videocam
24
Security forces fire tear gas to disperse a protest against US and Israeli attacks on Iran, at a bridge leading to the fortified Green Zone where the US embassy is located, in Baghdad, Iraq, on March 2. Photo: AP
Security forces fire tear gas to disperse a protest against US and Israeli attacks on Iran, at a bridge leading to the fortified Green Zone where the US embassy is located, in Baghdad, Iraq, on March 2. Photo: AP
Asean

Opinion | Fatigue is rewriting the US-China soft power contest, starting in Asean

At a time when no one has bandwidth left, soft power is being won by being the partner that feels usable, steady and low-risk.

videocam
United States

As I see it | Under Trump, the US has unleashed its own wolf warriors

Chinese diplomats need to project a measured and calming presence on the international stage to contend effectively with American blowhards.

7
US, Israel war on Iran

Opinion | US war on Iran isn’t likely to go as planned

US war planners have overlooked viewing their adversary through realpolitik in the past. They now face a far more organised opponent.

videocam
4
US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth speaks during a news conference at the Pentagon on March 2, in Arlington, Virginia, the US. Photo: Getty Images/TNS
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW