A new surge of countertrade International exchanges of goods and services are typically conducted with currencies, the value of which is settled by the four legs of trust, demand, supply, and risk.
Time to think safety-security The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster gave terrorists and other malefactors a tip. By targeting nuclear plants, they can wreak havoc comparable to that wrought by an earthquake and tsunami, crippling a great economic and military power.
Revisiting Hiroshima, Nagasaki The bombing of Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, and Nagasaki three days later, was a tragedy of the highest magnitude. The United States at war, looking forward to certain victory, wiped out two enemy cities in hopes of shortening the war.
Chinas territorial ambition China explains its incursions into the South China Sea and the East China Sea using the geological reason of the outer continental shelf theory and the historical reason of its ancient voyages to the distant seas. It has confronted Vietnam and the ..
Natural resource curse and Arab Spring The natural resource curse thesis, contrary to common sense, states that resource-rich countries experience less economic growth in the long run than those deprived of natural riches.
Rebalancing economic structures Changes taking place in the world economy are likely to catapult the Asia-Pacific region as the center of gravity of the world economy with China, India and Indonesia emerging as the growth poles for not only the region, but also the entire world.
Hosting both Summer and Winter Olympics The 2018 Winter Olympic Games is scheduled to take place in PyeongChang in the mountainous Gangwon Province, South Korea, after its bid was chosen by the International Olympic Committee (IOC). The two other candidates that applied to host the Games..
Famine in Somalia Across the Horn of Africa, people are starving. A catastrophic combination of conflict, high food prices and drought has left more than 11 million people in desperate need.
US nuclear weapons to South Korea? Support for the U.S.-ROK alliance has never seemed stronger in South Korea. Our two countries appear to be in lockstep when it comes to dealing with North Korea and our two presidents seem to genuinely like and respect one another, thus permitting ..
Lessons from Korea-EU FTA On July 1, the South Korea-European Union Free Trade Agreement became provisionally applicable. This is the most comprehensive trade treaty that the EU has negotiated with another country as part of its Global Europe trade policy. Its also one of..
Wave of patriotism in Osaka I recently met a Japanese friend who came from Osaka and asked him what it looked like these days. He said it was a sort of a melting pot. Osaka has been a maritime traffic hub since ancient times and has been frequented by not only the Japanes..
Helping Jamaicans with land survey Under a new Jamaican government program, 200 residents on July 22 will receive titles to properties where some have lived for decades as owners in name only. The change secures the benefits of legal home ownership and helps families, many heade..
End of American adventure in space The sun always shines in space, so it was no surprise when Sir Paul McCartney called the crew of Atlantis, the last space shuttle, on Friday and sang Good Day Sunshine to them. Later in the day President Barack Obama called and told the astrona..
Cross-straits commerce binds two Chinas TAIPEI An amazing and interlocking network of cross-straits commerce has brought both sides of the Taiwan Straits closer together socially and economically despite a lack of political links.
You should not run at a fitness center? Days after the vertical tremor incident at Techno-Mart in Seoul, there exists only speculation over the cause even among experts. However, some of this speculation is too broad to provide a convincing argument to ordinary people. Moreover, in my op..
Promoting womens rights Women across the world enjoy greater opportunities and freedoms than ever before. It is a peaceful revolution underpinned by an extraordinary transformation of legal rights.
Taiwan thriving in shadow of Chinese dragon TAIPEI Taiwans dynamism and optimism is contagious. Walking around this prosperous and increasingly world-class city one is reminded of the self-reliant and can-do attitude which turned Taiwan from a poor and languid backwater at the end of Wo..
