THESTATESMAN’SYEARBOOK

2019

Editors

Frederick Martin 1864�1883Sir John Scott-Keltie 1883�1926Mortimer Epstein 1927�1946S. H. Steinberg 1946�1969John Paxton 1969�1990Brian Hunter 1990�1997Barry Turner 1997�2014

Credits

Publisher Nicholas Heath-Brown

Research Editor Allan Cohen

Editorial Assistant Eleanor Gaffney

Researchers Daniel SmithRichard GermanRobert McGowanJill FennerSara HussainAlexander StilwellJustine FoongBen EasthamThanh Tuan ChuNoah NzeribeVictoria NolteHanna SzymborskaSharita OomeerJames Wilson

Index Richard German

Typesetting MPS

email: sybcomments@palgrave.com

THESTATESMAN’SYEARBOOKTHE POLITICS, CULTURES ANDECONOMIES OF THE WORLD

2019

Macmillan Publishers Ltd.Published annually since 1864

The Statesman’s YearbookISBN 978-1-349-95320-2 ISBN 978-1-349-95321-9 (eBook)https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-95321-9

© Macmillan Publishers Ltd., part of Springer Nature 2019

The author(s) has/have asserted their right(s) to be identified as the author(s) of this work inaccordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.

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PREFACE

It was in the middle of the 19th century that the then BritishPrime Minister, Robert Peel, suggested to Alexander Macmillanthat he should publish ‘a handbook presenting in a compactshape a picture of the actual conditions, political and social, ofthe various states in the civilised world’. The first edition of TheStatesman’s Yearbook was eventually published in January 1864.Our 155th edition covers Donald Trump’s first full year in

office as president of the USA and looks at Brexit developmentsin the UK. The past year also saw the unexpected departures oflong-standing leaders Robert Mugabe from the presidency inZimbabwe and just a few months later Jacob Zuma in SouthAfrica. The entries on both countries include detailed profiles oftheir successors.We’ve added for almost every country a ranking of stability

and vulnerability to conflict or collapse taken from the FragileStates Index prepared by the Fund for Peace and Foreign

Policy magazine. Another special new feature that we’reincluding this year is a guest article by a renowned academicand Palgrave Macmillan author—Roger Kanet, professor ofpolitical science at the University of Miami. He has written asynopsis of his book ‘The Russian Challenge to the EuropeanSecurity Environment’, which was published in 2017.With more than 150 years of history, The Statesman’s

Yearbook has an illustrious past, and all our previous editionsare available as individual eBooks. They are also part ofPalgrave’s and Springer’s eBook collections. For details seehttp://www.palgrave.com/series/15683.We always welcome feedback on the book. Please email us

on sybcomments@palgrave.com

Nicholas Heath-BrownPublisher, The Statesman’s Yearbook

v

CONTENTS

TIME ZONES MAP Front EndpaperPREFACE v

THE RUSSIAN CHALLENGE TO THE EUROPEAN SECURITY ENVIRONMENT BY ROGER E. KANET xv2017 IN 1,000 WORDS xviWORLD POPULATION xviiKEY WORLD FACTS xviii

RECOMMENDED FURTHER READING xixCHRONOLOGY xx

Part I: International Organizations

PageUNITED NATIONS (UN)................................................................................... .................................................................. 3

General Assembly ................................................................................................ ................................................................ 3Security Council ................................................................................................ ................................................................... 4Economic and Social Council ................................................................................................ ........................................... 5International Court of Justice ................................................................................................ ........................................... 5Secretariat ................................................................................... ........................................................................................... 6Member States ................................................................................................ ...................................................................... 7

UNIVERSAL DECLARATION OF HUMAN RIGHTS................................................................................................ .. 8UNITED NATIONS SYSTEM ................................................................................................ ............................................ 10

Programmes and Funds ................................................................................... ................................................................ 10Research and Training Institutes.................................................................................................................................... 12Other UN Entities................................................................................................ .............................................................. 12Information ................................................................................ ......................................................................................... 13

SPECIALIZED AGENCIES OF THE UN................................................................................................ .........................13Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) ................................................................................................................. 13International Bank for Reconstruction and Development — The World Bank (IBRD) ................................... 14International Development Association (IDA)........................................................................................................... 16International Finance Corporation (IFC)..................................................................................................................... 16Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA)................................................................................... ..............16International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID) ................................................................... 16International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO)................................................................................................ ....16International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) ...................................................................................... 17International Labour Organization (ILO) .................................................................................................................... 17International Maritime Organization (IMO) .............................................................................................................. 18International Monetary Fund (IMF) ................................................................................................ ............................. 18International Telecommunication Union (ITU) ........................................................................................................ 20United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) ................................................. 21UN Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) ............................................................................................... 21Universal Postal Union (UPU)....................................................................................................................................... 22World Health Organization (WHO)................................................................................................ ............................. 22World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) ................................................................................................ ...24World Meteorological Organization (WMO) ................................................................................................ .............24World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) ................................................................................................ ...................24

OTHER ORGANS RELATED TO THE UN ................................................................................................ ...................25International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA)................................................................................................ .............25World Trade Organization (WTO) ................................................................................................ ...............................25Preparatory Commission for the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-BanTreaty Organization (CTBTO) ................................................................................................ ................................... 26

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) ........................................................................ 26UN CONVENTIONS................................................................................................ ............................................................ 26

Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities ............................................................................................. 26United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification ...........................................................................................27United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change ................................................................................. 27

EuropeEUROPEAN UNION (EU)................................................................................................ .................................................. 27EU INSTITUTIONS ................................................................................................ .............................................................. 32

European Commission ................................................................................................ ..................................................... 32Statistical Office of the European Communities (Eurostat) .....................................................................................33Council of the European Union (Council of Ministers) ...........................................................................................33

vii

European Council ................................................................................................ .............................................................. 34European Parliament ................................................................................................ ........................................................ 35Court of Justice of the European Union................................................................................ ....................................... 36European Court of Auditors................................................................................................ ............................................ 36European Central Bank .................................................................................................................................. ..................36European Systemic Risk Board ....................................................................................................................................... 36

OTHER EU STRUCTURES............................................................................................................................... ..................36European Investment Bank ............................................................................................................................................. 36European Investment Fund ............................................................................................................................................. 36European Data Protection Supervisor........................................................................................................................... 37European Ombudsman .................................................................................................................................. ..................37Advisory Bodies ................................................................................................ ................................................................. 37

MAIN EU AGENCIES........................................................................................................................................ ..................37Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators..................................................................................................... 37Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications............................................................................... 37Community Plant Variety Office ................................................................................................ ................................... 37Euratom Supply Agency................................................................................... ................................................................ 37European Agency for Safety and Health at Work ................................................................................................ ......37European Agency for the operational management of large-scale IT systemsin the area of freedom, security and justice.............................................................................................................. 37

European Asylum Support Office ................................................................................................ .................................. 37European Aviation Safety Agency................................................................................................ .................................. 37European Banking Authority .......................................................................................................................................... 38European Border and Coast Guard Agency ................................................................................................ ................38European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control ................................................................................ ..............38European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training.............................................................................. 38European Chemicals Agency................................................................................................ ........................................... 38European Defence Agency................................................................................................ ............................................... 38European Environment Agency ................................................................................................ ..................................... 38European External Action Service ................................................................................................................................. 38European Fisheries Control Agency .............................................................................................................................. 38European Food Safety Authority.................................................................................................................................... 38European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions............................................... 38European GNSS Agency................................................................................... ................................................................ 38European Institute for Gender Equality ................................................................................ ....................................... 38European Institute of Innovation and Technology ................................................................................................ ....38European Insurance and Occupational Pensions Authority .................................................................................... 38European Joint Undertaking for ITER and the Development of Fusion Energy ................................................39European Maritime Safety Agency ................................................................................................ ................................ 39European Medicines Agency................................................................................................ ........................................... 39European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction................................................................................. 39European Network and Information Security Agency ................................................................................ ..............39European Railway Agency ................................................................................................ ............................................... 39European Securities and Markets Authority................................................................................................ ................39European Training Foundation ................................................................................................ ...................................... 39European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights ..................................................................................................... 39European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Cooperation (Europol)............................................................... 39European Union Agency for Law Enforcement Training (CEPOL) ...................................................................... 39European Union Institute for Security Studies ........................................................................................................... 39European Union Intellectual Property Office ................................................................................................ ............39European Union Satellite Centre.................................................................................................................................... 39Single Resolution Board ................................................................................... ................................................................ 39The European Union’s Judicial Cooperation Unit ..................................................................................................... 40Translation Centre for Bodies of the European Union ............................................................................................. 40

COUNCIL OF EUROPE ................................................................................................ ......................................................40ORGANIZATION FOR SECURITY AND CO-OPERATION IN EUROPE (OSCE) ........................................... 41EUROPEAN BANK FOR RECONSTRUCTION AND DEVELOPMENT (EBRD) .............................................. 42EUROPEAN FREE TRADE ASSOCIATION (EFTA)................................................................................................ ...43EUROPEAN SPACE AGENCY (ESA).............................................................................................................................. 43CERN—THE EUROPEAN ORGANIZATION FOR NUCLEAR RESEARCH....................................................... 43CENTRAL EUROPEAN INITIATIVE (CEI) ................................................................................................ ..................44NORDIC COUNCIL ................................................................................................ ............................................................ 44NORDIC DEVELOPMENT FUND (NDF) ..................................................................................................................... 44NORDIC INVESTMENT BANK (NIB) ........................................................................................................................... 44COUNCIL OF THE BALTIC SEA STATES .................................................................................................................... 44EUROPEAN BROADCASTING UNION (EBU) ........................................................................................................... 45BLACK SEA ECONOMIC COOPERATION (BSEC) ................................................................................................ ...45

viii C O N T E N T S

DANUBE COMMISSION.................................................................................................................................. ..................45EUROPEAN TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION (ETUC) .....................................................................................45

