Andrew Hammond

THE breakthrough ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, which began to be implemented on Sunday (Jan 19), is first and foremost a humanitarian success after tens of thousands of innocent people have been killed or injured in the war. However, if the deal holds, it also has the potential to boost the regional and global economy at a time of wider geopolitical angst.

THURSDAY (Jan 23) marks the fifth anniversary of Wuhan, China, entering lockdown in 2020, amid what would become the Covid-19 outbreak. Yet, a half decade later, the world is still under-prepared for a future pandemic, with growing concerns about a range of diseases, including bird flu.

EUROPE has been bracing for the worst from US President Donald Trump in the first few days of his new administration. However, the region may now have an unexpected political “window of opportunity” to influence the new administration's economic policy as it seeks to strike a potential grand bargain to ward off trade tariffs and wider measures in 2025.

| The NCAA tournament selection committee has a problem on their hands. An SEC-sized problem looming in about a month and a half.

WITH economic growth proving so elusive in Germany, the final month of the Feb 23, 2025, election campaign had previously been expected to centre around how best to rejuvenate the business landscape. However, recent murderous attacks mean there is now not one but two cross-cutting political meta-narratives in play which could have a significant bearing on the final outcome.

Since the start of the Ukraine war, the EU has sharply increased its focus on energy security, reaching many new gas deals, particularly with the US and Middle Eastern countries. However, as EU leaders prepare for any potential deal between Moscow and Kyiv, whether that comes in 2025 or beyond, the thorny question of the future role of cheaper Russian gas in the European energy mix is arising once again. New EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen has pledged to end the bloc’s energy ties with Russia by 2027.

https://arab.news/pcc3n Since the start of the Ukraine war, the EU has sharply increased its focus on energy security, reaching many new

UK PRIME Minister Keir Starmer has been boosted by US President Donald Trump's assertion that London may be spared US trade tariffs, unlike the European Union. However, the UK's grand strategy may still be facing, in 2025, its toughest test of the post-Brexit period.