Southeast Asia should embrace Trump鈥檚 Asia strategy, Why Syria鈥檚 air campaign in Ghouta is serious, No military solution in Venezuela, Zuma the latest departure in Southern Africa鈥檚 leadership refresh, What 鈥楤lack Panther鈥� means to African boys
The Daily Star / Dhaka, Bangladesh
Why Southeast Asia should embrace Trump鈥檚 Asia strategy
鈥淭he 37th annual Cobra Gold military exercise among 29 nations, now under way in Thailand, reflects the United States鈥� nuanced geostrategic playbook under the Trump administration,鈥� writes Thitinan Pongsudhirak. 鈥淚t was thought in many quarters that the administration of US President Donald Trump would take an isolationist turn and be aloof from Asian affairs, given its 鈥楢merica First鈥� mantra. But this has not been the case after its first year in office. Indeed, the Trump administration is putting America back in Asia鈥檚 power equation.... Southeast Asia, in particular, should encourage this Trump turn to Asia in favour of a more balanced neighbourhood, less dominated by and less beholden to China.... The Trump geostrategic reorientation has ironically been more assertive than [Barack] Obama鈥檚 ... 鈥榩ivot鈥� and 鈥榬ebalance鈥�.鈥�
The Independent / London
Why the ramp up in Syria鈥檚 air campaign in Ghouta is so serious
鈥淸I]n the remaining rebel strongholds elsewhere in Syria, the regime is grinding its way towards what seems an inevitable victory, at least in theory, for President [Bashar al-]Assad and his friends in Tehran and Moscow...,鈥� states an editorial. 鈥淸T]he victims are overwhelmingly civilians.... At least 50 civilians have reportedly been killed in the latest Syrian government attacks on the besieged Eastern Ghouta region....
[T]he UN say[s] the situation is spiralling out of control. One doctor there warned: 鈥榃e are standing before the massacre of the 21st century. If the massacre of the 1990s was Srebrenica, and the massacres of the 1980s were Halabja and Sabra and Shatila, then Eastern Ghouta is the massacre of this century right now.鈥� 鈥�
Al Jazeera / Doha, Qatar
A military solution to Venezuela鈥檚 crisis would be wrong and illegal
鈥淚n early February, US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson embarked on a Latin America tour aimed at promoting 鈥榙emocratic security,鈥� 鈥� writes Matias Vernengo. 鈥淏ut just before he set off on his trip, he speculated on the possibility of a military coup in Venezuela. 鈥業n the history of Venezuela and South American countries, it is often times that the military is the agent of change...,鈥� he said.... Tillerson鈥檚 comments came six months after US President Donald Trump threatened military action in Venezuela.... National sovereignty is a sacrosanct political value in Latin America.... Not only is advocating for military intervention morally reprehensible, but it is also illegal; the Charter of the United Nations prohibits the unilateral use of force that threatens the independence of any state.鈥�
The Globe and Mail / Toronto
Zuma the latest departure in Southern Africa鈥檚 leadership renewal
鈥淚t was not a good omen for Jacob Zuma when, last October, South Africa鈥檚 Supreme Court of Appeal upheld the reinstatement of corruption charges relating to no fewer than 783 payments to him...,鈥� states an editorial. 鈥淟ike him, too many African leaders have parlayed their anti-colonial bona fides into kleptocratic perches atop their liberated countries. Thankfully, southern Africa seems to be growing tired of the act. In November [Zimbabwe鈥檚] Robert Mugabe finally stepped down.... Angola underwent a similar shift in September, when the country鈥檚 ruling party replaced president Jos茅 Eduardo dos Santos.... Real democratic renewal will only come when power ... is shared by more than one party. But in the meantime, it鈥檚 worth celebrating the peaceful departure of another discredited leader.鈥�
The New Times / Kigali, Rwanda
What 鈥楤lack Panther鈥� means to African boys
鈥淢y friend who鈥檇 bought a ticket to go see Black Panther was told by her sneaky 12 year old that the film was about a comic superhero,鈥� writes Gatete Nyiringabo Ruhumuliza. 鈥淪he gave him the ticket instead. She should have gone to see the film with her son, I said to her, just to see the look in the eyes of a 12 year old black, African boy, all mesmerised by a mighty king, an elegant prince, a superhero with superpowers who looks like him, lives in a place that looks like his home and has a brilliant, talkative sister, just like his... That look, kids of my generation never wore it.鈥�
