Simon Mohsin
How US Trump card could change global diplomacy
Donald Trump has been elected as the 47th President of the United States. This is an incredible comeback for a former president who instigated a forceful attack on the US Capitol, was convicted of felony charges, survived two assassination attempts, and still refused to concede defeat. He criticized his opponent, Kamala Harris, using intensely personal language that exhibited misogyny and racism. He depicted a grim picture of a nation perceived to be overwhelmed by violent migrants. This abrasive rhetoric, coupled with an image of hypermasculinity, appealed to voters, particularly men, in a highly polarized political landscape. The fact that Trump is back in the President's seat underscores that the US society, both men and women, has voted for patriarchy, misogyny, racism, and fascism. His win against Harris, the first woman of color to contest in the Presidential race, marks the second time he has defeated a female rival. It may indicate that some sociology scholars are correct in their views that the US is not ready to accept a female President. They may add that it is further away from accepting a female leader who is not white.
Israel-Iran War Not Just Now
Israel on April 1 launched missiles at an Iranian diplomatic compound in Damascus, killing two generals and five other senior officers. Iran responded by launching missiles and drones at Israeli targets. They seem to have inflicted little damage and, Israel did not really need outside help. the United States and the United Kingdom used naval assets armed with anti-missile systems to intercept Iranian missiles over Syria, Iraq and Jordan. It was a signal to Iran that the attack on Israel could invite U.S. and British intervention. The U.S. has a long and unpleasant history with Iran, and it wanted to remind Tehran that it would face more than one enemy if it confronted Israel.
CHIN CHRONICLES, CHT COMPLICATIONS, COLLATERAL CONCERNS, COUNTRY CHALLENGES
COEXISTENCE: The Chin State is mountain terrain on the northwestern Myanmar and named after the Chin people who live there. The impoverished region’s inhabitants – Chin - are closely related to the Kuki and the Mizo communities. The Chin State shares borders India’s Mizoram state, which is inhabited primarily by the Mizos. The Chin State also has a common border with Bangladesh’s Rangamati and Bandarban of the hill tracts. These two districts consist of a noteworthy number of Kuki-Chin community members. So, the Kuki-Chin community is spread over hilly areas in Bangladesh, Mizoram, and Myanmar. While Bangladesh has had its share of insurgency and long internal conflict in the hill tracts, Mizoram and Myanmar continue to have their issues as well.
Smuggling Adds Challenges to Locals and Rohingyas in Cox’s Bazar
Just a couple of weeks of ago, security forces in Cox's Bazar detained three persons and seized several quantities of food items, including edible oil, four, sugar and spices, which were supposedly destined for war-torn Myanmar. Meanwhile, PM Hasina has recently directed the security forces to take stringent measures against commodity hoarding and price gouging during the month of Ramadan. While hoarding of commodities and artificial price hike of essentials in Bangladesh is not a new phenomenon, Ramadan period raises these concerns extensively.
How significant it is for us to know English in professional skills
People speak roughly 7,000 languages worldwide. Although there is a lot in common among languages, each one is unique, both in its structure and in the way it reflects the culture of the people who speak it.
Pakistan Elections: Who, What, Why, How, and Where from Here!
Pakistan’s elections were anticipated by many analysts as one of the least credible in the country’s nearly 77-year history, owing to the military’s crackdown on Khan and his aides. It is labeled as a “selection” — not an election. Human rights monitors have condemned it as neither free nor fair. As voters cast ballots, the influence of Pakistan’s powerful military and the turbulent state of its politics were on full display. It is a vivid reflection of the generals’ ultimate hold on Pakistan’s troubled democracy.
Will Bangladesh be able to deal with geopolitical challenges by overcoming Myanmar border concerns?
As the tempo of conflicts within Myanmar remains fickle after months of dramatic insurgent advances since October 2023, the civil conflict (read war here) and its main focus has shifted to the state of Rakhine. The current situation in the region can well be termed as an escalation of decisive proportions as conflict with mainly the Arakan Army (AA) has spiked sharply. The stakes are very high not only for the Myanmar junta but also for the region. If the AA succeeds in building decisive control over the Rakhine state located between the Bay of Bengal and the Myanmar heartland, it will effectively present the military’s State Administration Council (SAC) regime with a defeat. This would not only thwart the Myanmar junta’s perceived strength, control, and cohesion over Rakhine, but also weaken the junta’s monopoly of power in the whole of Myanmar on a scale that would mean a strategic and political defeat.
EU interested in strengthening partnership with Bangladesh
The European Union (EU) expressed interest in strengthening partnership with Bangladesh in the coming days.
Not Zero-Sum, Mutually Beneficial Approach will Be Key
The run-up to the Bangladesh national elections of January 7 were politically nerve wrecking for many stakeholders, as it seemed that the national elections of the country had seemingly become a high-stakes competition for global and regional politics. Stakes may not be so high, but the competition factor is a definite phenomenon that has been ongoing within and regarding Bangladesh for some time now. Whether it be termed from the purview of India’s buffer state priorities to BRI of China; from US strategic priorities of containing China to globally isolating Russia that has infrastructure interests in Bangladesh and has become an overt political advocate for Bangladesh recently. The added caveat or concern for many are the accusations of authoritarianism, totalitarian, and suppression of political rivals, withing which PM Hasina has returned to office for the fourth term.
Dhaka’s Diplomacy Demands Deeper Dexterity
Elections are over. Results are as anticipated. PM Hasina will lead Bangladesh for the fourth consecutive term. All concerns about how the elections will be are somewhat irrelevant now. The international community has begun responding to the elections of Bangladesh. On the morning of January 8, envoys of Russia, India, Pakistan, China, Nepal, Bhutan, Brazil, Srilanka, Philippines, Singapore, Morocco, and even the diplomatic representative of Aga Khan Development Network paid a courtesy call on PM Hasina and congratulated her on her fourth term as PM of Bangladesh. Fifty countries have permanent envoys in Bangladesh and 11 of them have congratulate PM Hasina on her victory. The courtesy call is highly indicative of how the election or rather the election results are being received at least in the immediate region. More importantly, China, Russia, and India congratulating Bangladesh is quite significant. At the same time, the US and UK have also acknowledged the elections underscoring various but anticipated concerns.
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