International

Going feral

Vladimir Putin’s spies are plotting global chaos

Russia is enacting a revolutionary plan of sabotage, arson and assassination

Elections everywhere

Over a billion have voted in 2024: has democracy won?

Half the world has had elections so far this year

Autocratic alliances

A new “quartet of chaos” threatens America

The rulers of China, Iran, North Korea and Russia are growing worryingly close

UNintended consequences

A UN vote on Palestine underlines America’s weakening clout

Russia and China are riding a surge of support for the Palestinians since the Gaza war started

The toil, tears and sweat of competition

Sport is getting hotter, harder and deadlier

As players vomit and boil, even John McEnroe reckons “it is not humane”

Signal boost

How encrypted messaging apps conquered the world

And why governments want to wrest back control

Too much, too little. Too late?

The poisonous global politics of water

Polarisation makes it harder to adapt to climate change

From Bangkok to Dubai

Indian tourists are conquering the world

A booming middle class, budget flights and Bollywood

Star wars: a new hope

Can Donald Trump’s Iron Dome plan keep America safe?

In a dangerous world, cutting-edge missile defence is all the rage

Tipping the balance

Why the war on childhood obesity is failing

Sugar taxes and obesity drugs will not be enough

A golden opportunity

Paris could change how cities host the Olympics for good

The games will test the success of new solutions to old bugbears

The Geneva Conventions at 75

Could America fight its enemies without breaking the law?

The speed and intensity of prospective conflicts could test the laws of war