Two of the renowned artifacts were given back to Nigeria on Friday, and Germany intends to give the African country ownership of some 1,100 more. Germany returned two of the priceless artifacts known as the Benin Bronzes to Nigeria on Friday, after reaching a political agreement that could soon see hundreds more return to the country…
https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/BEZOS-UKRAINE-BILLIONAIRES-GettyImages-1341554748.png Dear Jeff Bezos, I know these are troubling times for you and the 2,667 other members of the world’s billionaire club. According to Forbes, there used to be 2,755 of you, but the world’s current turbulence has relegated 87 of you to the mere ranks of multimillionaires and shaved your collective worth by $400 billion,…
https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/1‑COVID-britain-book-review-preventable-GettyImages-1209024037.jpg A pedestrian passes artwork by the artist known as the Rebel Bear on a wall on Bath Street in Glasgow, England, in April 2020. Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty Images During a recent trip to London, I saw almost no one wearing a mask—except for American tourists, who were easily identifiable because they wore…
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2022/06/25/world/25commonwealth-01/25commonwealth-01-moth.jpg This year’s summit for the group of nations came as they grappled with the place of the monarchy, and as many were forging connections with powers like China and Russia. KIGALI, Rwanda — As the leaders of the Commonwealth wrapped up a week of closed-door meetings, panel discussions and formal dinners on Saturday in…
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2022/06/24/world/24Rwanda-Commonwealth3/24Rwanda-Commonwealth3-moth.jpg A summit of the organization that was born out of the embers of the British Empire is being held for the first time in the African country, but discussion of the host’s alleged abuses is conspicuously missing. KIGALI, Rwanda — Presidents, princes and prime ministers from across the world gathered on Friday in Kigali,…
It was a festive Sunday in Philadelphia, as folks celebrated Juneteenth in several parts of the city. In Center City, the African American Museum in Philadelphia, or AAMP, hosted a Juneteenth block party where hundreds of people jammed to hip hop and dance classics like “The Wobble” and Jay‑Z’s “I Just Wanna Love You.” The block party…
https://foreignpolicy.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/06/Lloyd-Austin-GettyImages-1241337940.jpgWelcome back to Foreign Policy’s SitRep! Jack and Robbie here, chuckling at Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenksy’s visible discomfort with French President Emmanuel Macron’s PDA during his visit to Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, today. Alright, back to work. Here’s what’s on tap for the day: U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin tries to walk and chew gum between deterring…
Barbara Moens is a trade reporter at POLITICO Europe. KINSHASA — The Belgian royals’ visit to Congo, which ended earlier this week, was an attempt to grapple with Belgium’s grisly colonial past. But as a consequence, Brussels also ended up embracing — and aiding — Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi, who came to power in an election…
https://gdb.voanews.com/096e0000-0a00-0242–5b17-08da49a5c77e_w800_h450.jpgKinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo — King Philippe of Belgium, in a historic visit to Congo, said on Wednesday that his country’s rule over the vast central African country had inflicted pain and humiliation through a mixture of “paternalism, discrimination and racism.” In a speech outside Congo’s parliament, Philippe amplified remorse he first voiced two years…
https://static01.nyt.com/images/2022/06/08/world/08congo-belgium‑1/08congo-belgium-1-moth.jpg But so far, the monarch has not apologized for decades of brutal Belgian rule during which up to 10 million Congolese people died. DAKAR, Senegal — The king of Belgium on Wednesday handed over a large wooden mask to the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo, one of thousands of objects taken long ago…