James Rice via Caixin | The U.S. media’s daily narrative on China and the U.S.-China relationship paint a bleak picture: Pollution, exchange rates, ghost cities, protectionism, and unfair trade practices dominate the story. Rather, we should remember that historically, China and the U.S. have been friends and have long enjoyed a mutually beneficial relationship.
Glenn Ojeda Vega and German Peinado Delgado | Iván Duque’s foreign policy will center on reinforcing ties with Colombia’s traditional allies and securing international support for the administration’s agenda.
America’s interests — not to mention image — took a major hit in Helsinki during the meeting between US President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. This is more than sufficient to provoke America’s concern about the direction Donald Trump is taking the country.
Luis Gómez Romero via The conversation | Mexico’s next president will be Andrés Manuel López Obrador, a former Mexico City mayor and outspoken critic of the political establishment both in Mexico and the United States. The 64-year-old leftist, who had for months led a crowded presidential field, beat three competitors on July 1 to triumph in his third presidential bid.
Mexicans go to the polls on 1 July. Some 3,400 elected positions are at stake (including the President, deputies senators, and gubernatorial elections), potentially reshaping the country’s political landscape. AXA IM analysts expect that Andrès Manuel Lopez Obrador, also known as AMLO, will be victorious and become the next President and that his coalition Called MORENA) will obtain a small majority in both chambers of the Congress.
Huan Guocang via Caixin | What did Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump achieve during their meeting in Singapore last week? Judging by the media response to the summit, the two made few breakthroughs and neither stepped out of his expected role.
Shaun Riordan | Trump’s behaviour at the Singapore Summit with Kim Jung Un has little to do with foreign policy, or indeed North Korea. Like his attacks on allies at the G7 Summit last week, it is aimed at the mid-term elections for Congress. Long-time US allies count for little compared to Trump’s domestic political needs. Europe must take responsibility for its own future.
Shigoli Shitero | In March, African leaders descended upon Kigali, Rwanda, the Land of a Thousand Hills’ capital, to ink an agreement that is meant to smoothen the rough terrain of intra-African trade. Nearly 50 years after independence movements swept across Africa, the continent is still struggling to find its footing.
US President Donald Trump’s alleged remarks questioning why the US should take in immigrants from what he apparently called “shithole countries” — those comprising Africa, along with Haiti and El Salvador — have been met with indignation around the world.
It is expected that some Chinese local government officials may still try to fight bureaucracy with bureaucracy. For instance, when inspectors come, the officials will list how many meetings they have held, how many documents they have released and how many reports they have written to the cause.