Week That Was: Global News in Review

Foreign Policy Brief #172 | By: Ibrahim Castro

Photo by visuals on Unsplash

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Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau holds a press conference outside Rideau Cottage in Ottawa, Canada, on January 6

Justin Trudeau resigns as Canadian Prime Minister

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced that he’ll step down as head of the country’s governing Liberal Party, after weeks of speculation that his time in leadership was coming to an end. Trudeau has led the Liberal Party since 2013 and been prime minister since 2015. He and his party were initially popular with a 65% approval rating shortly after taking office nearly a decade ago. But as Canada  suffered  a cost-of-living crisis in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as criticism of immigration and environmental policies, Trudeau’s popularity has decreased steadily and is now at only a 22% approval rating. As other voters in Western countries have indicated, Canadians too are disillusioned with establishment and incumbent governments. In recent months, polls have indicated that Canadian voters are also ready for a new governing party with many predicting a rightward shift in the country’s politics.

Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye speaks during a press at the Palais de la Republique in Dakar after their meeting, on 22 April 2024 [SEYLLOU/AFP via Getty Images]

Senegal kicks out the French 

Senegal’s prime minister last week announced that the government is closing “all foreign military bases,” a move primarily aimed at France as no other foreign forces have military bases in Senegal. France is the West African nation’s former colonial ruler who still operates within the country. France has faced opposition from African leaders over what they describe as a demeaning and heavy-handed approach to the continent. The move follows a string of ousting for the French in West Africa over the past few years, as several countries including Chad, Niger and Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast and now Senegal have kicked French troops off of their soil. French President Emmanuel Macron stirred up further controversy with France’s remaining allies in West Africa and faced accusations of showing a neo-colonialist attitude after stating that African countries “forgot to say thank you” for France’s military involvement in the Sahel.

Rescue workers search for survivors in the aftermath of an earthquake in Changsuo Township of Dingri in Xigaze, southwestern China’s Tibet Autonomous Region on January 7, 2025.

Earthquake in Tibet

A 7.1 magnitude earthquake shook a high-altitude region of Tibet, damaging hundreds of houses and killing at least 126 people. Nepal is reported to have experienced the earthquake, but there are no initial reports of injuries or damage, according to the country’s National Emergency Operation Center. The quake’s epicenter was in Tibet’s Tingri county, an area where the India and Eurasia tectonic plates grind against each other and can cause earthquakes strong enough to change the heights of some of the world’s tallest peaks in the Himalayan mountains. Nearly 150 aftershocks were recorded in a few hours after the earthquake. Chinese leader Xi Jinping called for all-out efforts to rescue people, minimize casualties and resettle those whose homes were damaged.

Herbert Kickl, the leader of the far-right Freedom Party, after speaking with reporters on Tuesday in Vienna. Credit… Lisa Leutner/Reuters

Austria’s new Far-Right government

The leader of Austria’s Far-Right Freedom Party received a mandate to form a government last week when Austrian President, Alexander Van der Bellen, asked the party to form a new ruling coalition in what would yield the first far-right-led government in Austria since World War II. The Freedom Party was founded by former members of the SS, the Nazi paramilitary force, in the 1950s. It was largely shunned in its early years, but then slowly became part of the mainstream political establishment. Following the President’s announcement hundreds of protesters, including Jewish and left-wing activists, gathered outside the presidential office in Vienna holding banners to boo and whistle, shouting “Nazis out”.  The Austrian Freedom Party is part of a right-wing populist alliance in the European Parliament, Patriots for Europe, which also includes the parties of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and of the Netherlands’ Far-Right Geert Wilders, whose party dominates the Netherlands’ government. 

Venezuelan opposition leader seeks support to challenge Maduro

The presidential candidate for Venezuela’s opposition, Edmundo González (left), was at the White House meeting US President Joe Biden on Monday January 6, 2025 BBC NEWS

Venezuelan opposition leader Edmundo González is touring Latin America and the US, meeting leaders in an effort to build his credibility internationally and pressure President Nicolás Maduro as his inauguration nears. González, who left Venezuela for Spain after the presidential elections last year, has claimed he will return to Venezuela to assume the presidency on January 10. The opposition has also called for a massive mobilization on January 10 in an effort to challenge Maduro. Gonzalez has also urged the Venezuelan military to recognize him as their commander-in-chief and “put an end to the leadership” of President Nicolás Maduro. However despite Gonzalez’s efforts, Maduro organized an inauguration ceremony and swore himself into office on January 9.

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