Editor's note

Kenya and Somalia can’t settle a protracted dispute about the location of their maritime boundary. At stake is control over a 100,000 square km triangle in the Indian Ocean that’s got large deposits of oil and gas as well as lots of tuna. Christopher R. Rossi explains why colonial boundaries are part of what’s complicating the disagreement.

The ongoing trade dispute between the United States and China seems to be thawing, but what will be the long-term impact of the negotiations? James Anderson suggests China could successfully turn a new trade deal into an opportunity to surpass the U.S. as the world’s greatest economic power.

Julius Maina

Regional Editor East Africa

Top Stories

Somali president Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed (second left) and Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta (second right). EPA-EFE/Daniel Irungu

Kenya and Somalia row over offshore rights is rooted in the carve up of Africa

Christopher R. Rossi, University of Iowa

The legacy of colonialism's unfinished business has now migrated to the Indian Ocean.

U.S. President Donald Trump with China’s President Xi Jinping during a bilateral meeting in December 2018 in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

A U.S.-China trade deal does not slow China’s rise

James L. Anderson, Queen's University, Ontario

America may have missed a window of opportunity to curb China’s rise when it pulled out of the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

Politics + Society

Protesters in Algeria use nonviolence to seek real political change

Ghaliya Djelloul, Université catholique de Louvain

Demonstrations against the current regime have opened up a space for debate and self-expression in Algeria, recalling the crucial need for a free and involved civil society.

Hezbollah ban is partly a performance of British national identity

Lee Jarvis, University of East Anglia; Tim Legrand, Australian National University

The proscription of terrorist groups are part of the process through which a country demonstrates its self-identity.

Science + Technology

Women in health, science and innovation are collaborating globally

Judy Illes, University of British Columbia

Women leaders in science and technology are working together to address the gender imbalance in their fields.

We talk about artistic inspiration all the time – but scientific inspiration is a thing too

Tom McLeish, University of York

We talk about artistic inspiration all the time – but science demands inspiration too.