Other OrganizationsALLIANCE OF SMALL ISLAND STATES (AOSIS) ..................................................................................................... 45AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL (AI) ................................................................................................ ................................ 46BANK FOR INTERNATIONAL SETTLEMENTS (BIS) ................................................................................ ..............46COMMONWEALTH................................................................................................ ............................................................ 46COMMONWEALTH OF INDEPENDENT STATES (CIS) ........................................................................................48EURASIAN ECONOMIC UNION (EEU) ................................................................................ ....................................... 48INTERNATIONAL AIR TRANSPORT ASSOCIATION (IATA) .............................................................................. 48INTERNATIONAL COMMITTEE OF THE RED CROSS (ICRC) ........................................................................... 48INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT (ICC) ................................................................................................ ............49INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR DEMOCRACY AND ELECTORAL ASSISTANCE (IDEA).................49INTERNATIONAL MOBILE SATELLITE ORGANIZATION (IMSO)................................................................... 50INTERNATIONAL OLYMPIC COMMITTEE (IOC) .................................................................................................. 50INTERNATIONAL ORGANISATION OF LA FRANCOPHONIE .......................................................................... 50INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR MIGRATION (IOM).......................................................................... 50INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATION FOR STANDARDIZATION (ISO)........................................................... 51INTERNATIONAL ROAD FEDERATION (IRF) ................................................................................................ .........51INTERNATIONAL SEABED AUTHORITY (ISA) ................................................................................................ .......51INTERNATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS SATELLITE ORGANIZATION (ITSO) ................................ 52INTERNATIONAL TRADE UNION CONFEDERATION (ITUC).......................................................................... 52INTERNATIONAL TRIBUNAL FOR THE LAW OF THE SEA (ITLOS) .............................................................. 52INTERNATIONAL UNION AGAINST CANCER (UICC) ........................................................................................53INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION (IPU).................................................................................................................... 53INTERPOL (INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL POLICE ORGANIZATION) .......................................................... 53ISLAMIC DEVELOPMENT BANK................................................................................................ ................................... 54MÉDECINS SANS FRONTIÈRES (MSF)................................................................................................ .........................54NOBEL PRIZES...................................................................................................................................................................... 54SVERIGES RIKSBANK PRIZE IN ECONOMIC SCIENCES IN MEMORY OF ALFRED NOBEL .................54NORTH ATLANTIC TREATY ORGANIZATION (NATO)...................................................................................... 55ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT (OECD) ..............................58ORGANISATION OF ISLAMIC COOPERATION (OIC)...........................................................................................59UNREPRESENTED NATIONS AND PEOPLES ORGANIZATION (UNPO)....................................................... 59WORLD COUNCIL OF CHURCHES .............................................................................................................................. 59WORLD CUSTOMS ORGANIZATION................................................................................... ....................................... 60WORLD FEDERATION OF TRADE UNIONS (WFTU)............................................................................................ 60

AfricaAFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK................................................................................................................................. 60AFRICAN EXPORT–IMPORT BANK (AFREXIMBANK) ......................................................................................... 61AFRICAN UNION (AU) ................................................................................................ ..................................................... 61BANK OF CENTRAL AFRICAN STATES (BEAC) ................................................................................................ ......61CENTRAL BANK OF WEST AFRICAN STATES (BCEAO)...................................................................................... 62COMMON MARKET FOR EASTERN AND SOUTHERN AFRICA (COMESA) ................................................62EAST AFRICAN COMMUNITY (EAC)................................................................................... ....................................... 62EAST AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (EADB) ..................................................................................................... 62ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF CENTRAL AFRICAN STATES (CEEAC).......................................................... 62ECONOMIC COMMUNITY OF WEST AFRICAN STATES (ECOWAS) ............................................................. 63INTERGOVERNMENTAL AUTHORITY ON DEVELOPMENT ............................................................................ 63LAKE CHAD BASIN COMMISSION................................................................................................ ...............................63NIGER BASIN AUTHORITY............................................................................................................................................. 63SOUTHERN AFRICAN CUSTOMS UNION (SACU) ................................................................................... ..............63SOUTHERN AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT COMMUNITY (SADC)........................................................................ 64TRIPARTITE FREE TRADE AREA (TFTA)................................................................................................ ...................64WEST AFRICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (BOAD)................................................................................................ ...64WEST AFRICAN ECONOMIC AND MONETARY UNION (UEMOA) ............................................................... 64

AmericasAGENCY FOR THE PROHIBITION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS IN LATIN

AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN (OPANAL) ..................................................................................................... 65ANDEAN COMMUNITY ................................................................................... ................................................................ 65ASSOCIATION OF CARIBBEAN STATES (ACS)........................................................................................................ 65CARIBBEAN COMMUNITY (CARICOM) .................................................................................................................... 66CARIBBEAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (CDB) .............................................................................................................. 66CENTRAL AMERICAN BANK FOR ECONOMIC INTEGRATION (CABEI) ..................................................... 66CENTRAL AMERICAN INTEGRATION SYSTEM (SICA) ....................................................................................... 67

ixC O N T E N T S

EASTERN CARIBBEAN CENTRAL BANK (ECCB)................................................................................................ ....67INTER-AMERICAN DEVELOPMENT BANK (IDB) .................................................................................................. 67LATIN AMERICAN ECONOMIC SYSTEM (SELA)................................................................................................ ....67LATIN AMERICAN INTEGRATION ASSOCIATION (ALADI/LAIA) ................................................................. 67LATIN AMERICAN RESERVE FUND ................................................................................................ ............................68ORGANISATION OF EASTERN CARIBBEAN STATES (OECS)............................................................................ 68ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES (OAS)................................................................................................ ....68PACIFIC ALLIANCE................................................................................................ ............................................................ 69SECRETARIAT FOR CENTRAL AMERICAN ECONOMIC INTEGRATION (SIECA) .................................... 69SOUTHERN COMMON MARKET (MERCOSUR) ..................................................................................................... 69UNION OF SOUTH AMERICAN NATIONS (UNASUR) ......................................................................................... 70

Asia/PacificASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK....................................................................................................................................... 70ASIAN INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT BANK (AIIB) ...................................................................................... 70ASIA-PACIFIC ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION (APEC) ...........................................................................................71ASSOCIATION OF SOUTH EAST ASIAN NATIONS (ASEAN)............................................................................. 71

ASEAN-Mekong Basin Development Co-operation (Mekong Group) ................................................................. 72COLOMBO PLAN................................................................................................ ................................................................. 72ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION ORGANIZATION (ECO)........................................................................................72PACIFIC ISLANDS FORUM (PIF) ................................................................................................ ................................... 72SECRETARIAT OF THE PACIFIC COMMUNITY (SPC) ......................................................................................... 73SHANGHAI COOPERATION ORGANISATION (SCO) ...........................................................................................73SOUTH ASIAN ASSOCIATION FOR REGIONAL CO-OPERATION (SAARC) ................................................74

Middle EastARAB FUND FOR ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT (AFESD) ....................................................... 74ARAB MONETARY FUND (AMF) ................................................................................................ .................................. 74ARAB ORGANIZATION FOR AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT (AOAD).................................................... 74GULF CO-OPERATION COUNCIL (GCC)................................................................................................ ...................75LEAGUE OF ARAB STATES............................................................................................................................ ..................75ORGANIZATION OF ARAB PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES (OAPEC) ..........................................76ORGANIZATION OF THE PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES (OPEC) ................................................76

OPEC Fund for International Development................................................................................................ ................76

Environmental OrganizationsFRIENDS OF THE EARTH INTERNATIONAL ........................................................................................................... 76GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT FACILITY (GEF)................................................................................................ ...............77GREENPEACE INTERNATIONAL................................................................................................ .................................. 77WORLD WIDE FUND FOR NATURE (WWF) ................................................................................................ ............77

TreatiesANTARCTIC TREATY ................................................................................................ ........................................................ 77NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY (NPT) ................................................................................................ 78

Leading Think TanksAFRICAN CENTRE FOR THE CONSTRUCTIVE RESOLUTION OF DISPUTES .............................................78AMERICAN ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE (FOR PUBLIC POLICY RESEARCH)...................................................78ASIAN DEVELOPMENT BANK INSTITUTE................................................................................................ ...............78ATLANTIC COUNCIL ................................................................................................ ........................................................ 78BARCELONA CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS.....................................................................................78BROOKINGS INSTITUTION ................................................................................................ ............................................ 78BRUEGEL ..................................................................................................................................... ........................................... 78CARNEGIE ENDOWMENT FOR INTERNATIONAL PEACE ................................................................................ 79CARNEGIE MIDDLE EAST CENTER................................................................................................ ............................. 79CARNEGIE MOSCOW CENTER .................................................................................................................................... 79CATO INSTITUTE ................................................................................................ ............................................................... 79CENTER FOR AMERICAN PROGRESS ................................................................................................ .........................79CENTER FOR STRATEGIC AND INTERNATIONAL STUDIES............................................................................ 79CENTRE FOR ECONOMIC POLICY RESEARCH................................................................................................ .......79CENTRE FOR EUROPEAN POLICY STUDIES................................................................................................ ............79CENTRE FOR INTERNATIONAL GOVERNANCE INNOVATION (CIGI)........................................................ 79CHATHAM HOUSE (ROYAL INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS) .................................................. 80CHINA INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES................................................................................ ..............80CHINA INSTITUTES OF CONTEMPORARY INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS ............................................... 80CHINESE ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES ................................................................................................ ............80COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS................................................................................... ....................................... 80DANISH INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL STUDIES ........................................................................................80

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EUROPEAN COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS................................................................................... ..............80FRASER INSTITUTE................................................................................................ ............................................................ 80FRENCH INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS (IFRI)........................................................................ 80FRIEDRICH EBERT FOUNDATION (FRIEDRICH-EBERT-STIFTUNG; FES) ...................................................80FUNDAÇÃO GETULIO VARGAS ................................................................................................ ................................... 81GERMAN COUNCIL ON FOREIGN RELATIONS ..................................................................................................... 81GERMAN DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (DIE)........................................................................................................... 81GERMAN INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL AND SECURITY AFFAIRS

(STIFTUNG WISSENSCHAFT UND POLITIK; SWP) ...........................................................................................81HERITAGE FOUNDATION ............................................................................................................................ ..................81HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH ................................................................................................ ............................................... 81INSTITUTE FOR DEFENCE STUDIES AND ANALYSES......................................................................................... 81INSTITUTE OF WORLD ECONOMY AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS................................................... 81INTERNATIONAL CRISIS GROUP................................................................................................................................. 81INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR STRATEGIC STUDIES (IISS)...................................................................... 81JAPAN INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS (JIIA)................................................................................... 82KIEL INSTITUTE FOR THE WORLD ECONOMY (INSTITUT FÜR

WELTWIRTSCHAFT AN DER UNIVERSITÄT KIEL; IFW) ............................................................................... 82KONRAD ADENAUER FOUNDATION (KONRAD-ADENAUER-STIFTUNG) .............................................. 82KOREA DEVELOPMENT INSTITUTE (KDI) .............................................................................................................. 82KOREA INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL ECONOMIC POLICY (KIEP)..................................................... 82NATIONAL BUREAU OF ECONOMIC RESEARCH (NBER)..................................................................................82NETHERLANDS INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS ‘CLINGENDAEL’.................................... 82PETERSON INSTITUTE FOR INTERNATIONAL ECONOMICS........................................................................... 82RAND CORPORATION................................................................................................ ......................................................82ROYAL UNITED SERVICES INSTITUTE................................................................................................ ......................82STOCKHOLM INTERNATIONAL PEACE RESEARCH INSTITUTE (SIPRI)..................................................... 83TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL................................................................................................ ............................83URBAN INSTITUTE ................................................................................................ ............................................................ 83WOODROW WILSON INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR SCHOLARS............................................................... 83

Part II: Countries of the World A�Z

AFGHANISTAN ...................................................... 87ALBANIA .................................................................. 93ALGERIA ................................................................... 98ANDORRA.............................................................. 104ANGOLA ................................................................. 107ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA..............................112ARGENTINA..........................................................115ARMENIA ............................................................... 122AUSTRALIA ........................................................... 126

TerritoriesAustralian Capital Territory ............................139Northern Territory ............................................141StatesNew South Wales...............................................143Queensland..........................................................146South Australia ................................................... 148Tasmania .............................................................150Victoria................................................................. 152Western Australia ..............................................155Australian External TerritoriesAshmore and Cartier Islands ..........................158Australian Antarctic Territory ........................158Christmas Island ................................................ 158Cocos (Keeling) Islands ....................................158Coral Sea Islands................................................ 158Heard and McDonald Islands.........................158Norfolk Island..................................................... 158

AUSTRIA................................................................. 160AZERBAIJAN ......................................................... 168

Artsakh................................................................. 173Nakhichevan .......................................................173

THE BAHAMAS .................................................... 174BAHRAIN................................................................178BANGLADESH ...................................................... 183

BARBADOS............................................................. 188BELARUS................................................................. 192BELGIUM................................................................ 197BELIZE .....................................................................206BENIN ...................................................................... 210BHUTAN................................................................. 214BOLIVIA ..................................................................218BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA .......................224BOTSWANA........................................................... 228BRAZIL.....................................................................232BRUNEI.................................................................... 242BULGARIA.............................................................. 246BURKINA FASO.................................................... 252BURUNDI................................................................ 256CABO VERDE........................................................ 260CAMBODIA............................................................264CAMEROON .......................................................... 269CANADA................................................................. 274Provinces .............................................................. 285Alberta..................................................................286British Columbia................................................ 288Manitoba.............................................................. 290New Brunswick .................................................. 291Newfoundland and Labrador ..........................293Nova Scotia ......................................................... 294Ontario ................................................................. 296Prince Edward Island........................................298Quebec..................................................................299Saskatchewan ...................................................... 301TerritoriesNorthwest Territories........................................302Nunavut ...............................................................304Yukon ................................................................... 305

CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC .....................308

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CHAD....................................................................... 312CHILE....................................................................... 316CHINA, PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF...................323

Hong Kong..........................................................336Macao ...................................................................341Taiwan.................................................................. 343

COLOMBIA ............................................................ 347COMOROS.............................................................. 353CONGO, DEMOCRATIC

REPUBLIC OF THE .........................................357CONGO, REPUBLIC OF THE ...........................362COSTA RICA..........................................................366CÔTE D’IVOIRE.................................................... 370CROATIA ................................................................375CUBA........................................................................ 380CYPRUS ...................................................................385

‘Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus’ ........390CZECH REPUBLIC ...............................................391DENMARK.............................................................. 400

Faroe Islands .......................................................408Greenland ............................................................ 408

DJIBOUTI................................................................409DOMINICA.............................................................412DOMINICAN REPUBLIC ...................................416ECUADOR .............................................................. 420EGYPT......................................................................425EL SALVADOR ...................................................... 431EQUATORIAL GUINEA.....................................435ERITREA.................................................................. 439ESTONIA................................................................. 443ETHIOPIA............................................................... 449FIJI ............................................................................. 454FINLAND ................................................................459FRANCE...................................................................468

Departments and Collectivities Overseas .......482Overseas Departments and RegionsFrench Guiana .................................................... 482Guadeloupe ......................................................... 483Martinique........................................................... 483Mayotte ................................................................483Réunion................................................................484Overseas CollectivitiesFrench Polynesia ................................................ 484St Barthélemy...................................................... 484St Martin.............................................................. 485St Pierre and Miquelon.....................................485Wallis and Futuna ............................................. 485Sui Generis CollectivitiesNew Caledonia ................................................... 485Southern and Antarctic Territories................486Minor TerritoriesClipperton Island ...............................................487

GABON .................................................................... 488THE GAMBIA ........................................................ 493GEORGIA................................................................496

Abkhazia .............................................................. 501Adjara ...................................................................501South Ossetia-Alania.........................................501

GERMANY.............................................................. 502BundesländerBaden-Württemberg .........................................519Bavaria.................................................................. 520Berlin .................................................................... 521Brandenburg .......................................................522Bremen ................................................................. 523Hamburg.............................................................. 524Hessen .................................................................. 526Lower Saxony...................................................... 527

Mecklenburg-West Pomerania .......................528North Rhine-Westphalia ..................................529Rhineland-Palatinate.........................................531Saarland................................................................ 532Saxony ..................................................................533Saxony-Anhalt .................................................... 534Schleswig-Holstein............................................. 535Thuringia ............................................................. 536

GHANA.................................................................... 537GREECE ................................................................... 542GRENADA .............................................................. 550GUATEMALA........................................................ 553GUINEA................................................................... 557GUINEA-BISSAU .................................................. 561GUYANA................................................................. 565HAITI ....................................................................... 569HONDURAS........................................................... 573HUNGARY.............................................................. 577ICELAND................................................................. 586INDIA....................................................................... 593States and TerritoriesAndhra Pradesh ................................................. 608Arunachal Pradesh ............................................608Assam ................................................................... 608Bihar .....................................................................609Chhattisgarh........................................................ 609Goa........................................................................609Gujarat.................................................................. 609Haryana................................................................ 610Himachal Pradesh.............................................. 610Jammu and Kashmir .........................................610Jharkhand ............................................................611Karnataka............................................................. 611Kerala.................................................................... 611Madhya Pradesh................................................. 612Maharashtra ........................................................ 612Manipur ...............................................................612Meghalaya............................................................612Mizoram............................................................... 613Nagaland.............................................................. 613Odisha ..................................................................613Punjab ..................................................................613Rajasthan ............................................................. 614Sikkim................................................................... 614Tamil Nadu ......................................................... 614Telangana ............................................................615Tripura ................................................................. 615Uttar Pradesh...................................................... 615Uttarakhand ........................................................ 616West Bengal ........................................................ 616Union TerritoriesAndaman and Nicobar Islands .......................616Chandigarh.......................................................... 617Dadra and Nagar Haveli ..................................617Daman and Diu.................................................. 617Delhi .....................................................................617Lakshadweep....................................................... 617Puducherry .......................................................... 618

INDONESIA............................................................ 619IRAN......................................................................... 626IRAQ......................................................................... 634Kurdistan ............................................................. 641

IRELAND................................................................. 642ISRAEL .....................................................................655Palestinian Territories.......................................663

