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"Haiti's spiral toward collapse and the battle over digital payments."

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View this email in your browser. May 3, 2025 Hi, everybody. I’m Judah Grunstein, WPR’s editor-in-chief, and this is a free preview of our Weekly Review newsletter, which recaps the highlights from our coverage this week and previews what we have planned for next week. To get the full version of Weekly Review, along with access to all of our coverage, subscribe to WPR. WPR Weekly Quiz The latest installment of the WPR weekly quiz is out now. Test your knowledge for a chance to get a free month of full access to WPR. Click here to take the quiz. Top Stories This week, in our Daily Review newsletter, we took a look at the week’s major developments: Canada: The Liberal Party won Monday’s general elections, securing a full term for PM Mark Carney. (Subscribe to WPR to read our analysis.) War in Ukraine: The U.S. and Ukraine signed an agreement Thursday to establish a joint investment fund in Ukraine’s natural resource wealth, including from minerals, oil and gas. (Subscribe to WPR to read our analysis.) Germany: The far-right party Alternative for Germany, or AfD, has been classified as a “proven right-wing extremist organization” by the country’s domestic intelligence service. (Subscribe to WPR to read our analysis.) This Week’s Highlights International Neglect Has Left Haiti Spiraling Toward Total Collapse. On Monday, James Bosworth looked at the very dire prospects for Haiti as its security situation spirals out of control. Maria Isabel Salvador, the United Nations special representative to Haiti, recently said the country could “face total collapse” and is nearing the “point of no return.” Reports signal that the country is experiencing a new level of conflict in which the degree of state failure and gang control could be far worse than seen previously. Violent gangs control about 85 percent of the capital, Port-au-Prince, and are engaged in an offensive to take over the remaining areas. The transitional government is already shutting down operations in the capital and will likely be forced to flee the city. Upgrade to a paid subscription to get the full bulleted breakdown of this article or listen to it in audio form. Digital Payment Systems Are the Latest Geopolitical Battlefield. And on Tuesday, Jeremy McKey and Jordan Sandman examined the importance of digital payment systems in international politics and Europe’s new push to develop their own such system as a key pillar of their economic sovereignty. European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde recently told an interviewer that Europe’s “march toward independence” must involve bringing “digital payments under [its] control.” Europe isn’t alone. Several countries and regions are attempting to wrestle back local control over digital payments. Beneath the basic function of transferring money digitally lies a dense, largely invisible architecture of clearinghouses, settlement mechanisms and messaging platforms, as well as a web of banks and other financial intermediaries. Much of that system is controlled, directly or indirectly, by the United States. Upgrade to a paid subscription to get the full bulleted breakdown of this article or listen to it in audio form. This Week’s Most-Read Story The U.N. Is Set to Get Smaller, Glummer and Probably Worse. And in this week’s top story by pageviews, Richard Gowan explained why U.N. staffers are bracing for a difficult summer: As U.N. cuts and cost-saving measures kick in, the international civil service will not implode completely. But the process of reductions and layoffs is likely to leave those U.N. staff who remain at the organization demoralized and with their prestige dented. That will only add insult to injury, because even before the scale of U.S. cuts became clear, many international officials were already feeling undervalued, for at least three reasons. What’s On Tap And coming up next week, we’ve got: A briefing by Jonathan Fenton-Harvey on what’s driving Kuwait’s shift toward authoritarianism. A briefing by Michael Hart on how Myanmar’s regional neighbors have used the recent earthquake to re-engage with the country’s military junta. And a briefing by Andrew MacDowall on the implications of Bosnia’s growing political crisis. That’s it for this week. And if you have any comments or feedback, just hit reply to send them along, or contact me on BlueSky at @judah-grunstein.bksy.social. —Judah Grunstein This Week On WPR: Africa In ‘Resetting’ Ghana, Mahama Has to Balance Speed with Patience By Chris Olaoluwa Ògúnmọ́dẹdé Four months after returning to the presidency, Ghana’s Mahama is caught between the pursuit of quick change and the prudence needed to deliver it. Drones Are Transforming Conflicts Across Africa By Zikora Ibeh More groups are gaining access to cheap but combat-efficient drones across Africa. The result marks an entirely new era in conflict on the continent. The Americas International Neglect Has Left Haiti Spiraling Toward Total Collapse By James Bosworth Years of warnings to the international community about the chaos in Haiti went unheeded. Now, the country is nearing a point of no return. Brazil and Lula Must Back Up Multilateral Ambition With Action By Natalie Samarasinghe and Giovanna Kuele Lula has returned Brazil to the global stage. Now, with the right strategy and resources, it has the chance to play a transformative global role. Asia-Pacific Thailand’s Arrest of Paul Chambers Won’t Stop the Push for Reform By Joshua Kurlantzick The arrest of a U.S. academic in Thailand for insulting the monarchy won’t deter progressive forces seeking to reform the country’s lèse majesté laws. Europe Pope Francis Showed That Moral Authority Still Matters in World Politics By Paul Poast Pope Francis wasn’t afraid to wield the Catholic Church’s moral authority, which remains a potent force in world politics. United States Trump Is Not the Peacemaker He Portrays Himself to Be By Judah Grunstein Trump’s seemingly contradictory approach to war and the use of U.S. military force makes sense—if you know where to look. Trump’s Trade War Is Pitting His Administration Against Itself By Mary Gallagher The stakes in the U.S.-China trade war couldn’t be higher. And yet, there is little sense of consensus within Trump’s own party on the best path forward. Global The U.N. Is Set to Get Smaller, Glummer and Probably Worse By Richard Gowan Due to U.S. funding cuts, the U.N. will hemorrhage staff in the coming months. That could do lasting damage to the organization—but it doesn’t have to. Digital Payment Systems Are the Latest Geopolitical Battlefield By Jeremy McKey and Jordan Sandman Countries across the Global South are building public digital payment infrastructure. They could pose a challenge to the U.S.-dominated system. Copyright © 2025 World Politics Review LLC, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up to receive the free version of the Weekly Review. Our mailing address is: World Politics Review 401 E. 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