Beyond Europe: the UK Seeks to Deepen Ties with the Asia-Pacific
In June 2021, British trade minister Liz Truss announced that the United Kingdom would begin virtual talks to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). Joining the CPTPP would deepen the UK’s trade ties in the Asia-Pacific...
The Kafala System: Incremental Reform is Not Enough to Stop Abuse Against Migrant Domestic Workers
There are an estimated 164 million migrant workers in the world today, approximately 8.5 million of them women, with roughly 19 percent of these women working in the Arab region. Despite these high numbers, due to the private nature of the work causing poor...
Biden and the Iran Nuclear Deal
The 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), otherwise known as the Iran nuclear deal, is largely a stop-gap measure in preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. After 10 to 15 years from when the deal was signed, limits on Iran’s ability to enrich...
On the Legality and Policy Ramifications of High Seas Seizures of Foreign Merchant Vessels for Violating U.S. Sanctions
ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED ON LAWFARE Despite robust U.S. sanctions, Tehran and Caracas are undertaking a significant shipping operation to provide desperately needed cash to Iran and weapons and fuel to Venezuela. The Iranian frigate IRIS Sahand and converted oil tanker...
Serbia’s Vaccine Diplomacy in the Western Balkans
In late March, when global demand for COVID-19 vaccines far outpaced supply, Serbia opened its borders to citizens from neighboring countries to be vaccinated in their capital city of Belgrade. Thousands of people from North Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina,...
Flying into Uncharted Territory: The Lurking Ramifications of § 1782 on Private International Arbitration
On March 22, 2021, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari in the case of Servotronics, Inc. v. Rolls Royce PLC and Boeing to address a circuit split over 28 U.S.C. § 1782. Under § 1782, a district court can order U.S. style discovery for “a proceeding in a foreign...
Decolonizing the Discussion about Political Transition in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The world has been watching the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) since its presidential election in 2018. That election and inauguration of President Felix Tshisekedi marked the country’s first peaceful transition of power since independence in 1960. Observers...
How Asia Will Shape International Law in the 21st Century: The Return of Geopolitics
The 21st century is called the “Asian Century” and not without reason. The image below shows the Valeriepieris circle, a hypothetical circle in Asia that contains more than half of the world’s population. In other words, more people live inside the circle than outside...
Democracy Promotion in the Age of Biden
Democracy in Crisis: Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism was on the rise globally; democracies were in decline for the 15th consecutive year. Since then, much like all other aspects of our daily lives, the pandemic exacerbated those ailments. In fact, the...
A House Divided: Northern Ireland After Brexit
Next week, representatives from the United Kingdom and the European Union will meet to discuss the increasingly contentious issue of the Northern Ireland Protocol. Since coming into force on January 1, 2021, this post-Brexit agreement, which attempts to balance the...