ITALY ....................................................................... 666JAMAICA ................................................................ 678JAPAN ...................................................................... 682

xii C O N T E N T S

JORDAN .................................................................. 693KAZAKHSTAN...................................................... 698KENYA..................................................................... 703KIRIBATI................................................................. 708NORTH KOREA.................................................... 711SOUTH KOREA..................................................... 718KUWAIT.................................................................. 726KYRGYZSTAN.......................................................731LAOS.........................................................................735LATVIA.................................................................... 739LEBANON............................................................... 745LESOTHO................................................................750LIBERIA ...................................................................754LIBYA ....................................................................... 758LIECHTENSTEIN.................................................. 764LITHUANIA ........................................................... 767LUXEMBOURG ..................................................... 774MACEDONIA ........................................................ 779MADAGASCAR..................................................... 783MALAŴI ................................................................. 787MALAYSIA .............................................................791MALDIVES.............................................................. 799MALI.........................................................................802MALTA .................................................................... 806MARSHALL ISLANDS.........................................811MAURITANIA .......................................................814MAURITIUS ........................................................... 818MEXICO .................................................................. 822MICRONESIA ........................................................ 829MOLDOVA.............................................................832MONACO................................................................836MONGOLIA ........................................................... 839MONTENEGRO .................................................... 843MOROCCO.............................................................847

Western Sahara .................................................. 852MOZAMBIQUE ..................................................... 853MYANMAR ............................................................ 858NAMIBIA ................................................................863NAURU.................................................................... 867NEPAL......................................................................870NETHERLANDS.................................................... 875

Overseas Countries and Territories.................885Autonomous Countries Within theKingdom of the Netherlands

Aruba.................................................................... 885Curaçao ................................................................885Sint Maarten .......................................................886Autonomous Special Municipalitiesof the NetherlandsBonaire ................................................................. 886Saba....................................................................... 886Sint Eustatius ...................................................... 886

NEW ZEALAND.................................................... 887Territories Overseas ...........................................896Cook Islands .......................................................896Niue ......................................................................896

NICARAGUA ......................................................... 897NIGER ......................................................................901NIGERIA.................................................................. 905NORWAY................................................................912

DependenciesSvalbard................................................................920Jan Mayen............................................................ 920Bouvet Island ...................................................... 920Peter I Island.......................................................920Queen Maud Land............................................. 920

OMAN......................................................................921PAKISTAN .............................................................. 925

PALAU .....................................................................933PANAMA ................................................................ 936PAPUA NEW GUINEA .......................................941Bougainville......................................................... 945

PARAGUAY............................................................946PERU......................................................................... 950PHILIPPINES.......................................................... 956POLAND..................................................................962PORTUGAL ............................................................972QATAR.....................................................................980ROMANIA .............................................................. 984RUSSIA.....................................................................991Republics ............................................................1005Adygeya..............................................................1005Altai ....................................................................1005Bashkortostan ...................................................1005Buryatia ..............................................................1006Chechnya ...........................................................1006Chuvashia ..........................................................1007Dagestan ............................................................1007Ingushetia ..........................................................1007Kabardino-Balkaria .........................................1007Kalmykia............................................................1008Karachai-Cherkessia........................................1008Karelia ................................................................1008Khakassia ...........................................................1009Komi ...................................................................1009Mari-El ...............................................................1009Mordovia ...........................................................1009North Ossetia-Alania ......................................1009Sakha...................................................................1010Tatarstan ............................................................1010Tuva ....................................................................1010Udmurtia ...........................................................1010Autonomous Districts and Provinces..........1011

RWANDA..............................................................1012ST KITTS AND NEVIS ......................................1017ST LUCIA ..............................................................1020ST VINCENT AND THE GRENADINES .....1023SAMOA..................................................................1026SAN MARINO......................................................1029SÃO TOMÉ AND PRÍNCIPE...........................1032SAUDI ARABIA...................................................1035SENEGAL ..............................................................1042SERBIA ...................................................................1047Kosovo and Metohija ......................................1052Vojvodina ..........................................................1053

SEYCHELLES........................................................1054SIERRA LEONE ...................................................1058SINGAPORE .........................................................1062SLOVAKIA............................................................1068SLOVENIA ............................................................1074SOLOMON ISLANDS ........................................1079SOMALIA ..............................................................1083SOUTH AFRICA..................................................1087Provinces ............................................................1096Eastern Cape .....................................................1097Free State ...........................................................1097Gauteng..............................................................1097KwaZulu-Natal .................................................1097Limpopo.............................................................1098Mpumalanga .....................................................1098Northern Cape..................................................1098North-West .......................................................1098Western Cape ...................................................1099

SOUTH SUDAN ..................................................1100SPAIN .....................................................................1103SRI LANKA...........................................................1113

xiiiC O N T E N T S

SUDAN...................................................................1119SURINAME...........................................................1126SWAZILAND........................................................1130SWEDEN ...............................................................1134SWITZERLAND...................................................1143SYRIA .....................................................................1151TAJIKISTAN.........................................................1157

Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Region ..1160TANZANIA...........................................................1161THAILAND...........................................................1166TIMOR-LESTE ....................................................1172TOGO .....................................................................1176TONGA..................................................................1180TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO .............................1183TUNISIA ................................................................1187TURKEY ................................................................1192TURKMENISTAN...............................................1200TUVALU................................................................1204UGANDA ..............................................................1207UKRAINE ..............................................................1213

Crimea................................................................1219UNITED ARAB EMIRATES .............................1220UNITED KINGDOM..........................................1225

England ..............................................................1258Scotland..............................................................1262Wales ..................................................................1267Northern Ireland..............................................1270Isle of Man ........................................................1275Channel Islands................................................1277Jersey...................................................................1278Guernsey ............................................................1279Alderney.............................................................1280Sark .....................................................................1280UK Overseas Territories ..................................1281Anguilla..............................................................1281Bermuda.............................................................1282British Antarctic Territory .............................1284British Indian Ocean Territory .....................1284British Virgin Islands ......................................1284Cayman Islands ................................................1286Falkland Islands ...............................................1287Gibraltar.............................................................1289Montserrat.........................................................1291Pitcairn Island...................................................1292St Helena, Ascension and Tristanda Cunha.......................................................1293

South Georgia and the South SandwichIslands............................................................1294

Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri andDhekelia in Cyprus .....................................1295

Turks and Caicos Islands ...............................1295UNITED STATES OF AMERICA....................1297

States and Territories.......................................1328Alabama .............................................................1328Alaska .................................................................1330Arizona...............................................................1332Arkansas ............................................................1334California ...........................................................1336Colorado ............................................................1339Connecticut .......................................................1341Delaware ............................................................1343District of Columbia........................................1344

Florida ................................................................1346Georgia ...............................................................1348Hawaii ................................................................1350Idaho...................................................................1352Illinois.................................................................1353Indiana ...............................................................1355Iowa ....................................................................1357Kansas ................................................................1359Kentucky............................................................1361Louisiana............................................................1362Maine..................................................................1364Maryland............................................................1366Massachusetts ...................................................1368Michigan ............................................................1370Minnesota..........................................................1372Mississippi .........................................................1373Missouri .............................................................1375Montana.............................................................1377Nebraska ............................................................1379Nevada................................................................1380New Hampshire ...............................................1382New Jersey .........................................................1384New Mexico ......................................................1386New York State.................................................1387North Carolina .................................................1390North Dakota....................................................1392Ohio ....................................................................1394Oklahoma ..........................................................1396Oregon................................................................1398Pennsylvania .....................................................1400Rhode Island .....................................................1402South Carolina..................................................1403South Dakota ....................................................1405Tennessee...........................................................1407Texas...................................................................1409Utah ....................................................................1411Vermont.............................................................1413Virginia ..............................................................1415Washington State.............................................1416West Virginia....................................................1418Wisconsin ..........................................................1420Wyoming ...........................................................1422Outlying Territories..........................................1424Commonwealth of the Northern

Mariana Islands ...........................................1424Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ....................1425American Samoa..............................................1427Guam..................................................................1428Virgin Islands of the United States ..............1430Other Unincorporated Territories ...............1431Incorporated Territories .................................1432

URUGUAY............................................................1433UZBEKISTAN.......................................................1438Karakalpak Autonomous Republic

(Karakalpakstan) .........................................1442VANUATU............................................................1443VATICAN CITY STATE....................................1446VENEZUELA........................................................1449VIETNAM .............................................................1455YEMEN ..................................................................1461ZAMBIA.................................................................1466ZIMBABWE ..........................................................1470

SOURCES 1476ABBREVIATIONS 1478

CURRENT LEADERS INDEX 1479PLACE AND INTERNATIONAL ORGANIZATIONS INDEX 1482

xiv C O N T E N T S

THE RUSSIAN CHALLENGE TO THE EUROPEAN SECURITY ENVIRONMENT

The most recent of a series of Palgrave publications on Russianforeign policy edited or co-edited by Roger E. Kanet, The RussianChallenge to the European Security Environment brings together agroup of established scholars from Russia and the West. Theytrace the deterioration of East–West relations and Russia’sgrowing challenge to the European security order in place for thepast quarter century. Although the story that the authors tell ofthese changing relations varies somewhat, it generally departsfrom the dominant Western narrative in distributing the blamefor the deterioration on both the West and Russia. Duringthe 1990s, when Russia was attempting to adjust to its new andreduced post-Soviet status and seemed willing to join with theWest, Europe and the USA generally ignored Russia’s interestsand expanded their own involvement into what had been theSoviet sphere of domination. This expansionist approachculminated in the middle of the 2000s with the extension of bothNATO and the EU into Central Europe and the Baltic regionand with Western support for the ‘colour revolutions’ againstMoscow’s allies in Kyiv, Tbilisi and Bishkek.

Although Russian policy toward the West began to shift by themid-1990s, it was not until Vladimir Putin became president and,most clearly, after the Bush Administration’s largely unilateralinvasion of Iraq and the challenge of the ‘colour revolutions’, thatMoscow decided that the achievement of its objectives on thebasis of co-operation with the West was impossible. The resulthas been a growing challenge to the dominant position of theWest, both in Central and Eastern Europe and globally, as Russiahas pursued the goal of re-establishing its position as thepreeminent regional power and a top global actor.

