Keeping up with the news is a juggling act, so we’ve compiled the 10 mind blowing stories that defined this week (3/9/18). From tariffs to terror, from elections to eradication of disease, the world didn’t slow down for a breath.
10 The Trump Trade Wars Finally Arrived
10 mind blowing Overview
After the 2016 US election, the global community feared President Trump would unleash a trade war on China. The idea faded through 2017, only to roar back last Friday when the president announced massive tariffs on imported steel. The twist? The targets weren’t China this time, but Canada, Mexico, and the European Union.
Canada and the EU sit atop the list of US steel exporters, followed by Brazil, South Korea, Japan, and Mexico – China barely cracks the top ten. All of these nations are nominal US allies, a fact that hasn’t escaped foreign eyes. Mexico, Brazil, and Japan have threatened retaliation, but the biggest showdown may be with the EU, which has already drafted a hit list of 100 American products for counter‑tariffs. Farming, a traditionally Trump‑friendly sector, could be hit hard by any EU response.
Republicans are sounding the alarm, with Paul Ryan warning that the tariffs could erase any gains from the tax plan.
9 Populist Parties Dominated Italy’s Elections
It’s official: the political mainstream is dead in Italy. On Sunday voters went to the polls expecting a drubbing for the ruling Democratic Party (PD). Instead, the PD was annihilated. The centre‑right coalition, Forza Italia, fell to third place. Victory was handed to two anti‑immigrant populist forces – Five Star, which claimed the most seats overall, and the League, now heading the largest party bloc.
The precise direction Italy will take remains murky. Both parties share anti‑EU and anti‑immigrant stances but differ wildly otherwise. Five Star is a left‑leaning, vaguely anarchist movement strong in the south, while the League is a right‑wing force dominant in the north. A coalition between them could alienate their bases. Reports suggest Five Star may be eyeing a left‑wing alliance with the loathed PD, a move that could further complicate any northern partnership.
8 A Potential Assassination Attempt Shook Britain
Was it an attempted hit? On Sunday, Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia collapsed on a bench in the picturesque town of Salisbury. Both were rushed to hospital in critical condition after being poisoned by an unknown substance later identified as a nerve agent. An emergency responder also fell ill. Suspicion now points squarely at the Kremlin.
Skripal, a former British spy who spied on Russia, was released in 2010 as part of a spy swap and has lived in Salisbury ever since. The incident mirrors the 2006 Litvinenko case, where a Russian‑sponsored polonium poisoning took place in London. The fear is that the Kremlin is becoming increasingly brazen in targeting dissidents abroad.
It’s worth noting that this case isn’t airtight. Unlike Litvinenko, Skripal never entered politics and survived six years in a Russian prison where killing him would have been easier. Some analysts suggest organized crime may be involved rather than a direct Kremlin operation.
7 North Korea Said It Was Willing To Suspend Nuclear Tests
This could be the good news we’ve all been waiting for. On Monday, Kim Jong Un met South Korean officials for the first time in his reign, a sign of thawing ties that began with a joint team at the winter Olympics. Both sides announced a joint summit slated for April – a meeting that hasn’t happened in nearly a decade.
The headline, however, was Kim’s indication that North Korea was prepared to suspend nuclear tests in exchange for peace talks with the United States.
We’ve seen similar overtures in the 1990s and early 2000s, but those talks ultimately fizzled. With leadership changes across the region, there’s cautious optimism that President Moon, Donald Trump, and even a plump Kim might finally achieve what their predecessors could not.
6 Rhode Island Proposed A Troubling Internet Porn Law
Well, here’s a law that seems ripe for abuse. At the end of last week, Democratic state senators in Rhode Island introduced a bill that would force Internet service providers to block all pornography and “patently offensive material” or face a $500 fine. Any citizen who wants to access pornography would be required to pay the state $20.
While the proposal sounds minor, it signals a worrying cultural shift. The bill equates watching pornography with human trafficking, earmarking the $20 fees for an anti‑human‑trafficking council, and creates a database to store the names of those who pay. In effect, it attempts to shame people into accepting a narrow moral viewpoint.
