International


Iraq: Is ISIL Running Out of Oil?

Jul 19, 2015 | Imran Khan, Al Jazeera

It has been alleged that the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has made millions in Iraq, smuggling oil from various sites that…


China/Taiwan/South China Sea: Taiwan Promotes Its Island Claim in South China Sea

Jul 18, 2015 | Ralph Jennings, Associated Press

As China builds artificial islands in a vast resource-rich South China Sea and neighbors in Southeast Asia brace for possible conflict, Taiwan is cutting carbon…


Sudan: A Golden New Era for Sudanese Mining

Jul 17, 2015 | The World Folio

Even though informal gold mining has long been an important element in the composition of the Sudanese economy, it is only since the secession of…


South Sudan: South Sudan Rebels Establish More Institutions, Appoint Officials

Jul 17, 2015 | Sudan Tribune

The armed opposition faction of the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM-IO) under the leadership of former vice president, Riek Machar, has established more institutions and…


Myanmar: MoU for Salween Hydropower Project to be Signed between Thailand, Myanmar, China

Jul 15, 2015 | Watcharapong Thongrung, The Nation

Thailand, China and Myanmar are expected to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the development of the 7,000-megawatt Mong Ton hydropower-plant project on the…


Myanmar: Jade Sales Fall Flat amid Fighting in Kachin

Jul 15, 2015 | Democratic Voice of Burma

The annual gems emporium in Naypyidaw has ended on a low, with jade sales down 63 percent, a decrease blamed on ongoing armed conflict in…


Myanmar: Three Years, Zero Landmines Cleared

Jul 14, 2015 | Guy Dinmore, Myanmar Times

Since the Scotland-based HALO Trust started work in Afghanistan in 1988 and Norwegian People’s Aid (NPA) cleared its first mine in Cambodia in 1992, the…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq’s Kurds Bypass State for Oil Exports to Tighten Control

Jul 14, 2015 | Khalid Al Ansary, Bruce Stanley, and Anthony Dipaola, Bloomberg

Iraq’s self-ruled Kurds are bypassing the government in Baghdad and independently selling all the crude oil exported from their region for the first time as…


SouthSudan/Sudan/Abyei: Security Council Extends UN Peacekeeping Force in Abyei through December 2015

Jul 14, 2015 | United Nations

The United Nations Security Council has extended the mandate of the Organization's interim peacekeeping force in Abyei - a resource-rich area contested by Sudan and…


China/Philippines/South China Sea: How China Views the South China Sea Arbitration Case

Jul 14, 2015 | Xue Li, The Diplomat

On December 7, 2014, China’s Foreign Ministry was authorized to release the “Position Paper of the Government of the People’s Republic of China on the…


China/Vietnam/South China Sea: China Steps Up Harassment of Vietnamese Fishermen

Jul 13, 2015 | Ankit Panda, The Diplomat

As Nguyen Phu Trong, the general secretary of Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party, wrapped up an historic visit to the United States, reports emerged in the Vietnamese…


Myanmar: Farmers Displaced by Industrial Park Project

Jul 13, 2015 | Than Naing Soe, Myanmar Times

It’s groundnut planting season, but U Sein Paw won’t be sowing any seeds today, or any other day. His daughter was arrested for harrowing what…


South Sudan: Oxfam: Rising Water Price in South Sudan Compounds Cholera Outbreak

Jul 13, 2015 | Gabe Joselow, Voice of America

The aid agency Oxfam reports the rising price of water in South Sudan is putting more people at risk from a cholera outbreak. This is…


DRC: Congo State Miner Sells Copper Concession to Chinese Investors

Jul 13, 2015 | Reuters

Democratic Republic of Congo's state miner Gecamines said it has sold an exploitation permit for a copper and cobalt concession in southeast Katanga province to…


Cambodia: Forest Products Threatened by Land Grabbing and Logging

Jul 12, 2015 | Khmer Times

Farmers in Cambodia who depend on forest products for their livelihood face an uncertain future because of dwindling forests. Traditional harvesting areas for rattan, rattan…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Oil Hurdle Remains on Path to Kurdish Independence