The analyses that comprise the book begin with a focus on thegrowing Russian normative challenge to the existing Western-dominated world order and the fundamental incompatibility ofemerging Russian policy objectives with those of the West. Russiahas used both its dominant economic position in post-Sovietspace and coercive diplomacy in its effort to thwart Westernincursions into its ‘sphere of influence’ and to re-establish itsposition as the dominant regional power.

Russian interventions in both Ukraine and in Syria have beenrecent examples of the growing Russian–Western confrontation.The EU’s Eastern neighbourhood policy challenged Russia’splans for a new Eurasia centred on Moscow and the latter movedto stop it. The result was Russian support for Russophonesecessionists in Ukraine and Moscow’s absorption of Ukrainianterritory in Crimea—both policies widely supported by anincreasingly nationalistic Russian population.

To briefly summarize, Russian relations with the West sincethe demise of the USSR began with a period of possiblecollaboration, but a period when the West took advantage ofMoscow’s weakness. This played to the advantage of nationalistic

forces in Russia, headed by Vladimir Putin, who are committed tore-establishing Russia’s greatness, regardless of the negativeimpact on relations with the West. The result is the confrontationthat we witness today.

Roger E. Kanet is Professor of Political Science at the University ofMiami. His most recent publications for Palgrave Macmillaninclude: Power, Politics and Confrontation in Eurasia: ForeignPolicy in a Contested Area (2015) and Russia, EurasianIntegration and the New Geopolitics of Energy (2015).

The Russian Challenge to the European Security Environment.Published by Palgrave Macmillan 2017

xv

2017 IN 1,000 WORDSOn taking office on 1 January, the new United Nations Secretary-General, António Guterres, appealed for 2017 to be a year forpeace. His year-end assessment was rather less hopeful, warningthat: ‘Unfortunately, in fundamental ways, the world has gone inreverse…conflicts have deepened and new dangers have emerged.’He specifically alluded to the regional and wider internationalthreat from communist North Korea’s nuclear and missile testingand to the acceleration of global climate change (the landmarkUnited Nations agreement of 2015 in Paris having beenundermined by the USA’s decision in June to withdraw from itsprovisions). Guterres also highlighted the ‘horrific violations ofhuman rights’ that had taken place over the year, perhaps inreference to abuses by the military in Myanmar against thecountry’s Muslim Rohingya minority, to lawlessness and the massdisplacement of refugees in South Sudan, to the civilian traumasinflicted by the ongoing civil wars in Syria and Yemen whereforeign powers and interests maintained their proxy interventions,and to the continuing carnage wrought by Islamist extremistviolence.

In the USA, President Donald Trump’s first year in officeproved confrontational and unconventional. Allegations ofRussian collusion on his behalf in his election campaign in 2016persisted amid ongoing investigations by the federal authorities,while apparent discord in the White House prompted a frequentchangeover of senior presidential aides. Moreover, Trump favouredthe use of a social media platform over traditional channels ofinformation dissemination (which he accused of spreading ‘fakenews’) and state diplomacy.

Internationally, Trump’s more controversial interventionsincluded attempting to ban entry into the USA of Muslimsfrom specified countries (which was for months subject to legalchallenge), withdrawing the USA from both the Trans-PacificPartnership free trading accord and the 2015 climate changeagreement, and his announcement that the USA would officiallyrecognize Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and transfer itsembassy to the city. He additionally imposed new sanctions onIran in response to Iranian missile tests, refused to certify the 2015multilateral agreement restraining Iran’s nuclear developmentand threatened overwhelming retaliatory action against a bellicoseNorth Korea.

Despite the jihadist Islamic State movement’s gradual loss ofterritorial control over its former heartland in Iraq and Syria,Islamist extremists continued to perpetrate terrorist atrocitiesacross Western Europe—in Manchester and London in the UK,Barcelona in Spain, Paris in France, Stockholm in Sweden, Turkuin Finland and Brussels in Belgium—and, further afield, in theUSA, Turkey, Somalia, Pakistan, Nigeria, Egypt, Burkina Faso andAfghanistan.

In the UK, the Conservative government began the legalprocess in March for withdrawal from the European Union andin December both sides reached preliminary agreement on mutualcitizens’ rights, UK financial liabilities and the unique bordercircumstances in Ireland, paving the way for opening the nextphase of negotiations on a transition period and future trade dealin 2018. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Theresa May’s decision tocall a snap general election in June backfired as she lost heroverall majority in the House of Commons and was forced to

conclude an informal pact with the Democratic Unionist Party(DUP) members of Parliament from Northern Ireland (wheredevolved power-sharing between the DUP and republican SinnFéin had collapsed in January) to help maintain her weakenedadministration.

In elections elsewhere, voters in France installed a newindependent centrist president, Emmanuel Macron, and hisEn Marche! party in government, while in Germany ChancellorAngela Merkel’s ascendancy was threatened as her centre-rightChristian Democrats and their Social Democrat coalition partnersboth suffered losses, heralding months of inconclusive politicalwrangling. Although the ruling liberal coalition in the Netherlandssurvived a challenge from the populist Party for Freedom, thefar-right Freedom Party in Austria made sufficient gains togain key posts in the new People’s Party-led government. Otherelections in Iran, Japan and Kenya (where the Supreme Courtordered a rerun) saw the return of their incumbent leaders, whilein New Zealand the Labour Party’s Jacinda Ardern became thecountry’s youngest prime minister in more than 150 years.

Other political developments included the unseating ofZimbabwe’s aged and autocratic president, Robert Mugabe, andhis replacement by his estranged former deputy, EmmersonMnangagwa; confirmation of President Xi Jinping’s dominance inChina as his name and ideology were enshrined in the stateconstitution; separatist pressure in the province of Cataloniafor independence from Spain, provoking the imposition of directrule from Madrid; an unprecedented anti-corruption drive andliberalization of restrictions on women in Saudi Arabia, attributedto Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman; Montenegro’s accessionto the North Atlantic Treaty Organization; Qatar’s ostracism bysome Gulf neighbours and Egypt for its perceived alignment withIran; Kurdistan’s unsuccessful bid for independence from Iraq;referendum approval in Turkey for a sweeping constitutionalextension of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s presidential powers; theremoval of Yahya Jammeh as president of The Gambia; thedisqualification of Pakistan’s prime minister, Nawaz Sharif,from office by the country’s Supreme Court; and Leo Varadkar’sappointment as Ireland’s youngest-ever premier.

Notable economic events included cautious interest rate risesby the USA and, for the first time in a decade, by the UK; thesuccessful conclusion of negotiations on a free trade deal betweenthe European Union and Japan; the extension by the Organizationof Petroleum Exporting Countries and Russia of their production-cutting deal to bolster oil prices; and President Trump’s signatureinto law of a radical US$1·5trn. tax reform plan.

Meanwhile, culpability for the growing incidence of maliciousinternet cyber-attacks, particularly the WannaCry software thatcrippled computers worldwide in May, increasingly pointedtowards North Korean involvement, while the secret offshorewealth of some of the world’s prominent figures was againexposed in the so-called Paradise Papers in one of the largest-evercomputer data hacks. Natural disasters also wrought extensivehavoc globally, with hurricanes in the Caribbean and the USA,typhoons and cyclones in southeast Asia, flooding and mudslidesin Peru, Colombia, China, India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lankaand Sierra Leone, earthquakes in Mexico and Iran/Iraq, andwildfires in Portugal and the USA.

xvi

WORLD POPULATION DEVELOPMENTS

19501. China 544,419,0002. India 376,325,0003. USSR 181,037,0004. USA 158,804,0005. Japan 82,802,0006. Indonesia 69,543,0007. Brazil 53,975,0008. West Germany 50,958,0009. UK 50,616,00010. Italy 46,599,000

20171. China 1,409,517,0002. India 1,339,180,0003. USA 324,459,0004. Indonesia 263,991,0005. Brazil 209,288,0006. Pakistan 197,016,0007. Nigeria 190,886,0008. Bangladesh 164,670,0009. Russia 143,990,00010. Mexico 129,163,000

20501. India 1,658,978,0002. China 1,364,457,0003. Nigeria 410,638,0004. USA 389,592,0005. Indonesia 321,551,0006. Pakistan 306,940,0007. Brazil 232,688,0008. Bangladesh 201,927,0009. Congo, Democratic

Republic of the 197,404,00010. Ethiopia 190,870,000

Source: United Nations World Population Prospects (2017 Revision)

LARGEST URBAN AGGLOMERATIONS

19501. New York-Newark, USA 12,338,0002. Tokyo, Japan 11,275,0003. London, United Kingdom 8,361,0004. Osaka, Japan1 7,005,0005. Paris, France 6,283,0006. Moscow, USSR 5,356,0007. Buenos Aires, Argentina 5,098,0008. Chicago, USA 4,999,0009. Calcutta, India 4,513,00010. Shanghai, China 4,301,000

1Plus major neighbouring cities, includingKobe and Kyoto.

20151. Tokyo, Japan 38,001,0002. Delhi, India 25,703,0003. Shanghai, China 23,741,0004. São Paulo, Brazil 21,066,0005. Mumbai (Bombay), India 21,043,0006. Mexico City, Mexico 20,999,0007. Beijing, China 20,384,0008. Osaka, Japan1 20,238,0009. Cairo, Egypt 18,772,00010. New York-Newark, USA 18,593,000

1Plus major neighbouring cities, includingKobe and Kyoto.