The bill may stumble over First Amendment challenges, but its very introduction is unsettling.
5 The Way Was Paved For Serbia’s EU Accession
“Accession is not a dream, but a reality.” Those were the words Jean‑Claude Juncker spoke at a Balkans summit last week, hinting at one of the biggest post‑Brexit shifts in European politics. After early‑year talks, Juncker announced EU leaders are preparing to vote on a 2025 deadline for expanding the Union into the Balkans, with concrete steps now being taken to bring Serbia into the bloc.
This development is huge for the region and has been backed by action in Belgrade. On March 1, Serbia’s National Assembly formally adopted a framework to align local laws with EU regulations. With its booming economy, the former pariah state may soon become a full EU member, a win for a Union eager to move beyond Brexit.
Challenges remain. Brussels insists Belgrade must normalize relations with Kosovo before accession, a demand many Serbs find hard to swallow.
4 Honduras Arrested A Powerful Executive For An Activist’s Murder
Honduras is not a good place to be an activist. Over the past decade, more than 100 land‑ and indigenous‑rights supporters have been murdered, and police often turn a blind eye. This week, that may have finally changed. On Saturday, Honduran police arrested Roberto David Castillo, the executive president of energy company Desa, charging him with ordering the 2016 murder of activist Berta Caceres.
Caceres led protests against a new dam Desa was building when she was shot dead in her home. Her killing ignited massive backlash. Investigations suggested security services, construction workers, and Desa employees had all threatened her, and a 2017 report indicated the Honduran state itself may have been involved. Someone finally had to take the fall.
Castillo’s arrest marks the highest‑profile detention in the Caceres case to date, sending a warning that impunity for wealthy killers in Honduras may be waning.
3 Sri Lanka Declared A State Of Emergency
The last time Sri Lanka declared a state of emergency was during its brutal 26‑year civil war against Tamil separatists, which claimed between 90,000 and 140,000 lives. This Tuesday, the island entered lockdown again for the first time in nearly a decade after anti‑Muslim riots erupted in Kandy. The government extended a state of emergency across the whole nation.
Sri Lanka, like Myanmar, has seen a rise in Buddhist nationalism, which recently spilled over into violence against the Muslim minority. While the Tamil Hindu community wasn’t involved in this flare‑up, President Sirisena imposed the emergency to prevent the riots from igniting broader ethnic conflict.
2 Terrorism Returned To Burkina Faso
In January 2016, gunmen stormed a restaurant and hotel in Burkina Faso’s capital Ouagadougou, killing 30. Last Friday, the terror struck again, this time with a car bomb detonated at the city’s military headquarters followed by an assault on the French embassy. Eight people died and 80 were wounded.
The attack was remarkable for its audacity. Ouagadougou’s military base is heavily guarded, and the French embassy is usually one of the safest spots in the country. The attackers managed to get close, a glaring security failure. Luck was on the city’s side: the bomb was meant to hit a regional anti‑terrorism meeting, which had been moved at the last minute, sparing many more lives.
Some good may yet emerge. French President Emmanuel Macron has been urging former colonies to step up against Islamic extremism, and this attack could serve as a wake‑up call for Burkina Faso and its neighbours.
1 Australia Was Tipped To Become The First Country To Eradicate Cervical Cancer
Let’s end on some good news for once. On Tuesday, the International Papillomavirus Society announced that Australia’s free cervical cancer vaccine program has exceeded expectations. It’s now believed that Australia will become the first nation on Earth to completely eradicate cervical cancer.
Over 99 % of cervical cancer cases are caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV), a sexually transmitted disease. In 2007, Australia began offering a free vaccine to all girls aged 12‑13, later expanding it to boys as well. When the program started, roughly one in five (22.7 %) Australian women carried HPV. By 2015, that figure had plummeted to just 1.1 %.
With additional screening tests announced at the end of 2017, Australia is on track to eliminate cervical cancer within the next ten to twenty years. If the rest of the world follows suit, we’ll have a truly cause for celebration.