Jul 12, 2015 | Robin Mills, The National

Three recent developments across the Kurdish territories move the Kurds closer to political independence and economic autonomy. But despite these victories, the financial viability required…


Climate Security: UN Security Council Meeting on Climate Change as a Threat Multiplier for Global Security

Jul 8, 2015 | The Center for Climate and Security

On June 30th, 2015, the UN Security Council (UNSC) held an open Arria-formula meeting on the role of climate change as a threat multiplier for…


Sudan: Sudan Produces 43 Tons of Gold During the First Half of 2015: Minister

Jul 8, 2015 | Sudan Tribune

The Sudanese minister of minerals, Ahmed Mohamed Sadiq Al-Karuri, disclosed that gold production during the first half of this year has reached 43 tons. Al-Karuri,…


Iraq: Daesh Selling Stolen Iraqi Oil: Parliament Report

Jul 8, 2015 | Anadolou Agencey

Iraq is losing more than $102 million each month because the Daesh militant group – which controls large parts of the country – is selling…


China/Philippines/South China Sea: Court Begins Hearing Philippines, China Dispute over South China Sea

Jul 8, 2015 | Toby Sterling, Reuters

The Philippines argued at a closed hearing on Tuesday that an international court should intervene in its dispute with China over the right to exploit…


Liberia: Grand Gedeans in Fear Due to Illegal Crossing Over by the ‘Mossi’ from Ivory Coast

Jul 8, 2015 | Cholo Brooks, Global News Network

A local daily is reporting that concerns are mounting over the insecurity in Grand Gedeh County, as Representative Alex Grant raises the latest alarm of…


Iraq: ISIS 'Water War' Draining Marshes in Southern Iraq

Jul 7, 2015 | Kesavan Unnikrishnan, Digital Journal

In 1991, then-President Saddam Hussein drained the marshes of southern Iraq in order to punish the indigenous Shi'ite marsh Arabs who had revolted against him.…


South Sudan: In New Strategy, South Sudan Army Strikes Rebels Where it Hurts: Their Livelihood

Jul 7, 2015 | Jason Patinkin, Christian Science Monitor

The Sudan People's Liberation Army (SLPA) is accused of starving out tens of thousands of civilians in order to depopulate the armed opposition’s base. This campaign…


South Sudan: Ongoing Conflict Stifles South Sudan’s Oil Sector

Jul 7, 2015 | David Bizley, Global Data

According to Jonathan Markham, GlobalData's Analyst covering upstream oil and gas, continued armed fighting, trade disputes and low oil prices are negatively impacting South Sudan’s…


Liberia: Envoy Assesses Australia-Funded Agric Projects in Bong

Jul 7, 2015 | Philip T. Singbah, Liberia News Agency

Australian Ambassador to Liberia Joanna Adamson Tuesday ended a one-day working visit to Bong County to assess an Australian-funded agriculture projects. The visit was also…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraqi Kurdistan's Export of Oil is 'Unconstitutional', Says Official

Jul 6, 2015 | Middle East Monitor

A senior Iraqi official has accused the autonomous government of Kurdistan of exporting oil from Kirkuk and Erbil oil fields without coordinating it with the…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Arbitration Court Rules in Favor of Producers in Iraqi Kurdistan: Dana Gas

Jul 6, 2015 | Platts

A London court has ruled in favor of a group of international oil and gas companies operating in Iraqi Kurdistan on several key issues in…


¿Quién Responde por el Daño Ambiental de Tumaco?

Jul 6, 2015 | Razon Publica

Como si se tratara de un luto, Tumaco está teñido de negro. Los últimos atentados contra el oleoducto Transandino produjeron una mancha enorme que se…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq, Kurdistan Oil Deal Close to Collapse

Jul 3, 2015 | Matt Bradley, Wall Street Journal

An oil-sales deal between Iraq and the semiautonomous Kurdistan Regional Government is close to collapse about six months after it was signed, undermining the country's…


Somaliland: Living at the 'Mercy of the Rain' in Somaliland

Jul 2, 2015 | Katie Riordan, Al Jazeera

It has been particularly dry this year in parts of Somaliland, the internationally unrecognised nation-state that broke away from Somalia in 1991. Small, frequent droughts…