20251. Tokyo, Japan 37,876,0002. Delhi, India 32,727,0003. Shanghai, China 29,442,0004. Beijing, China 26,494,0005. Mumbai (Bombay), India 25,207,0006. Dhaka, Bangladesh 24,331,0007. Mexico City, Mexico 22,916,0008. São Paulo, Brazil 22,899,0009. Cairo, Egypt 22,432,00010. Karachi, Pakistan 22,009,000

Source: United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs/Population Division, World Urbanization Prospects (2014 Revision)

xvii

KEY WORLD FACTS

• World population in 2018 7,633 million (3,851 million males and3,782 million females)

• World population under 30 in 2018 3,768 million

• World population over 60 in 2018 990 million

• World population over 100 in 2018 512,000

• World median age (both sexes) 30·4

• Number of births worldwide every day 386,000

• Number of deaths worldwide every day 160,000

• Number of women married before the age of 18 720 million

• Number of women married before the age of 15 250 million

• World economic growth rate in 2017 3·8% (3·2% in 2016)

• Number of illiterate adults 750 million

• Number of unemployed people 193 million

• Average world life expectancy 73·7 years for females; 69·1 years for males

• Annual world population increase 82·6 million people

• Number of people living outside country of birth 258 million, or more than 3% of the world’spopulation

• Fertility rate 2·5 births per woman

• Urban population 54·3% of total population

• World trade in 2016 US$32,180 billion

• Annual world defence expenditure US$1,686 billion

• Number of cigarettes smoked 5,700 billion a year

• Number of internet users 4·2 billion

• Number of emails sent per day 269·0 billion

• Number of Facebook users 2·1 billion

• Number of mobile phone subscriptions 7·5 billion

• Percentage of women in national parliaments 23·9%

• Percentage of senior management positions heldby women 25%

• Number of people living in extreme poverty 706 million

• Number of people living in slums 881 million

• Number of undernourished people 815 million

• Number of overweight adults 1·9 billion

• Number of obese adults 650 million

• Number of people lacking clean drinking water 844 million

• Number of people lacking basic sanitation 2·3 billion

• Number of people living with HIV/AIDS 36·7 million

• Number of people suffering from depression worldwide 322 million

• Annual carbon dioxide emissions 35·8 billion tonnes

xviii

RECOMMENDED FURTHER READING

Each country’s entry in The Statesman’s Yearbook includes a section on Further Reading, containingrecommended books that go into more detail on the country in question. Among the titles published in 2017

that have been added for the 2019 edition are:

Americana: A 400-Year History of American Capitalism by Bhu Srinivasan.

Asia’s Reckoning: China, Japan and the Fate of US Power in the Pacific Century by Richard McGregor.

The Berlin Airlift: The Relief Operation that Defined the Cold War by Barry Turner.

Brexit and British Politics by Geoffrey Evans and Anand Menon.

The Catholic Church in Polish History by Sabrina P. Ramet.

Counter-Terrorism from the Obama Administration to President Trump: Caught in the Fait Accompli Warby Donna G. Starr-Deelen.

Cycles in US Foreign Policy since the Cold War by Thomas H. Henriksen.

East Timor’s Independence, Indonesia and ASEAN by Jean A. Berlie (ed.).

Economic and Social Development of Bangladesh: Miracle and Challenges by Yasuyuki Sawada, Minhaj Mahmudand Naohiro Kitano (eds.).

The End of British Politics? by Michael Moran.

Enemies and Neighbours: Arabs and Jews in Palestine and Israel, 1917–2017 by Ian Black.

The Evangelicals: The Struggle to Shape America by Frances FitzGerald.

The Evolution and Significance of the Cuban Revolution by Charles McKelvey.

Framing the EU Global Strategy by Nathalie Tocci.

Franklin D. Roosevelt: A Political Life by Robert Dallek.

Gorbachev: His Life and Times by William Taubman.

Government and Politics of Italy by Roberto Leonardi.

Iran: A Modern History by Abbas Amanat.

Myanmar’s Enemy Within: Buddhist Violence and the Making of a Muslim ‘Other’ by Francis Wade.

The Quality of Democracy in Korea: Three Decades after Democratization by Hannes B. Mosler, Eun-Jeung Leeand Hak-Jae Kim (eds.).

Red Famine: Stalin’s War on Ukraine by Anne Applebaum.

The Rise of Islamism in Egypt by Alaa Al-Din Arafat.

The Souls of China: The Return of Religion after Mao by Ian Johnson.

The Storied City: The Quest for Timbuktu and the Fantastic Mission to Save its Past by Charlie English.

The Struggle for Catalonia by Raphael Minder.

Superfast Primetime Ultimate Nation: The Relentless Invention of Modern India by Adam Roberts.

Terror in France: The Rise of Jihad in the West by Gilles Kepel.

Till Time’s Last Sand: A History of the Bank of England 1694–2013 by David Kynaston.

Turkish Foreign Policy: International Relations, Legality and Global Reach by Pınar Gözen Ercan.

The UN at War: Peace Operations in a New Era by John Karlsrud.

xix

CHRONOLOGYApril 2017–March 2018

Week beginning 2 April 2017The Republican Party of Armenia (HHK) won 58 of 105 seatswith 49·2% of votes cast in Armenia’s parliamentary elections.The Tsarukyan Alliance took 31 seats (27·4%), Way OutAlliance 9 (7·8%) and Armenian Revolutionary Federation 7(6·6%). Turnout was 60·9%.

Lenín Moreno won 51·2% of the vote to Guillermo Lasso’s 48·8%in Ecuador’s presidential run-off election. Turnout was 83·0%.

In Serbia, Aleksandar Vučić of the Serbian Progressive Party waselected president with 56·0% of the vote against 16·6% for SašaJanković. There were nine other candidates. Turnout was 54·4%.

Ismael Sueno was dismissed as interior minister in thePhilippines, with Catalino Cuy succeeding him two days later.

In Morocco, prime minister Saadeddine Othmani namedMohamed Boussaid as economy and finance minister, NasserBourita as minister of foreign affairs and Abdelouafi Laftit asminister of the interior.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Samy Badibangaresigned as prime minister. President Joseph Kabila appointedBruno Tshibala as premier the following day.

In The Gambia’s parliamentary elections, the United DemocraticParty won 31 of the 53 elected seats with 37·5% of votes cast.The Gambia Democratic Congress, the Alliance for PatrioticReorientation and Construction and the National ReconciliationParty claimed 5 seats each. Turnout was 42·8%.

Week beginning 9 April 2017Abdoulaye Idrissa Maïga, Mali’s minister of defence, wasappointed prime minister. Tiéna Coulibaly took overresponsibility for the defence portfolio.

Week beginning 16 April 2017Voters in a national referendum in Turkey approved a newconstitution giving president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan additionalpolitical powers and abolishing the post of prime minister.

Week beginning 23 April 2017

In the first round of presidential elections in France, EmmanuelMacron, the candidate for En Marche!, secured 24·0% of the vote,ahead of Marine Le Pen of the National Front (21·3%), FrançoisFillon of the Republicans (20·0%) and Jean-Luc Mélenchon of LaFrance Insoumise (19·6%). There were seven other candidates. Ina run-off held two weeks later, Macron was elected president with66·1% of votes cast against 33·9% for Le Pen. Turnout was 74·6%in the second round (77·8% in the first round).

Abdullah Habib resigned as Afghanistan’s defence minister,with Tariq Shah Bahrami succeeding him in an acting capacity.

Gerry Brownlee was appointed New Zealand’s foreign minister,with Mark Mitchell named defence minister.

In Bulgaria, president Rumen Radev granted Boyko Borisov amandate to form a government.

Andrej Plenković, Croatia’s prime minister, dismissed VlahoOrepić as minister of interior, with Robert Kopal taking overthe portfolio in an acting capacity.

The Albanian parliament elected Ilir Meta of the SocialistMovement for Integration as president after three failed roundsof voting. He was chosen by 87 votes to 2.

Agim Nuhiu resigned as interior minister in Macedonia.

Montenegro’s parliament voted in favour of membership of theNorth Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Week beginning 30 April 2017

In Tunisia, Lamia Zribi was replaced as finance minister byFadhel Abdelkefi in an acting capacity.

Bulgarian prime minister Boyko Borisov announced his newcabinet, including Krasimir Karakachanov as defence minister,Vladislav Goranov as finance minister, Ekaterina Gecheva-Zaharieva as foreign minister and Valentin Radev as interiorminister.

In Algeria’s parliamentary elections, the Front de LibérationNationale/National Liberation Front won 164 of 462 seats;Rassemblement National Démocratique/National Rally forDemocracy, 97; Mouvement de la Société pour la Paix/Movementof Society for Peace, 33; Rassemblement de l’Espoir de l’Algérie/Rally for Hope for Algeria, 19. Independents took 28 seats andthe remainder went to minor parties. Turnout was 38·3%.

In the Czech Republic, Andrej Babiš was dismissed as ministerof finance and replaced three weeks later by Ivan Pilný.

Ely Ould Mohammed Vall, Mauritania’s military head of statefrom 2005 to 2007, died.

Week beginning 7 May 2017Moon Jae-in of the Democratic Party of Korea won SouthKorea’s presidential elections with 41·1% of the vote, ahead ofHong Jun-pyo of the Liberty Korea Party (24·0%). There were11 other candidates and turnout was 77·2%.

At parliamentary elections in The Bahamas, the Free NationalMovement (FNM) won 57·0% of votes cast and 35 out of 39seats against the ruling Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) with37·0% and 4 seats. Hubert Minnis was sworn in as primeminister the following day. K. Peter Turnquest was namedfinance minister and Darren Henfield foreign minister.

In the Philippines, Alan Peter Cayetano was appointed foreignsecretary.

