Labor, Trade, & Finance Archives - Page 67 of 214

Don’t Expand NAFTA

by Manuel Perez-Rocha, Stuart Trew | Jul 26, 2012

The United States recently announced that Canada and Mexico will join negotiations for the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP)—a secretive U.S.-led multinational trade and investment agreement currently being negotiated with eight other countries in the Pacific Rim region. On the other side of the Pacific, Japanese legislators are defecting in droves to try to stop the country’s entry into the negotiations. But the situation is much different in Canada and Mexico, which were admitted to the table with much fanfare during the G20 summit in June.

Iran Navy Reassures West It Won’t Block Strait of Hormuz

by Russ Wellen | Jul 23, 2012

Iran has no immediate plans to block the Strait of Hormuz on response to sanctions.

Only Connect

by Heather Box | Jul 20, 2012

Kaganga John and I were huddled around my computer in the food court of the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development, Rio+20. We were checking our emails to see if anyone had agreed to meet with us. I felt the brush of suit jackets as people rushed by us.

“We aren’t leaving this conference without a concrete step toward sustainable development for your village,” I told Kaganga, “even if that means we don’t sleep.”

Iran Sanctions: War by Other Means

by Conn Hallinan | Jul 13, 2012

Now that the talks with Iran on its nuclear program appear to be on the ropes, are we on the road to war? The Israelis threaten it almost weekly, and the Obama administration has reportedly drawn up an attack plan. But in a sense, we are already at war with Iran.

Has the Developing World Abandoned Iran?

by Richard Javad Heydarian | Jul 6, 2012

In a recent interview, the eminent geo-strategist Ian Bremmer suggested that a “nuclear-armed Iran” is inevitable because, in an emerging “G-Zero World” where no single bloc of countries can dominate international affairs, the emerging powers can frustrate the West’s efforts to thwart Tehran’s nuclear ambitions. But recent years have given lie to this argument.

Will Syria Cause a Divorce Between Iran and Turkey?

by Giorgio Cafiero | Jul 5, 2012

As Turkey and Iran seek to extend their respective influence throughout the Middle East and Central Asia, their interests and regional agendas have inevitably clashed, as evidenced by their conflicting positions on the turmoil in Syria. But although divergent interests in the Syrian conflict pull Turkey and Iran in opposite directions, their mutual interests in maintaining cordial relations will likely prevent the Syrian issue from precipitating a major split.

President Obama Takes Globalization to New Heights

by Mark Engler | Jul 2, 2012

The Trans-Pacific Partnership trade agreement is shaping up to be as bad as NAFTA or worse.

Corporate Accountability In Liberia Gets A Fresh Look

by Emily Dickey, Miriam Hauser | Jun 30, 2012

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Liberia’s first woman president, has been praised internationally for her efforts to address war crimes from the country’s civil war and for negotiating significant debt relief, even winning the Noble Peace Prize as a result. However, a briefing held last Thursday by IPS’ Foreign Policy in Focus coinciding with Sirleaf’s recent visit to the United States drew attention to areas that Sirleaf has failed to adequately address. The event was well attended, with more people than could fit into our conference room.

Multinationals Use International Tribunals to Overpower Nation-States

by Michael Busch | Jun 15, 2012

Multinational corporations can override the domestic laws of countries through the international tribunals.

Spanish Austerity Savage to the Point of Sadism

by Conn Hallinan | Jun 15, 2012

Even though Deutsche Bank helped cause its financial crisis, Spain is bailing it out.