The newest trend in the financial sector, cryptocurrency, has made a significant step toward widespread acceptance through the El Salvadorian government’s decision to make bitcoin legal tender in the country. According to CNN, the currency was officially introduced to the country during the week of September 7 and was marked by the government officially purchasing bitcoin.
Read MorePoliticians have long wielded American exceptionalism – the idea that the United States’ identity, values, and culture must be protected at all costs – for citizen mobilization throughout the country’s history. It has been used during foreign interventions, the war on terror, President Donald Trump’s 2016 and 2020 presidential campaigns, and, more recently, mass vaccination campaigns. President Biden now has an opportunity to arm climate policy with American exceptionalism to achieve ambitious climate goals.
Read MoreAs countries across the globe are racing vaccinate their populations, vaccine diplomacy has now become a key component of geopolitics. Several countries such as China, Russia, and India are engaging in vaccine diplomacy. This new diplomacy tool will have a substantial impact, given the unequal global distribution of vaccines.
Read MoreFor years, informal work has sustained nearly a third of Latin America’s growing economies. With the economic slump created by the COVID-19 pandemic, informality is a big driver behind the expected two-decade economic regression in Latin America.
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On April 25, the head of the European Union announced that American tourists who have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 will be permitted to visit the bloc’s countries over the summer, reports The New York Times.
Read MoreThe Russian Defense Ministry has announced the withdrawal of its troops from the Ukrainian border following a massive military buildup last week. According to Euronews, Moscow called for all troops to return to their permanent bases, signaling the potential end to a massive escalation of tensions with the West.
Read MoreOn April 22, the UK Parliament unanimously declared that China has been committing genocide and crimes against humanity in the Xinjiang region, CNN reports. Xinjiang is home to the Uyghurs, a predominantly Muslim ethnic group, and other minorities.
Read MoreThe newly re-elected president of Chad, Idriss Déby, was pronounced dead on Tuesday, April 20, after being attacked by Front for Change and Concord rebels (otherwise known as FACT). Déby, who was 68 years old, was visiting the front lines when he was shot. The details of the events leading up to Déby’s death are uncertain, with the Chadian Military and FACT stating different timelines leading up to the incident. CNN reports that FACT troops had overrun a military garrison, and Déby was shot while fleeing. The Chadian government has denied these claims.
Read MoreA massive fire at a hospital in Baghdad injured 110 people and killed more than 80 as officials are still searching for missing people. An exploding oxygen cylinder started the fire at the Ibn al-Khatib Hospital, an institution dedicated to serving COVID-19 patients with severe symptoms, reports The Associated Press.
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President Joe Biden has foregone the precedent of his predecessors by becoming the first U.S. president to formally recognize the mass killings of over one million Armenians as genocide. The acknowledgement comes over a century after the Ottoman Turks perpetrated the mass killings, and in spite of possible complications for U.S.-Turkey relations.
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