International
Myanmar: As Labourers Leave Myanmar Delta, Farmers Struggle to Mechanise
Nov 29, 2016
|
Myanmar Now
Most farmers in Ayeyarwady Region, the country’s ‘rice bowl’ and home to some 10 million people, lack enough land and capital to afford use of…
DRC: Amid Billions of Dollars in Mineral Exports From DRC, Locals Say They Are Left Behind
Nov 28, 2016
|
Noella Nyirabihogo, Global Press Journal
The riches of DRC's earth have long been exported; the wealth is often claimed by foreigners, even though each mining company is required by DRC…
Conflict Minerals: EU: Conflict Minerals Agreement Reached as Exemptions Added
Nov 28, 2016
|
Weekend Post
The European Union (EU) this week took a positive, but half-hearted, step towards cleaning up Europe’s trade in minerals. EU legislators concluded their negotiations on…
Myanmar: How a Rebel Myanmar Tin Mine May up-end a Global Supply Chain
Nov 28, 2016
|
Yimou Lee and Joel Schectman, Reuters
From a remote corner of northeastern Myanmar, an insurgent army sells tin ore to suppliers of some of the world's largest consumer companies. More than…
China/Vietnam/South China Sea: Vietnam Taking Long-Term Hard Line Toward China on Maritime Claims
Nov 28, 2016
|
Ralph Jennings, Voice of America
Vietnam is lengthening a military runway on a tiny islet to help hold off a larger, more aggressive China for control in Asia’s widest-reaching sovereignty…
Turkmenistan/Afghanistan: Turkmenistan, Afghanistan Inaugurate New Rail Link
Nov 28, 2016
|
Alexander Vershinin, Associated Press
The presidents of Turkmenistan and Afghanistan on Monday officially opened a new railroad that will link the oil-rich former Soviet republic with Afghanistan. Turkmen President…
Afghanistan: The Personal Feud That's Strangling Afghanistan's Precious Mineral Trade
Nov 27, 2016
|
Franz J. Marty, National Interest
The settlement in the shadows of the mighty peaks and cliffs of the Hindu Kush in Afghanistan’s northeastern province of Badakhshan is mostly deserted. The…
Iraq: Iraq, Torn by War and Strife, is Slowly Drawing the Notice of Investors
Nov 26, 2016
|
Dawn Kissi, CNBC
One of the most unstable countries in the world also happens to have the distinction of being one of the fastest growing economies in the…
India/Pakistan: Pakistan Warns against Use of Water as an Instrument of Coercion
Nov 25, 2016
|
Pres Trust of India
In an apparent reference to row over Indus Water Treaty, Pakistan has warned against use of water as an instrument of coercion or war and…
Iraq: Risking Flames and Mines, Iraq Oil Workers Battle to Cap Burning Wells
Nov 24, 2016
|
John Davison, Reuters
Qayyara's burning oil fields vividly depict the destruction the group wrought on northern Iraq, as Iraqi forces backed by a U.S.-led coalition battle to drive…
South Sudan: South Sudanese Lawmakers Want Oil Production Halted over Ailing Economy
Nov 24, 2016
|
Sudan Tribune
South Sudan lawmakers proposed on Wednesday that the country’s oil production be halted due to what they described as “inappropriate financial assistance” given to Sudan.…
Colombia: Water Rights and the Peace Process in Colombia
Nov 24, 2016
|
Gina Spigarelli, Open Democracy
Land disputes in Colombia often revolve around the use of one resource in particular: water. Colombia is one of the richest countries in the world…
Water Resources ‘a Reason for Cooperation, Not Conflict,’ Ban Tells Security Council
Nov 23, 2016
|
UN
Noting that three quarters of UN Member States share rivers or lake basins with their neighbours, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon today highlighted the value…
Afghanistan: Spice of Life: Saffron Harvest Offers Jobs, Opportunity in Afghanistan
Nov 23, 2016
|
Jalil Ahmad Razayee, Reuters
Saffron is the most expensive spice in the world, selling for as much as $1,200-$1,800 a kilogram, and has long been seen as an alternative…
Conflict Minerals: EU Plan Aims to Restrict Trade in Gold Used to Fund Conflict
Nov 23, 2016
|
Associated Press
European Union officials have announced a plan to restrict the trade of gold and other minerals used to finance armed conflicts. An agreement reached Tuesday…
