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International Relations

30 years after Tiananmen Square, a changed China largely ignores the milestone
Protesters in Hong Kong

Hong Kong residents gathered in Stanley Park for a candlelight vigil to remember the victims of the crackdown. 

30 years after Tiananmen Square, a changed China largely ignores the milestone

Political scientist Avery Goldstein discusses the mood in Beijing this week, and how the regime has suppressed the history of the crackdown.

Gwyneth K. Shaw

Who will be the UK’s next prime minister?
Big Ben with united kingdom and european union flags

Who will be the UK’s next prime minister?

Theresa May is out, but who replaces her is tricky to predict, says Brendan O’Leary of the School of Arts and Sciences.

Gwyneth K. Shaw

Will stalemate lead to resolution in Venezuela?
Venezuelan flag flying

Will stalemate lead to resolution in Venezuela?

In a Q&A, political science professor Dorothy Kronick says negotiation is an uphill battle but may be the only way to settle the dispute over who will lead the troubled country.

Gwyneth K. Shaw

Leaders are failing human rights. I know because I was in charge of it.

Leaders are failing human rights. I know because I was in charge of it.

Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein of Perry World House was featured in a video op-ed about human-rights abuses. “Most of our political leaders are morally weak, shortsighted, and mediocre. It used to be that abuses were called out and many were stopped. Human rights violators had something to fear,” he said. “But today, the silence of those public officials is astounding. Their hypocrisy, sickening.”

In conversation with the Russian ambassador
Crowd of people watching Orenstein and Antonov talk

In conversation with the Russian ambassador

During an event on campus, Professor Mitchell Orenstein spoke with Anatoly Antonov about ‘fake news,’ U.S.-Russia relations, and why arms control negotiations need to resume.

Gwyneth K. Shaw

Twenty-five years after the Rwandan genocide, memorials remember the 800,000 who died
piles of soiled clothing and sheets on church pews and floor

In this church in Nyamata, in Rwanda, bullet holes cover the ceiling and soiled clothing cover the pews and the floor, all reminders of the genocide that took place in the country 25 years ago. Randall Mason of the Stuart Weitzman School of Design has been working in that country for the past three years to conserve memorials dedicated to remembering the 800,000 people who died and to support Rwandans in their quest to do the same. (Photo: Randall Mason)

Twenty-five years after the Rwandan genocide, memorials remember the 800,000 who died

Penn historic preservation professor Randall Mason has been working with the country’s government since 2016 to protect and conserve such monuments.

Michele W. Berger

Trump issued an executive order to prepare for an EMP attack. What is it, and should you worry?

Trump issued an executive order to prepare for an EMP attack. What is it, and should you worry?

School of Arts and Sciences Ph.D. students Christopher Blair, Casey Mahoney, Shira Pindyck, and Joshua Schwartz co-wrote about the president’s plans to issue an executive order meant to protect the country from electromagnetic pulse (EMP) attacks. The authors say that such an attack is highly unlikely, due to the prospect of nuclear retaliation from the U.S. and assertions that the destructive capacity of EMPs has been overstated.

What’s next for the UK and Europe?
Big Ben with the U.K. and E.U. flags

What’s next for the UK and Europe?

Years of debate and negotiation are coming to a head as the deadline for the United Kingdom to leave the European Union looms. Political science professor Brendan O’Leary explains what’s happened and what could come next.

Gwyneth K. Shaw

The presidential authority of treaty withdrawal
Empty podium with POTUS seal on lawn

The presidential authority of treaty withdrawal

In a Q&A, Penn Law Professor Jean Galbraith examines the presidential authority to withdraw from and rejoin international agreements.

Penn Today Staff