Patrick Pruaitch was sacked as Papua New Guinea’s treasurer,with prime minister Peter O’Neill assuming the portfolio.

In Sudan, prime minister Bakri Hassan Saleh named MohamedOsman Suleiman Rikabi as finance minister and HamidMannan as interior minister.

Mauno Koivisto, twice prime minister of Finland and presidentfrom 1982–94, died.

Week beginning 14 May 2017

Édouard Philippe was sworn in as prime minister of France. Henamed Jean-Yves Le Drian as foreign minister, Gérard Collombas interior minister and Bruno Le Maire as economy andfinance minister.

xx

Macedonia’s president Gjorgje Ivanov asked Zoran Zaev toform a government. Two weeks later Zaev named RadmilaSekerinska-Jankovska as defence minister, Dragan Tevdovskias finance minister, Nikola Dimitrov as foreign minister andOliver Spasovski as interior minister.

In Armenia, Karen Karapetyan was reappointed as primeminister.

Bruno Tshibala was sworn in as prime minister in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo.

In presidential elections in Iran, Hassan Rouhani was re-electedwith 57·1% of the vote ahead of Ebrahim Raisi with 38·3%,Mostafa Mir-Salim with 1·2% and Mostafa Hashemitaba with0·5%. Turnout was 73·1%.

Francisco Guterres was sworn in as Timor-Leste’s president.

Week beginning 21 May 2017The Albanian parliament approved a cabinet reshuffle, withHelga Vukaj appointed as finance minister and Dritan Demirajas interior minister.

After a cabinet reshuffle in Sri Lanka, Mangala Samaraweerabecame finance minister and Ravi Karunanayake foreignminister.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus of Ethiopia was elected director-general of the World Health Organization.

President Abdelaziz Bouteflika appointed Abdelmadjid Tebbouneas prime minister in Algeria. While Bouteflika retainedresponsibility for the defence portfolio, Abderrahmane Raouiawas named finance minister and Abdelkader Messahel foreignminister.

Lenín Moreno was sworn in as president of Ecuador. MiguelÁngel Carvajal Aguirre became minister of defence, CarlosAlberto de la Torre Muñoz minister of economy, María FerandaEspinosa Garcés minister of foreign affairs and César AntonioNavas Vera minister of interior.

Pushpa Kamal Dahal announced his resignation as Nepal’sprime minister.

Week beginning 28 May 2017

In Argentina, Susana Malcorra resigned as foreign minister andwas replaced by Jorge Marcelo Faurie.

Manuel Noriega, Panama’s de facto ruler from 1983–89, died.

Aleksandar Vučić resigned as prime minister in Serbia in orderto assume the presidency. Ivica Dačić, who had been primeminister from 2012–14, took over the premiership in an actingcapacity.

In Lesotho’s parliamentary elections, the All BasothoConvention won 48 of 120 seats, Democratic Congress 30,Lesotho Congress for Democracy 11, Alliance for Democrats 9,Movement for Economic Change 6, Basotho National Party 5and Popular Front for Democracy 3. Five other parties won asingle seat each and three seats remained vacant. Turnout was46·4%.

The ruling Labour Party (LP) won 37 seats with 55·0% of votescast in Malta’s general elections. The Nationalist Force (NF;an electoral alliance between the Nationalist Party and theDemocratic Party) won 30 with 43·7%. Turnout was 92·1%. Thefollowing week Edward Scicluna was named finance minister,Carmelo Abela foreign minister and Michael Farrugia homeaffairs minister.

Week beginning 4 June 2017

Santiago Peña resigned as Paraguay’s finance minister and wasreplaced by Lea Giménez a day later.

In Nepal, Sher Bahadur Deuba was elected prime minister in aparliamentary vote, with 388 for and 170 against. He appointedGyanendra Bahadur Karki as finance minister, Krishna BahadurMahara as minister of foreign affairs and Janardan Sharma asminister of home affairs.

Davor Božinović was appointed as interior minister in Croatia.The following week foreign minister Davor Ivo Stier resigned,with Marija Pejčinović Burić succeeding him a week later.

At a snap parliamentary election in the UK, the ConservativeParty won 318 of 650 seats with 42·4% of votes cast (down from331 in 2015, signalling the party’s loss of its parliamentarymajority). The Labour Party won 262 seats (40·0%), the ScottishNational Party 35 (3·0%), the Liberal Democrats 12 (7·4%), theDemocratic Unionist Party 10 (0·9%), Sinn Féin 7 (0·7%), PlaidCymru 4 (0·5%) and the Green Party 1 (1·6%). There was alsoone independent. Turnout was 68·7% (66·1% in 2015).

In a cabinet reshuffle in South Korea spanning several days, SongYoung-moo was named minister of defence, Kim Dong-yeonfinance minister and Kang Kyung-wha minister of foreign affairs.

Week beginning 11 June 2017In parliamentary elections in Kosovo, an alliance of parties ledby the Democratic Party of Kosovo won 39 of 120 seats with33·7% of the vote, Self-Determination 32 seats with 27·5%, acoalition of parties led by the Democratic League of Kosovo 29with 25·5% and the Serb List 9 with 6·1%, with the remainingseats going to smaller parties. Turnout was 41·2%.

In Estonia, Jüri Luik was appointed defence minister andToomas Tõniste finance minister.

Ireland’s prime minister Enda Kenny resigned and was replacedthe following day by Leo Varadkar. Varadkar named himself asdefence minister, with Paschal Donohoe as finance minister andSimon Coveney as foreign minister.

The Spanish prime minister Mariano Rajoy survived aparliamentary vote of no confidence by 170 votes to 82.

Didier Burkhalter announced his resignation as Switzerland’sforeign minister, although he would stay in office until the endof October.

Week beginning 18 June 2017In Serbia, president Aleksandar Vučić nominated Ana Brnabićas prime minister. Two weeks later she announced hergovernment including Aleksandar Vulin as defence minister.

Helmut Kohl, the chancellor of Germany from 1982–98, died.

In Vanuatu, president Baldwin Lonsdale died. He was replacedin an acting capacity by Esmon Saimon.

France held the second round of parliamentary elections, aweek after the first round. President Emmanuel Macron’sLa République en Marche! (previously En Marche!) and itsPresidential Majority allies won 350 of 577 seats, giving Macronan absolute parliamentary majority. La République en Marche!took 308 seats, Les Républicains 113, the DemocraticMovement 42 and the Socialist Party 29. Turnout was 48·7% inthe first round and 42·6% in the second. The following dayMacron reappointed Édouard Philippe as prime minister.

In Finland, the government of prime minister Juha Sipilä won aparliamentary vote of confidence by 104 votes to 85.

xxiC H R O N O L O G Y

Peru’s prime minister Fernando Zavala assumed the financeportfolio following the resignation of Alfredo Thorne.

Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud wasnamed Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, deputy prime minister andminister of defence, and Prince Abdulaziz bin Saud bin Naifbecame interior minister.

Samuel Moncada was appointed foreign minister in Venezuela.

Sir Ketumile Masire, Botswana’s president from 1980–98, died.

Week beginning 25 June 2017In parliamentary elections in Albania, the Socialist Party won74 of the 140 seats with 48·3% of votes, the Democratic Party43 (28·8%), the Socialist Movement for Integration 19 (14·3%),the Party for Justice, Integration and Unity 3 (4·8%) and theSocial Democratic Party 1 (1·0%). Turnout was 46·8%.

Mario Alberto Guillén was appointed finance minister inBolivia.

After the resignation of his government, Romanian primeminister Sorin Grindeanu left office after losing a confidencevote in parliament. The following week he was succeededby Mihai Tudose, who named Adrian Ţuţuianu as defenceminister and Ionuţ Mişa as finance minister.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus succeeded Margaret Chan asdirector-general of the World Health Organization.

Carrie Lam was sworn in as Hong Kong’s chief executive.

Week beginning 2 July 2017Tallis Obed Moses was elected president of Vanuatu by anelectoral college after receiving 40 of 57 votes in the fourthround of voting. He defeated 15 other candidates.

France’s prime minister, Édouard Philippe, won a parliamentaryvote of confidence by 370 votes to 67 (with 129 abstentions).

Tuimaleali‘ifano Va‘aletoa Sualauvi II was unanimously electedhead of state by Samoa’s Legislative Assembly.

Khaltmaagiin Battulga of the Democratic Party becameMongolia’s president after winning 55·2% of valid votes againstMiyeegombyn Enkhbold (Mongolian People’s Party) with44·8%. Turnout was 60·7%. In the first round held the previousweek, no candidate had managed an overall majority.

Kenya’s minister of internal security, Joseph Nkaissery, died.Fred Matiang’i assumed the portfolio in an acting capacity.

In Papua New Guinea, the final round of voting inparliamentary elections that began two weeks earlier resulted inthe People’s National Congress of prime minister Peter O’Neillwinning 27 of 111 seats, the National Alliance Party 14 and thePangu Party 11. Four weeks later parliament re-elected O’Neillas prime minister. He announced a cabinet including SolanMirisim as defence minister, James Marape as finance ministerand Rimbink Pato as foreign minister.

Week beginning 9 July 2017

Oscar Raúl Aguad Beily was named minister of defence inArgentina.

In Lesotho, Tsukutlane Au took office as minister of homeaffairs.

Song Young-moo became South Korea’s minister of defence.

Week beginning 16 July 2017

Maria Ubach was named Andorra’s foreign minister.

In Bosnia and Herzegovina, Dragan Čović became chair of therotating presidency.

Souef Mohamed El Amine was appointed foreign minister inthe Comoros.

In India’s presidential election, Ram Nath Kovind of theBharatiya Janata Party was elected by federal and state legislators,claiming 65·7% of the vote against 34·3% for Meira Kumar.

