2022

February 2022Alumni Spotlight2022School of Diplomacy News

Alumni Spotlight: Daniela Maquera Sardón

Daniela Maquera Sardon recently sat down with the Diplomatic Envoy to recall her experiences at Seton Hall University. Daniela migrated to New Jersey at age fifteen from Peru and graduated from Seton Hall University in 2021 as the university valedictorian with a Diplomacy and Economics major and an Asian Studies minor. She proceeded to do a remote exchange student at Stockholm University in Development Economics; she is now working with Mercy Corps as an intern while studying at Fudan University for her Master of Science in World and Chinese Economy on a Chinese Government Scholarship.

Read More
February 2022Eastern EuropeOpinion2022

Where’s the Working Class in Foreign Policy?

The wealthiest country in human history finds itself helpless in stopping a nation with an economy smaller than that of Texas. There’s no punchline to follow, and if there was, it would certainly fall flat to Ukrainian comedian-turned-President Volodymyr Zelensky. NPR reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin has encircled Ukraine’s border with 100,000 Russian soldiers.

Read More
February 20222022International NewsMiddle East

Yemen War Intensifies as Drones Fired on UAE

On January 17, a drone attack on the UAE by Ansarullah, also known as Houthis, in Yemen marked the first time Yemeni forces were able to strike targets in the UAE, a notable escalation in the Yemen War, reports The Associated Press. The Associated Press further reports that this attack was followed by subsequent strikes on strategic facilities in the UAE, including during the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog, on January 31.

Read More
February 20222022International NewsAmericas

Honduras Swears in First Female President

After losing elections in 2013 and 2017, Xiomara Castro has officially been inaugurated as Honduras’s first female president, reports CNN. Castro first rose to political prominence in 2009, when she led a march through the nation’s capital demanding that her husband, former President Manuel Zelaya, be reinstated as president following a military coup. Castro, a  self-proclaimed democratic socialist brings an end to 12 years of right-wing leadership, BBC News adds. At her inauguration, she emphasized that she seeks to “refound” the nation on “citizen values, ”The New York Times reports. 

Read More
February 20222022International NewsEurope

80-Year-Old Italian President Elected to Second Term

Leading up to Italy’s presidential election, President Sergio Mattarella had plans that did not involve serving a second term. The 80-year-old president made this known, posting images of a packed-up presidential palace and making sure to be spotted on house hunting excursions. But after a week of struggles in Parliament to elect his replacement, Mattarella was asked to stay and accepted.

Read More
February 20222022International NewsAsia

Myanmar Marks One Year Since Military Takeover

February 1marked one year since Myanmar’s  military staged a coup to oust democratically elected leader Aung Sann Suu Kyi, less than a decade after its transition into a democratic nation. The U.N. Security Council released a statement regarding the one-year anniversary, calling for those still detained to abe released, including the country’s former president Win Myint, reports U.S. News. Aung San Suu Kyi, a Nobel Peace Prize winner and long-time supporter of democracy, remains detained as well. 

Read More
February 20222022International NewsAmericas

Four Mexican Journalists Killed in First Four Weeks of 2022

A recent uptick of violence against journalists in Mexico has helped solidify its status as one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, reports The Guardian. The January 31 murder of Roberto Toledo, a videographer for the news website Monitor Michoacan, was the final straw that sparked protests across the country from journalists, advocating for more protection, adds The New York Times.

Read More
February 2022FocusSports Geopolitics2022

FOCUS on Sports Geopolitics: The Qatar World Cup

The 2022 World Cup will be held in Qatar, an oil-rich Persian Gulf country eager to showcase its stadiums and landmarks as the first Arab nation to hold the tournament. Despite its wealthy aesthetic, human rights organizations and journalists have discovered via whistleblowers that Qatari authorities have overlooked human rights abuses of migrant workers brought to construct facilities for the event. 

Read More