International


China/South China Sea: By 2030, South China Sea Will Be ‘Virtually a Chinese Lake,’ Study Warns

Jan 20, 2016 | Simon Denyer, Washington Post

China will have so many aircraft carriers by 2030 that the South China Sea will be “virtually a Chinese lake,” a new U.S. study warns,…


Philippines/China/South China Sea: Philippines Plans Tracking System for Civilian Flights over Disputed Sea

Jan 19, 2016 | Saudi Gazette

The Philippines plans to install a $1-million satellite-based system to track commercial flights over the disputed South China Sea, after China landed its first test…


Iraq: Iraq Wants Foreign Oil Firms to Cut Development Spending, Oil Minister Says

Jan 19, 2016 | Reuters

Iraq wants foreign oil companies to cut spending as the nation seeks to narrow a budget gap caused by lower crude prices, oil minister Adel…


Sudan/South Sudan: Khartoum Preparing for South Sudan’s Possible Oil Shut Down, Says Official

Jan 19, 2016 | Sudan Tribune

The Sudanese government has undertaken technical measures in preparation of a possible oil production shutdown by the South Sudan, the country’s finance minister said Tuesday.…


Nigeria: Attacks on Oil Installations is Costing Nigeria $2.4M a Day

Jan 19, 2016 | Michelle Faul and Hilary Uguru, Associated Press

A Cabinet minister says multiple attacks on strategic oil and gas installations is costing Nigeria $2.4 million a day and the military warns it will…


Myanmar: No Civilians Included in Jade Mine Investigation Team

Jan 18, 2016 | Eleven Myanmar

Residents of Hpakant are concerned that jade mining companies will lie about the numbers of backhoes they use in excavations during an ongoing Union-level investigation…


Angola: Activist Lodges a Criminal Complaint against Land-Grabbing Governor

Jan 18, 2016 | Maka Angola

The activist Rafael Marques lodged today a criminal complaint in court against the Governor of Kwanza Sul Province, General Eusébio de Brito Teixeira, for seizing…


South Sudan/Sudan: Oil Pipeline Can Be Shut Down Anytime Soon – Ministry Warns

Jan 17, 2016 | Upper Nile Times

The Ministry of Petroleum and Mining has warned that it may turn off the pipeline and close down the oilfields in Paloch if Sudan refuses…


Cyprus/Turkey: Water Wars Escalate

Jan 17, 2016 | Esra Aygin, inCyprus

The latest standoff between the Turkish Cypriot and Turkish authorities over the management of water reaching the island’s northern part from Turkey, through a trans-Mediterranean…


Liberia: Conservation Group Disagrees with Senate Pro Temp Assertion

Jan 17, 2016 | FrontPageAfrica

After years of abuse, Liberia’s forest is gradually becoming a window of opportunities by diverting from the age old method of commercial logging to sustainable…


Iraq: Iraq's Southern Oil Exports Running at 3.3 Million bpd, Unaffected by Clashes

Jan 16, 2016 | Reuters

Iraq's exports from its southern region have been running at an average daily rate of 3.297 million barrels per day (bpd) so far this month,…


Myanmar: Rampaging Elephants Force Myanmar Villagers to Tree-Top Refuge

Jan 16, 2016 | Agence France-Presse

Pushed from their forest home by encroaching farm land, wild elephants are driving fearful villagers in a Myanmar township to seek refuge in tree houses…


Myanmar: Govt Releases Long-Awaited Environmental Guidelines for Megaprojects

Jan 15, 2016 | Frontier Myanmar

The government on Thursday announced new assessment requirements for investment projects that could cause environmental and social harm. The new Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) procedures,…


Myamar: Water Management Requires a More Holistic View

Jan 15, 2016 | Piyaporn Wongruang, Nationmultimedia

As of Tuesday, the combined amount of usable water retained in seven major dams, including Bhumibol and Sirikit, that feed the Central plains stood at…


Myanmar: Myanmar Aims High for Gas Discoveries in the Future

Jan 14, 2016 | Khine Kyaw, Eleven Myanmar

The recent discovery of gas in Block A-6 is just the first of numerous discoveries in Myanmar, which remains an attractive frontier for international oil…