Liberia: Mixed Bag for Frontier Oil Reserves Offshore Liberia
Nov 23, 2016
|
Daniel J. Graeber, United Press International
A division of Exxon Mobil announced Wednesday it started drilling its first well targeting reserves off the coast of Liberia. Exxon's Liberian affiliate is working…
Land Mine Casualties Jump 75% as Funding for Their Removal Declines
Nov 23, 2016
|
Rick Gladstone, New York Times
Despite a global treaty that bans land mines, casualties from those weapons and other unexploded munitions lurking in current and past war zones rose sharply…
South China Sea: Oil Becoming Code for Sovereignty in Contested South China Sea
Nov 23, 2016
|
Ralph Jenning, Voice of America
The search for oil and natural gas is seen as a driving factor in rival claims to the South China Sea, with many of the…
Conflict Minerals: EU Agrees Law to Curb Flow of Conflict Minerals
Nov 22, 2016
|
Reuters
The European Union agreed a deal on Tuesday to stem the flow of gold and other metals used to fund armed conflicts or produced in…
Myanmar: What Myanmar Could Learn from Singapore about Urban Water Management
Nov 21, 2016
|
Aye Sapay Phyu, Myanmar Times
Here is a vision of Yangon’s future. Its 17 reservoirs, fed by 8000 kilometres (5000 miles) of drains, rivers and canals, provide ample fresh water…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Two Kirkuk Oil Fields to be Fenced Following Attacks by ISIS
Nov 21, 2016
|
Rudaw
The Avana and Bai Hassan oilfields in Kirkuk province are to be fenced in the coming months in a step to upgrade security, following recent…
Colombia: Colombian Campesino Land Defender Assassinated
Nov 19, 2016
|
teleSUR
Erley Monroy Fierro, director of Ascal-G, one of the most important campesino associations in the eastern amazonian region, was assassinated on Friday. Since discovering that…
Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraq's Exports from Kirkuk Fields Drop on Power Outages - Official
Nov 19, 2016
|
Reuters
Iraq's exports from the Kirkuk oil field through an export pipeline to Turkey have dropped because of power outages, an official at state-run North Oil…
Myanmar: Chinese Land Grabs Concern Kachin Villagers
Nov 18, 2016
|
Eleven
The residents of Kachin State are worried by Chinese entrepreneurs’ massive land acquisition, sources say. The Chinese have acquired thousands of acres of vacant land,…
Colombia: OAS Says Armed Groups Occupying Land Abandoned by FARC
Nov 18, 2016
|
Julián Villabona Galarza, PanAm Post
Roberto Menéndez, head of the OAS Support Mission to the peace process in Colombia, sounded the alarm in an interview given to the Colombian newspaper…
Iraq: Iraq's Oil Contracts Make Joining OPEC Output Cut More Painful
Nov 18, 2016
|
Ahmad Ghaddar and Ahmed Rasheed, Reuters
Iraq would have to compensate international oil companies for limits placed on their production, according to industry sources and documents seen by Reuters, further reducing…
Afghanistan: USAID Expands Support for Afghan Agricultural Exports by $16 Million
Nov 18, 2016
|
Khaama Press
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced a three-year extension to its 2010-2016 Commercial Horticulture and Agricultural Marketing Program (CHAMP) to widen its…
China/Vietnam/South China Sea: Satellite Images Reveal the Island Runway That is Vietnam's Latest Move in its Escalating Row with Beijing over Influence in the South China Sea
Nov 18, 2016
|
Thomas Burrows, Daily Mail.
Vietnam has extended its runway on an island in the South China Sea also claimed by Beijing in a move that will anger the regional…
Myanmar: Drugs, Money and Wildlife in Myanmar's Most Secret State
Nov 17, 2016
|
BBC
The remote Wa region of Shan state in Myanmar's east is a place few outsiders have seen. The people who live in this unofficial, effectively…
Iraq: Toxic Pollutants Choke Iraqi Children Caught in Islamic State Retreat
Nov 17, 2016
|
Cathy Otten, Thomson Reuters Foundation
A month into their battle with Iraqi forces for control of the city of Mosul, the jihadists are leaving behind not just physical devastation but…