Read more about the article Vietnam has Upgraded Ties with the United States to a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’.
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Vietnam has Upgraded Ties with the United States to a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’.

The US-Vietnam relationship has entered a new diplomatic phase. Ties between both countries greatly strengthened following the G20 Summit in New Delhi, as the US President Joseph Biden was received in Hanoi by Nguyen Phu Trong, the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee (The White House, 2023). During the summit, both leaders agreed to upgrade the US-Vietnam relationship to the status of a ‘Comprehensive Strategic Partnership’ (CSP) (Tatarski, 2023). As proclaimed jointly by the two leaders, this new status contributes to peace, cooperation, and prosperity (The White House, 2023).

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18 October 2023
Read more about the article Towards the Implementation of the European Defence Industry Reinforcement Through Common Procurement Act (EDIRPA)
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Towards the Implementation of the European Defence Industry Reinforcement Through Common Procurement Act (EDIRPA)

On October 9, the Council of the EU adopted a regulation establishing an instrument that further paves the way for the entry into force of the European Defence Industry Reinforcement through Common Procurement Act (EDIRPA). This new instrument involves a €300 million budget that provides partial reimbursement to Member States jointly purchasing capabilities through consortia of at least three Members. Further conditions are set out for EDIRPA. Contractors and subcontractors must be established and must have their executive management structure in the EU or in an associated country. Moreover, at least 65 percent of the end products’ components must originate from the EU or an associated country.

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17 October 2023
Read more about the article EU Divided on Status of Palestine Aid Following Hamas Attack on Israel
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EU Divided on Status of Palestine Aid Following Hamas Attack on Israel

On October 7, Hamas launched a massive surprise attack on Israel (see Clarke, 2023). The Commission’s response so far has been a rare display of internal disunity, as Commissioner Várhelyi (2023a; 2023b) announced on October 9 that the EU would review and immediately suspend all aid to Palestine only for Commissioner Lenarčič (2023) to contradict him, saying that humanitarian aid would continue for as long as needed. Later, on October 9, the European Commission issued a statement confirming that it will not suspend aid, but that it is launching an urgent aid review (2023).

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13 October 2023
Read more about the article Chaos Erupts throughout Israel and the Gaza Strip following Hamas’s Surprise Attack.
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Chaos Erupts throughout Israel and the Gaza Strip following Hamas’s Surprise Attack.

The latest chapter in Israel and Palestine's long history is unfolding as tensions soar to unprecedented levels. On 7 October 2023, Hamas initiated a surprise attack into Israeli territory, launching thousands of rockets and breaching Israel’s fortified barrier that separates it from the Palestinian Gaza Strip. The attack marks Hamas’s most sophisticated and coordinated operation in recent memory, overwhelming Israel’s notorious Iron Dome missile defence system. At the same time, armed militants flooded checkpoints and bulldozed through Israeli fortifications (BBC, 2023a). These militants then proceeded to move through the breaches into Israeli territory in the day’s early hours, where they went on to brutally assault up to 27 different locations, ostensibly shooting on sight at civilians and military personnel alike (BBC, 2023a).

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12 October 2023
Read more about the article A Humanitarian Crisis With Catastrophic Outlooks: The Impact Of The Lachin Corridor Blockade Within The Armenian-Azeri Conflict Over Nagorno-Karabakh
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A Humanitarian Crisis With Catastrophic Outlooks: The Impact Of The Lachin Corridor Blockade Within The Armenian-Azeri Conflict Over Nagorno-Karabakh

Since hostilities revamped in September 2020 after a long latency period, the ethnic Armenian population in Nagorno-Karabakh has suffered from inhuman and degrading treatment by the Azeri forces trying to restate control over the contended province. Notwithstanding the presence of Russian peacekeepers and the conditions imposed by the ceasefire agreement reached after the Second Karabakh War, Baku restricted locals’ freedom of movement with measures like the blockade on the Lachin Corridor, which represents the only road connection between Nagorno-Karabakh and Armenia.

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12 October 2023