Afghanistan: The U.S. Spent a Half Billion on Mining in Afghanistan with ‘Limited Progress’

Jan 14, 2016 | Megan McCloskey, Pro Publica

The United States has spent nearly half a billion dollars and five years developing Afghanistan’s oil, gas and minerals industries — and has little to…


Liberia: Land Commission and the Land Governance Support Activity (LGSA) Completes Ten Days Awareness Campaign on the Land Authority Bill

Jan 14, 2016 | Liberian Observer

The Land Commission in collaboration with one of its partners, Land Governance Support Activity (LGSA) has completed a ten-day intensive awareness campaign on the draft…


Myanmar: Key Witness Missing in Illegal Jade Ownership Case

Jan 13, 2016 | Swan Ye Htut, Myanmar Times

Kachin State resident Ngwe Si Hein and the Runjan Stone company have been battling for three years over the ownership of a rock of rough…


Myanmar: Govt Rejects China’s Request for Timber-Based Industrial Zone in Myanmar

Jan 13, 2016 | Eleven Myanmar

The Myanmar government has rejected China’s requests to purchase timber in log form under a tender system and to build a timber-based industrial zone in…


Liberia: Senate Pro-Tempore Wants Review of Forest Policies

Jan 13, 2016 | FrontPageAfrica

In the wake of recommendations from western countries to pay poor countries including Liberia for its forest reserve, Senate Pro-Tempore Armah Jallah is recommending a…


Colombia: Colombia Continues Work on Gold Projects Despite Dropping Prices

Jan 13, 2016 | LATINONE

Mining companies are still continuing their gold projects in Colombia despite the weakening local currency, which offsets falling gold prices. Miners, including Continental Gold, Red…


Philippines/China/South China Sea: Time Is of the Essence in South China Sea Arbitration Case

Jan 13, 2016 | Ernest Bower and Conor Cronin, Asia Maritime Transparency Initiative

The timing of the decision by the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on the Philippines’ case against China’s nine-dash-line claims has critical geopolitical…


Afghanistan: Afghan Rivers Need Better Management

Jan 12, 2016 | Institute for War & Peace Reporting

A national strategy to manage Afghanistan’s abundant water reserves is urgently needed, according to debates organised by IWPR in three Afghan provinces. The events in…


Conflict Minerals: How Intel Eliminated War from Its Supply Chain

Jan 12, 2016 | Alexander C. Kaufman, Huffington Post

Seven years ago, Carolyn Duran realized the company she worked for had blood on its hands. Intel -- the world's largest semiconductor maker, where Duran…


Myanmar: Gold Miner Opens Case Amid Fresh Protests

Jan 12, 2016 | Than Naing Soe, Myanmar Times

A gold-mining company supported by military-owned Union of Myanmar Economic Holdings opened a case with Mandalay police last week, after 100 people occupied the site…


Myanmar: CSOs Ask to Be Heard in Timber Trade Talks with China

Jan 12, 2016 | Nyein Nyein, The Irrawaddy

A network of some 150 civil society organizations (CSOs) have called for their voices to be heard in bilateral timber trade talks between Burma and…


Colombia: La Peor Sequía en Casi dos Décadas Sacude a Colombia [The Worst Drought in Nearly Two Decades Shakes Colombia]

Jan 12, 2016 | EL PAÍS

Colombia, un país donde el verde y la lluvia caracterizan gran parte de su territorio, vive la peor sequía en casi dos décadas. Sus efectos…


Libya/Islamic State: Islamic State Targeting Libyan Oil to Make Trouble, Not a Profit

Jan 11, 2016 | Dominique Soguel, Christian Science Monitor

When the Islamic State first set its eyes on Libya, it no doubt saw fertile soil for conquest in a lawless land being fought over by myriad political and military factions.…


DRC: The True Cost of Mineral Smuggling in the DRC

Jan 11, 2016 | Institute for Security Studies

Africa loses far more money through illicit financial flows every year than it receives in aid and foreign direct investment. Global Financial Integrity (GFI) estimated…


DRC: Intel Plans to Remove All Conflict Materials from Supply Chains

Jan 11, 2016 | The Strategic Sourceror

When talking on an iPhone, putting on a piece of jewelry or driving in a car, most people don't consider where the materials used to…