New estimates show that just eight men own the same wealth as the poorest half of the world. As growth benefits the richest, the rest of society suffers. The very design of our economies and the principles of our economics have taken us to this extreme, unsustainable and unjust point. Our economy must stop excessively rewarding those at the top …

In the history of the Middle East, the year 2017 is going to be a big year for anniversaries as it marks the 100th anniversary of 1917 and the 50th anniversary of 1967 — the two most consequential years of the past century. Curiously, and perhaps instructively, certain threads of time run through both years, tying them together with one …

On Jan 24, Pakistan successfully conducted first flight test of surface-to-surface missile named “Ababeel”. Salient Features Ababeel has a maximum range of 2,200 kilometres. It is capable of delivering multiple warheads using Multiple Independent Re-entry Vehicle (MIRV) technology—a first for Pakistan’s arsenal—which means it can carry multiple nuclear bombs instead of just one. It has the capability to engage multiple …

As President Barack Obama’s two terms in the White House have come to an end and Donald J. Trump has entered the Oval Office as the 45th President of the United States of America, it’s time to write the first draft of history about Obama’s time in the White House and the legacy he leaves behind. In 2009, Obama entered …

Sakib Sherani INSTITUTIONS intersect our daily lives in myriad but mostly unnoticed or unseen ways. Ensuring public safety is one such domain. Among many different ways, public safety can be in the form of ensuring buildings that we live and work in are built to certain minimum standards, or that road traffic follows laid-down guidelines, or the food that we …

By Aijaz Zaka Syed No one expected Donald Trump to be all sweetness and light once he won the White House. But who turns his first press conference into a circus and slanging match with the media and virtually everyone else in the room? The man really nurses a grudge. It was probably the shallowest speech ever delivered by an …

By Jehangir Khattak As Donald Trump takes oath as the 45th President of the US, history seems to be going full circle in one part of the world. The enemies of yesteryear are cosying up to one another and allies of yesterday are embracing estrangement, if not outright hostility over Afghanistan. The display of shifting sands was witnessed in Moscow …

Through a state of emergency decree issued Jan. 10, the Turkish government transferred some critical powers of the chief of the General Staff to the civilian minister of defense. Although the move passed without much debate, its importance cannot be disregarded. The powers transferred constitute the nerve endings of the military tutelage that ruled over Turkey for many years. The decree concentrates military power in …

Predicting where oil prices would go next month or next year has always been a game of hit and miss, all the more so in the past two years since the oil price crash began. Analysts forecast prices in the range US$10 to US$70 at various points in 2016, and actual prices have also had a bumpy ride, with West …

Before looking forward to 2050, we must first look back at the key economic and social developments during the past 50 years, and perhaps even further back . The rapid rise of emerging economies during the last five decades is truly astounding in the long-term historical context. Developing economies now account for over half of the global output (55%, in …