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By Paul Whiteley, Professor, Department of Government, University of Essex Political scientists first identified a phenomenon known as the “rally round the flag” effect in the 1970s . This refers to the tendency for the US public to increase their support for a president when the county becomes involved in conflicts abroad. After the massive … Continue reading “Do the US public support Trump bombing Iran? Here’s what the data shows”
By Julie M. Norman, Senior Associate Fellow on the Middle East at RUSI; Associate Professor in Politics & International Relations, UCL The US president, Donald Trump, says that Israel has agreed to terms for a 60-day ceasefire in Gaza. If that sounds familiar, it is. The idea of a two-month truce has been discussed since … Continue reading “A new Gaza ceasefire deal is on the table – will this time be different?”
By Garritt C. Van Dyk, Senior Lecturer in History, University of Waikato While he likes to provoke opponents with the possibility of serving a third term, Donald Trump faces a more immediate historical burden that has plagued so many presidents: the “second term curse”. Twenty-one US presidents have served second terms, but none has reached … Continue reading “Trump is not like other presidents – but can he beat the ‘second term curse’ that haunts the White House?”
By Michael R. Griffiths, Senior Lecturer in English Literatures, University of Wollongong Our cultural touchstones series examines works that have had a lasting influence In 1967, French literary and cultural critic Roland Barthes published a short essay that would have far-reaching influence. Titled The Death of the Author, the essay argued that, for the purposes … Continue reading “Roland Barthes declared the ‘death of the author’, but postcolonial critics have begged to differ”
By Laurent Borzillo, Chercheur invité au CCEAE de l’Université de Montréal et chercheur associé au CESICE de l’Université de Grenoble, École nationale d’administration publique (ENAP) Just six months after Donald Trump’s return to the presidency in the United States, it feels like there has been a sharp break with America’s post-war diplomatic legacy. The Trump … Continue reading “American dominance is not dead, but it is changing — and not for the better”
By Sara Polak, University Lecturer in American Studies, Leiden University There is a strange and worrying parallel between the breakneck speed at which Donald Trump has operated in the first few months of his presidency and the ever-accelerating pace at which information moves on social media platforms. Where in his first term he used Twitter, … Continue reading “How Trump plays with new media says a lot about him – as it did with FDR, Kennedy and Obama”
By Anna Erickson, Professor of Nuclear and Radiological Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology When U.S. forces attacked Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 21, 2025, the main target was metal tubes in laboratories deep underground. The tubes are centrifuges that produce highly enriched uranium needed to build nuclear weapons. Inside of a centrifuge, a rotor spins … Continue reading “Why the US bombed a bunch of metal tubes − a nuclear engineer explains the importance of centrifuges to Iranian efforts to build nuclear weapons”
By Marika Sosnowski, Postdoctoral research fellow, The University of Melbourne Hopes are rising that Israel and Hamas could be inching closer to a ceasefire in the 20-month war in Gaza. US President Donald Trump is urging progress, taking to social media to demand: MAKE THE DEAL IN GAZA. GET THE HOSTAGES BACK!!! Trump further raised … Continue reading “Trump demands an end to the war in Gaza – could a ceasefire be close?”
By Dilnoza Ubaydullaeva, Lecturer in Government – National Security College, Australian National University Since US President Donald Trump took office this year, one theme has come up time and again: his rule is a threat to the US-led international order. As the US political scientist John Mearsheimer famously argued, the liberal international order was destined … Continue reading “Trump’s worldview is causing a global shift of alliances – what does this mean for nations in the middle?”
By Andrew Forde, Assistant Professor – European Human Rights Law, Dublin City University A special tribunal has been established by the international human rights organisation the Council of Europe (CoE) and the Ukrainian government to try crimes of aggression against Ukraine which could be used to hold Vladimir Putin and others to account for the … Continue reading “New special tribunal for Ukraine will pave the way for holding Russian leaders to account for the invasion”