Explainer
List of Explainer articles
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U.S. President Donald Trump addresses a joint session of Congress at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on Feb. 28, 2017. Now the Public Gets to Decide on Impeachment
Key witnesses will begin testifying before Congress in public for the first time this week. And for both sides, credibility is on the line.
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Police fire tear gas to disperse protesters in Hong Kong Hong Kong’s Violence Will Get Worse
Police brutality has pushed protesters to extremes.
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Then-Bolivian President Evo Morales speaks at a press conference in La Paz, Bolivia, on Oct. 24. Why Is Evo Morales Suddenly No Longer President of Bolivia?
The ousted leader is calling it a “coup,” but he entered dangerous legal territory in pushing for an unprecedented fourth term.
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Shipping containers at the Port of Los Angeles, one of the main gateways for trade with Asia and which is suffering lower cargo volumes due to the trade war, on Nov. 7. Does Trump Have a China Trade Deal Yet or What?
Sort of. If you can call it that. Pity about all the lost billions of dollars.
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Activists march through Los Angeles during a climate change rally on Nov. 1. Is the United States Really Leaving the Paris Climate Agreement?
Yes, but the process takes a long time. Final withdrawal will occur one day after the 2020 election—but Washington may still be able to get back in.
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A Lebanese protester chants slogans during ongoing anti-government demonstrations in Lebanon's capital Beirut on Oct. 31. Why Protesters in Lebanon Are Taking to the Streets
The protests combine political and economic grievances and could bring down the country’s sect-based political order.
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Indian farmers burn an effigy of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, protesting plans to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership trade pact, on Sept. 15. While Trump Builds Tariff Walls, Asia Bets on Free Trade
It’s crunch time for the biggest trade deal you’ve never heard of.
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Ilham Tohti lectures in a classroom in Beijing on June 12, 2010. Ilham Tohti’s Sakharov Prize Will Drive Beijing Crazy
The imprisoned Uighur economist represents an entire people under attack by China.
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U.S. President Donald Trump speaks about the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement at an aerospace plant in Milwaukee on July 12. Why Trump Still Can’t Get USMCA Through Congress
Ironically, the fight over impeachment could finally ease the way for NAFTA’s successor. But time is running out.
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Demonstrators march in Santiago, Chile, on Oct. 23. Why Chileans Are Still Protesting Despite Reform Promises
In Santiago, demonstrations over economic inequality are expected to continue after President Sebastián Piñera promised reforms.
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Presidents Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan shake hands. How Turkey and Russia Carved Up Northern Syria
The pact cements Ankara’s annexation of a significant chunk of formerly Kurdish-held land.
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U.S. President Donald Trump shakes hands with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban during a meeting in the White House Oval Office in Washington on May 13. Did Hungary’s Viktor Orban Turn Trump Against Ukraine?
Why Hungary and Russia might have wanted to shape the U.S. president’s views on Ukraine.
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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker Here’s What Boris Johnson’s New Brexit Deal Would Mean for Britain and Ireland
Could Northern Ireland leave the U.K. altogether?
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Kurdish female troops from the Syrian Democratic Forces overlook the front line. Why Is Turkey Fighting Syria’s Kurds?
Turkey’s president says Syrian Kurdish fighters are terrorists—but he’s a very unreliable narrator.
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Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan Halkbank Indictment Turbocharges U.S.-Turkey Tensions
After a long, mysterious delay, the Trump administration finally targets the Turkish bank for helping Iran to evade U.S. sanctions. Don’t expect Ankara to cooperate.
