Project Syndicate

Right-wing nationalism thrives in warped online worlds and at the ballot box. But talk is cheap, and grievance is intoxicating when removed from the hard realities of a more dangerous world, writes @ECFR’s @nicupopescu. bit.ly/4dF87hN

From Venezuela to Iran, US President Donald Trump’s administration has apparently embraced a simple mantra: attack now, plan later. In Cuba’s case, the attack has so far taken the form not of airstrikes, but of blockade on fuel imports, which has... project-syndicate.org/onpoint/what-s…

Perhaps democracy is suffering not from its failures, but from its success, @AndresVelasco suggests. Having become the system of the establishment, it is easier to hate than it once was. bit.ly/489OJ98

In calling out the international order’s inconsistencies, Western "middle powers" are assuming a more “realist” stance that frees them from any commitment to protecting or strengthening shared rules, notes @SophEisentraut. bit.ly/4t57lPL

The US is poorly equipped to weather the food- and energy-price shock it faces as a result of @realDonaldTrump's war of choice in Iran, writes Desmond Lachman (@AEI). Financial-sector fragility is a key reason why. bit.ly/4tbL1Ej

Immediate measures to address the energy-price shock should be designed to catalyze genuine value creation and larger economic goals. If a policy serves merely to prop up fossil-fuel profits, it should be considered a failure, @MazzucatoM argues. bit.ly/3PupAj7

The “Bukele model” is not just about boosting arrest numbers. It depends on pliant courts, a legislature willing to renew emergency powers indefinitely, and a security apparatus that is shielded from scrutiny, let alone accountability, @robmuggah warns. bit.ly/4uBMp4G

Peter Singer & Savita Pawnday rebut the view that the United Nations-endorsed R2P doctrine cleared a legal path to the US-Israeli airstrikes. project-syndicate.org/commentary/r2p…

At a time when many European countries are struggling to cope with the challenges posed by populist and nationalist parties, Denmark under Mette Frederiksen’s government appeared to be an exception. @ThomasBerntH of @berlingske explains why it wasn’t. bit.ly/4lNzgkK

US foreign policy has long relied on economic pain to force adversaries into submission. But that logic is likely to fail in Iran, notes @Stanford’s @MicheleJGelfand. bit.ly/4uCSmOy

Some in the Cuban diaspora believe that US-Cuban negotiations should focus on opening the market. But many more argue that a major political transformation must accompany any changes to the economy, @JorgeGCastaneda notes. bit.ly/4dFVOBS

The “diagnostic gap” – the difference between confirmed and estimated TB cases – is the greatest barrier to an effective global response. @ASLM_News’s Anafi Mataka and @Georgetown’s Sharonann Lynch explain how to close it. bit.ly/4stIl4I

Harnessing the transformative potential of near-point-of-care tests for tuberculosis requires significant political will for a rapid rollout, argue @ASLM_News’s Anafi Mataka and @Georgetown’s Sharonann Lynch. bit.ly/4stIl4I

Policymakers must wake up to the fact that the current energy shock is not some isolated, short-term crisis. It represents our new reality, @MazzucatoM warns. bit.ly/3PupAj7

.@realDonaldTrump’s Middle East adventurism benefits no one but America’s adversaries. Given Trump’s well-known distaste for diplomacy, it’s difficult to see how this downward spiral can be reversed while he is in office, argues Chris Patten. bit.ly/4snkkfG

There is no good time for an economy to face an energy- and food-price shock, but some moments are worse than others, notes Desmond Lachman (@AEI). And for the US today, now is about as bad as it can get. bit.ly/4tbL1Ej

Andrés Velasco sees little room – or appetite – for democratization in the Trump administration's strategy for the island. project-syndicate.org/commentary/tru…

Harold James considers historical parallels to America's reckless “excursion” against the Islamic Republic of Iran. project-syndicate.org/commentary/don…

The proven independence of US market institutions has long made America the anchor of the global financial system. But this crucial principle is now threatened like never before, @jayantsinha warns. bit.ly/4lOJykz

.@realDonaldTrump’s public ultimatums and threats against Iran are counterproductive. A better approach would be to give Iran’s leaders room to step back without losing face, argues @Stanford’s @MicheleJGelfand. bit.ly/4uCSmOy