COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Perhaps Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu sincerely believed that Israeli bombs would prompt the Iranians to topple their theocratic dictatorship and establish a democratic state. It seemed for a moment that US President Donald Trump did, too. But given Trump’s capriciousness about most things, including …
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COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Last November, US President Donald Trump’s administration declared in its National Security Strategy that Europe stands on the brink of “civilizational erasure.” It was an odd claim to make in an official strategy document. Even stranger was the overarching argument that Europe, not China or Russia, is …
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ANALYSIS | IAN BURUMA | We still do not know how much damage last month’s US air strikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities caused. “I believe it was total obliteration,” US President Donald Trump bragged at the NATO summit in June. But an early US intelligence report suggests that Iran could begin enriching uranium again …
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The surprising election of Pope Leo XIV, the first American pontiff, is probably a sign that his predecessor’s spirit will prevail ANALYSIS | IAN BURUMA | Some popes fit their times to perfection. Pope John XXIII was a progressive pope whose Vatican II reforms occurred just as The Beatles were …
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In 2020, Trump – who is far from a devout Christian – claimed that Biden was “against God” and “against guns.” To an ultra-conservative culture warrior, the connection is clear: we love guns, so God must, too. COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Some popes fit their times to perfection. Pope …
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COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Compared to other Western democracies, the United States is still a profoundly religious country. Around 24% of Americans identify as evangelical Christians. Five US Supreme Court justices are conservative Catholics (the only other conservative on the bench, Neil Gorsuch, was raised and educated as a Catholic but is …
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COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | In 2022, Lithuania’s then-Minister of Culture Simonas Kairys decided that performing Russian composer Tchaikovsky’s classic ballet The Nutcracker was no longer an appropriate way to celebrate the Christmas season. Lithuania is a staunch supporter of Ukraine, and Kairys, believing that Russian culture could not be separated from Russian …
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COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | On January 17, 2021, when Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny boarded a plane to Moscow from Berlin, where he had been treated after being poisoned in Russia with the nerve agent Novichok, he said he was pleased to be going home. But he knew the risks …
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COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | Claudine Gay, Harvard University’s first Black female president, was forced to resign after weeks of pressure to step down. But everyone involved in the controversy that pushed her out looks bad. The ostensible reason for her ouster was sloppy academic writing – mostly the …
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Why candidates who have previously been indicted or jailed secure government positions in democratic countries COMMENT | IAN BURUMA | While Donald Trump holds the dubious distinction of being the first former U.S. president to run for office while facing criminal charges, he is not the first political candidate in American …
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The Independent Uganda: You get the Truth we Pay the Price
