The highly-contagious Delta variant is causing a surge in new COVID-19 cases even in countries with high vaccination rates – and experts warn that immunisation campaigns are in a race against time to contain it.Globally, the pandemic is still slowing down, with the World Health Organization (WHO) reporting the lowest number of new cases worldwide since February and decreasing deaths attributed to the coronavirus.But concerns are growing about the variant, prompting new restrictions in countri

In their latest communiqué, NATO leaders declared that China presents “systemic challenges to the rules-based international order.” The response from China’s mission to the European Union (EU) was clear: “We will not present a ‘systemic challenge’ to anyone, but if someone wants to pose a ‘systemic challenge’ to us, we will not remain indifferent.” Such a tit-for-tat rhetoric is unnecessary, and most of the world’s population probably does not want it to escalate.

In a recent essay on Samantha Power, President Joe Biden’s new administrator of the United States (US) Agency for International Development, Michelle Goldberg of The New York Times writes – correctly – that Power’s “first big test … lies in what America does to help vaccinate the rest of the world against COVID-19.” And Power herself is quoted as saying that, “It’s about a very, very tangible, results-oriented agenda.” Results seemed to follow.

This month’s G7 summit seemed to confirm what has long been apparent: The United States (US) and China are entering into a cold war similar to the one between the US and the Soviet Union in the second half of the 20th century. The West no longer views China just as a competitor and rival but as a civilisational alternative.

The 2021 G7 summit took place in the United Kingdom (UK) at Carbis Bay in Cornwall. Since the 1970s, the G7 has met each year. The G7 is an informal bloc of industrialised democracies consisting of the United States (US), Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, and the United Kingdom (UK). The group meets annually to discuss global economic issues, health emergencies, international security, energy policy, climate crisis, and the like.

While the United States (US) and Europe waged a 17-year trade battle over subsidies to Boeing and Airbus, China poured money into its own commercial aircraft to take on the Western aviation duopoly.It took a common threat for the US and Europe to finally put an end to their dispute this past week, as the two sides signed a five-year truce suspending tit-for-tat tariffs.US President Joe Biden made it clear during his visit to Brussels on Tuesday: Washington and Brussels must "work togethe

United States (US) scientists said Wednesday they had developed a sticky wall coating that repurposes ingredients used in hair conditioners to trap aerosolised droplets, and hope it will become another tool in the fight against COVID and other airborne diseases.The substance can be applied to surfaces such as plexiglass dividers to capture respiratory droplets, rather than allowing them to bounce off and remain in circulation."Droplets collide with indoor surfaces all the time," sai

The global infrastructure plan announced by G7 leaders aims to offer developing nations a credible alternative to China's much-criticised Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) – but it faces major hurdles on the ground, especially if Beijing's hiccups are any indication. United States (US) President Joe Biden was able to convince the G7 to sign onto the initiative, drawing allies into Washington's strategic rivalry with Beijing, under a plan titled, "Build Back Better Wo

President Joe Biden will draw "red lines" for President Vladimir Putin at a tense Geneva summit on Wednesday, where ghosts of the Cold War will hover over modern-day United States (US) concerns that Russia has become a rogue, authoritarian state.The setting – a sumptuous villa overlooking Lake Geneva – may be picturesque, but a gruelling diplomatic face-off awaits.Up to five hours of talks are planned, starting at around 1:00 pm (1100 GMT), with no break for meals.

What if China were to cut off the United States (US) and Europe from access to rare minerals that are essential to electric vehicles, wind turbines and drones?At a time of frequent geopolitical friction among the three powers, Washington and Brussels want to avoid this scenario by investing in the market for 17 minerals with unique properties that today are largely extracted and refined in China."The expected exponential growth in demand for minerals that are linked to clean energy is pu