Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

New poll: Israeli Jews prefer Romney by large margin

As a recent BBC World Service poll suggested, Barack Obama would cruise to victory if countries ranging from France to Kenya to Canada could vote in the U.S. presidential election. But a new Peace Index poll reveals that Mitt Romney has a sizable advantage...

Published Sun, Oct 28 2012 10:00 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Election 2012

What the international press is saying about the U.S. debt debacle

With just five days remaining for Congress and the White House to agree on a deal to solve the U.S. debt limit crisis, it's not just Americans who are frustrated and concerned about the prospects of a government default. The most strident commentary...

Published Fri, Jul 29 2011 1:29 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Media

South Korean floods carry a new threat

A deep freight train rumble struck South Korea's capital as a series of landslides engulfed entire villages. Screams resounded from buildings as they were dragged down mud rivers. Drivers scrambled to their car roofs as entire portions of the highway...

Published Thu, Jul 28 2011 11:51 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Disasters, East Asia

Countries where you could go to jail for calling the president a ***

Just in case you've been wasting your morning reading about actual important things, journalist Mark Halperin has been indefinitely suspended from his gig as a commentator on MSNBC for referring of President Obama as a "***" on television...

Published Thu, Jun 30 2011 9:33 AM by FP Passport

Iran warns citizens of the dangers of travel to Canada

A through-the-looking-glass moment form Iran's foreign ministry, as reported by the CBC : Iran's foreign ministry says "Islamphobia" and "Iranophobia" are growing in Canada and Iranians who come to Canada could face possible...

Published Thu, Sep 27 2012 8:43 AM by FP Passport

Assad Is America’s Strange Bedfellow and the Price Is 190,000 Dead

There Are as Many Refugees in the World as Justin Bieber Twitter Followers

Could China use the Singapore strategy on the New York Times?

In February, 2010, the International Herald Tribune published an article by then columnist Philip Bowring about Asian political dynasties in Asia, in which he included Singapore. A month later The New York Times , which owns the IHT , published a very...

Published Tue, Oct 30 2012 12:43 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: East Asia, China

Former CIA officer speaks out against new clandestine service chief

This week we learned that an undercover CIA officer who signed off on a controversial decision to destroy videotapes of prisoners being tortured in 2005 has ascended to the top job within the agency's clandestine service. Now, a former senior CIA...

Published Fri, Mar 29 2013 2:00 PM by FP Passport

Obama's 'red line' has become the international community's 'red line'

Clarifying his administration's "red line" policy, Barack Obama told reporters Tuesday that if Syria used chemical weapons against its citizens, it would represent a "game-changer not simply for the United States, but for the international...

Published Tue, Apr 30 2013 10:30 AM by FP Passport

Guest post: Should we really be making jokes about North Korean prison camps?

The North Korean gulag, which popped up this week on Google Maps, has incited a smarty-pants insurgency. As Passport reported yesterday , the glib "user reviews" of locations in the isolated totalitarian state are rolling in. Consider what virtual...

Published Wed, Jan 30 2013 9:16 AM by FP Passport

A new use for Gaza's smuggling tunnels: KFC delivery

Cement, cigarettes, and sugar are just a few of the goods transported through the many underground tunnels connecting Egypt and the blockaded Gaza Strip, which have often been described as a " vital lifeline ." Now, thanks to an entrepreneurial...

Published Wed, May 15 2013 8:20 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Middle East, Israel/Palestine, Borders

Hot dog watch: 8 days and counting

Regular readers of Passport know that we are avid followers of the world of competitive eating. Last year, we posted a Seven Questions with George Shea , the head of the International Federation of Competitive Eating. And just a few weeks ago, we blogged...

Published Tue, Jun 26 2007 6:46 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Fun Stuff, globalization

The frightening food discoveries you may have missed while focusing on horse meat

Think horse meat in your lasagna is unappealing? Try some water buffalo sausage. Horse meat is what's making headlines at the moment, thanks to widespread discoveries of the unusual product lurking in so-called beef across Europe. But the past few...

Published Wed, Feb 27 2013 8:23 AM by FP Passport

A 28-year U.S.-New Zealand nuclear feud rears its ugly head

Next month, "22 nations, six submarines, more than 200 aircraft and 25,000 personnel" are participating in RIMPAC, the world's largest international naval exercise in Hawaii. But one country's forces have been barred from entering Pearl...

Published Thu, Jun 28 2012 11:52 AM by FP Passport