Author Archives: montecyril

On 15 August 2021, the Taliban walked into Kabul without facing any resistance, effectively taking control of Afghanistan. This transpired because of the withdrawal of US troops from the country, following the Doha agreement between the Taliban and the US in 2020, leading to the collapse of the Western-backed government. US forces left Afghanistan after almostContinue reading “Afghanistan: Taliban, one year on; no place for women “

Sometimes to wonder why there’s tribulation so much  When with goodness our conscience is always in touch  As we reckon, we do not deserve the overwhelming suffering  And worry and lament that life is not worth its offerings  Those with consummate poise have a deep lustre within  And those that ignore integrity for gain, areContinue reading “It is only a lifetime: A poem “

On the night of 15 June 2020, in freezing temperatures, Chinese troops, armed with homemade weapons, including iron rods studded with spikes and wooden clubs wrapped with barbed wire, ambushed a battalion of Indian soldiers in the high altitude Galwan valley in eastern Ladakh, India’s northern-most territory. The attack left 20 Indian soldiers dead andContinue reading “India-China relations: trade with one hand, feud with the other “

Taiwan can heave a sigh of relief. China has ended its wargames in the Taiwan Strait that many speculated were a rehearsal to an actual invasion of Taiwan. But this relief is albeit temporary, as China has sworn that it is ready to “use all necessary means to reunify” the self-governed island with the mainland. Continue reading “A war over Taiwan would be pyrrhic to either side “

Can we reckon there is hope in good  That despite the pitfalls it is understood  as we struggle with woes that we should  bravely bear the torch and resist the crude  Life is not about how much success we attain  True success is in evil spurned and done in vain  Our achievements should not beContinue reading “Patience will bring windfall: A poem”

Taiwan is under siege. Taiwan on Saturday, 6 August 2022, said it noted a number of Chinese aircraft and naval ships conducting military drills around the Taiwan Strait, and claimed it could be a possible simulated attack against the island.  Taiwan’s ministry of defence reported some of the Chinese aircraft and vessels had crossed the sensitive median lineContinue reading “China could debilitate vulnerable Taiwan with sanctions “

Seldom do we realise that there is immense joy in giving  That in such sharing we find the truest meaning of living  Those that have and selfishly only seek what they are entitled  should bear witness to the magnanimity of those who have a little  They that give, however, should not expect any returns forContinue reading “The joys of giving, and gratitude: A poem”

US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has undertaken to commit her country’s “crucial” solidarity with Taiwan, in a meeting with Taiwan’s President Tsai Ing-wen. At a press conference in Taipei on Wednesday, 3 August 2022, Pelosi raised questions about Beijing’s full-throated excoriation of the US leader’s visit to Taiwan, a self-governed democracy that autocratic China aversContinue reading “Pelosi’s visit upholds Taiwan’s independence and democracy, but puts it at risk “

China’s Ministry of Defence, on Wednesday, 20 July 2022, fulminated against the US for taking “security risks” and disrupting the stability of the Taiwan Strait when the latter plied a guided-missile destroyer through the waterway earlier last week.  Colonel Shi Yi, a spokesperson for the People’s Liberation Army Eastern Theatre Command, said, in a statement, that China hadContinue reading “China’s claims of sovereignty are a garb for illegitimate territoriality “

Have we any living evidence that God is just?  That for all our gullible ignorance, believe we must  When we are overwhelmed by misery, yet to good we allude  Do we have the right to think that justice is skewed?  Destiny is a record-keeper, and destiny is not one lifetime  May be that we areContinue reading “Justice and closure: A poem “