Category: International

IN-DEPTH: Trust in Tradition: Composer Says Identity Politics Not the Answer to Classical Music’s Woes

The challenges facing classical music institutions worldwide have been well-publicised. Declining audiences and tightening revenue streams are a constant in the industry—only exacerbated during the pandemic years. Many large-scale performing arts groups cannot survive purely off ticket sales and rely on government handouts, grants, and philanthropy to prop up their finances. One young composer says…


Australia Offers $50,000 Bonus To Stem Defence Personnel Turnover

Australian soldiers and staff will be offered a $50,000 (US$33,170) bonus payment as part of a wider effort to stem the ongoing loss of personnel in the country’s defence force. Attrition or the rate of personnel leaving the Australian Defence Force (ADF), hovers at around 10 percent each year, which equates to 5,000-6,000 individuals. The…


Sudan Conflict Could Prompt 800,000 People to Flee, UN Says

KHARTOUM—The United Nations warned on Monday that the conflict in Sudan could force 800,000 people to flee the country as battles between rival military factions persisted in the capital despite a supposed ceasefire. Hundreds of people have been killed and thousands wounded over 16 days of battles since disputes between the Sudanese army and the…


Russia Missile Attack on Ukraine Kills 2, Damages Homes

KYIV, Ukraine—Russia launched its second large salvo of missiles at Ukraine in recent days early Monday, damaging buildings, killing two people and wounding 40 in the eastern city of Pavlohrad but failing to hit Kyiv, officials said. Air raid sirens began blaring across the capital about 3:45 a.m., followed by explosions as Ukrainian defense systems…


Queensland Hands Over $200 Million Quarantine Camp

Australia’s Sunshine State has given away a $220 million (US$146 million) taxpayer-funded quarantine facility after it housed just 730 travellers over a 14-month period. The cost equates to around $300,000 per person. The Queensland Labor government will return control of the facility to the Wagner Corporation upon expiration of the lease, who will then run…


Blinken Fails Again to Comply With Congressional Subpoena to Produce Cable From Afghan Withdrawal

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has failed again to comply with a congressional subpoena, which required the State Department to hand over by May 1 a dissent cable from the time of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, The Epoch Times has learned. This is the second time the State Department has failed to comply…


Blinken Fails for Second Time to Comply With Congressional Subpoena to Produce Cable From Afghan Withdrawal

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has failed again to comply with a congressional subpoena, which required the State Department to hand over by May 1 a dissent cable from the time of the 2021 U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, The Epoch Times has learned. This is the second time the State Department has failed to comply…


Tensions Mount Over Russia-Patrolled Land Corridor Linking Armenia, Azerbaijan

Tensions between Baku and Yerevan have mounted in recent weeks over a Russian-patrolled land corridor linking Armenia to the next-door Nagorno-Karabakh region. Although most of Nagorno-Karabakh’s roughly 120,000 inhabitants are ethnic Armenians, the region is internationally recognized as part of Azerbaijan. Yerevan accuses Azerbaijan of blocking its only land route to the region—the so-called Lachin…


Senator Backs ‘Foreign Legion’ Concept to Bolster Flagging Aussie Military Recruitment

Australia should open up military recruitment to neighbouring Pacific Islanders, says Senator Jacqui Lambie, who says the move will help deal with ongoing recruitment problems in the defence force. “Pacific Islanders and New Zealanders … they’ve been going to and from this country for a long time,” Lambie told Sky News on May 1. “There’s…


With the Defence Review Now Done, the Real Work Must Begin

Commentary Australia faces the most dangerous and uncertain region since the Second World War. This is the stark conclusion of the Defence Strategic Review which was released on the eve of ANZAC Day. The conclusion is not new: co-author, Sir Angus Houston, 75, the former Chief of the Australian Defence Force (ADF), said previously that…