Gervais Rakotoarimanana resigned as finance minister inMadagascar. Vonintsalama Andriambololona succeeded himthe following day.

A cabinet reshuffle in Malaŵi saw Emmanuel Fabiano becomeforeign minister.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Côte d’Ivoire, Hamed Bakayokobecame minister of defence and Sidiki Diakité interior minister.

Nurettin Canikli was appointed minster of defence in Turkey.

In Timor-Leste’s parliamentary elections, the RevolutionaryFront for an Independent East Timor (FRETILIN) won 29·7%of votes cast and 23 seats, ahead of the National Congress forTimorese Reconstruction (CNRT) with 29·5% (22 seats). Threeother parties won eight seats or fewer. Turnout was 76·7%.

Week beginning 23 July 2017

Ilir Meta was sworn in as Albania’s president.

Morgan Johansson was appointed Sweden’s minister of homeaffairs.

In Japan, Tomomi Inada resigned as minister of defence. FumioKishida replaced her in an acting capacity before ItsunoriOnodera took over the portfolio after a reshuffle the followingweek. At the same time Taro Kono became foreign minister andSeiko Noda minister of internal affairs.

Nawaz Sharif resigned as prime minister in Pakistan after theSupreme Court disqualified him from holding public office. Hewas replaced three days later by Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, whowon 221 of 339 votes in a National Assembly vote against 47for Syed Naveed Qamar and 33 for Sheikh Rashid Ahmad.Abbasi announced a cabinet including Khurram Dastgir Khanas defence minister, Muhammad Ishaq Dar as finance minister,Khawaja Muhammad Asif as foreign minister and Ahsan Iqbalas interior minister.

Week beginning 30 July 2017After a second round of parliamentary elections in the Republicof the Congo, the Congolese Labour Party of president DenisSassou-Nguesso won 96 out of 151 seats. No other partyexceeded ten seats.

At parliamentary elections in Senegal, the United in Hopecoalition backing President Macky Sall won 125 of the 165 seatsin the National Assembly. The Manko Wattu Sénégal coalitionbacking former President Abdoulaye Wade claimed 19 seatsand Manko Taxawu Sénégal 7, with 11 smaller parties takingthree seats or fewer. Turnout was 54%.

Jorge Arreaza was appointed Venezuela’s foreign minister.

In Rwanda’s presidential elections, Paul Kagame was re-electedfor a third seven-year term with 98·8% of the vote. PhilippeMpayimana, an independent candidate, and Frank Habineza ofthe Democratic Green Party won 0·7% and 0·5% respectively.Turnout was 98·2%.

Moses Garu was appointed minister of national security in theSolomon Islands.

xxii C H R O N O L O G Y

Week beginning 6 August 2017

Three days after being sworn in for a new term, Iran’s presidentHassan Rouhani nominated his cabinet, with Amir Hatami asminister of defence, Massoud Karbasian minister of finance,Mohammad Javad Zarif minister of foreign affairs andAbdolreza Rahmani Fazli minister of the interior.

Incumbent Uhuru Kenyatta claimed victory in Kenya’spresidential election, with 54·3% of the vote against 44·7% forRaila Odinga. However, the result was annulled by the SupremeCourt three weeks later with new elections scheduled to be heldbefore the end of October.

President Jacob Zuma survived a no-confidence motion inSouth Africa by 198 votes to 177.

Sri Lanka’s foreign minister, Ravi Karunanayake, resigned andwas replaced by Tilak Marapana.

Week beginning 13 August 2017In Algeria, prime minister Abdelmadjid Tebboune was dismissedby president Abdelaziz Bouteflika, who nominated AhmedOuyahia to succeed to the premiership the following day.

Albania’s finance minister, Helga Vukaj, and interior minister,Dritan Demiraj, were among leading figures in the governmentwho resigned. A new government announced ten days laterincluded Olta Xhaçka as defence minister, Arben Ahmetaj asfinance minister, Ditmir Bushati as foreign minister and FatmirXhafaj as interior minister.

Clément Mouamba, the Republic of the Congo’s primeminister, resigned along with his government. Four days laterhe was asked by president Denis Sassou-Nguesso to form a newgovernment, which was announced the following day with itskey positions unchanged.

Tunisia’s acting finance minister, Fadhel Abdelkefi, resigned.

Week beginning 20 August 2017Noël Nelson Messone became foreign minister in Gabon.

Kyrgyzstan’s prime minister, Sooronbay Jeenbekov, resignedin order to contest the presidential elections scheduled forOctober. He was replaced as premier a day later in an actingcapacity by Mukhammetkaly Abulgaziyev, who gave way toSapar Isakov later in the same week.

In Guinea, Mamadi Touré was appointed foreign minister.

João Lourenço of the Popular Movement for the Liberation ofAngola (MPLA) became president as a result of Angola’sparliamentary elections, in which the MPLA won 150 of 220seats with 61·1% of the vote, the National Union for the TotalIndependence of Angola (UNITA) 51 seats (26·7%) and theBroad Convergence for the Salvation of Angola-ElectoralCoalition (CASA-CE) 16 (9·4%). Turnout was 76·1%.

Henry Rabary Njaka became foreign minister in Madagascar.

King Tupou VI dissolved Tonga’s parliament ahead of electionsscheduled for November.

Week beginning 27 August 2017

Sandra Jovel was named Guatemala’s foreign minister.

Chile’s minister of finance, Rodrigo Valdés, resigned and wasreplaced by Nicolás Eyzaguirre.

J. Y. Pillay was sworn in as Singapore’s acting president whenTony Tan’s term ended. Pillay gave way to Halimah Yacob,who won the presidency uncontested 12 days later.

Week beginning 3 September 2017

Nirmala Sitharaman was appointed defence minister in India.

In Taiwan, Lin Chuan resigned as prime minister and wasreplaced by Lai Ching-te.

A cabinet reshuffle in Uzbekistan saw Abdusalom Azizovappointed minister of defence and Pulat Bobojonov minister ofinterior.

Adrian Tutuianu resigned as Romania’s defence minister. Hewas replaced a week later by Mihai-Viorel Fifor.

Senegal’s prime minister Mohamed Dionne resigned but wasreappointed by president Macky Sall a day later. Dionne namedSidiki Kaba as foreign minister and Aly Ngouille Ndiaye asinterior minister.

Pohiva Tu‘i‘onetoa was confirmed as Tonga’s finance minister,having been nominated the previous week.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Tunisia, Abdelkarim Zbidi wassworn in as defence minister, Mohamed Ridha Chalghoum asfinance minister and Lotfi Brahem as interior minister.

Ramush Haradinaj was invited to form a government inKosovo by president Hashim Thaçi. He was sworn in alongwith his government two days later.

Mongolia’s parliament voted to remove Jargaltulgyn Erdenebatfrom the premiership. He was replaced by UkhnaagiinKhurelsukh the following month.

In Moldova, president Igor Dodon requested the resignationof acting defence minister Gheorghe Galbura. Eugen Sturzareplaced him in late October, after his nomination was acceptedby Dodon following several rejections.

Edi Rama was reappointed as prime minister in Albania, withhis government securing a parliamentary vote of confidencefour days later.

In Uruguay, Raúl Sendic resigned as vice-president and wassucceeded four days later by Lucía Topolansky.

Week beginning 10 September 2017

In Norway’s parliamentary elections, the Norwegian LabourParty won 49 of 169 seats (27∙4%), the Conservative Party 45(25∙0%), the Progress Party 27 (15∙2%), the Centre Party 19(10∙3%) and the Socialist Left Party 11 (6∙0%). Four otherparties won less than ten seats each. Turnout was 78∙2%.

In a cabinet reshuffle in the Central African Republic, Marie-Noëlle Koyara was named defence minister and Brig.-Gen.Henri Wanzet-Linguissara interior minister.

Mari Alkatiri was sworn in as Timor-Leste’s prime minister.He named Agostinho Sequeira Somotxo as defence minister,Rui Augusto Gomes as finance minister and Aurélio Guterresas foreign minister.

Peru’s Congress voted by 77 votes to 22 to dismiss thegovernment of prime minister Fernando Zavala, who wasreplaced by Mercedes Aráoz two days later. Claudia Cooper wasnamed finance minister.

Bjarni Benediktsson resigned as Iceland’s prime minister butremained in office on an interim basis.

Week beginning 17 September 2017In Switzerland, Ignazio Cassis was selected to succeed DidierBurkhalter as minister of foreign affairs.

xxiiiC H R O N O L O G Y

In New Zealand’s parliamentary elections, the National Partywon 56 seats with 44∙4%, the Labour Party 46 (36∙9%), NewZealand First 9 (7∙2%), the Green Party 8 (6∙3%) and ACT NewZealand 1 (0∙5%). Turnout was 79∙8%.

Week beginning 24 September 2017In Germany’s parliamentary elections to the Bundestag,the Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union ofChancellor Angela Merkel won 246 seats with 32∙9% of votescast, the Social Democratic Party 153 (20∙5%), Alternative forGermany 94 (12∙6%), the Free Democratic Party 80 (10∙7%), theLeft Party 69 (9∙2%) and Alliance ’90/the Greens 67 (8∙9%).Turnout was 76∙2%.

João Lourenço was sworn in as Angola’s president. Salviano deJesus Sequeira was named minister of defence and ManuelDomingos Augusto minister of foreign affairs.

Week beginning 1 October 2017Matteo Fiorini of Repubblica Futura and Enrico Carattoni ofthe Democratic Socialist Left were sworn in as San Marino’sCaptains Regent.

In Canada, Julie Payette took office as governor-general.

Jalal Talabani, Iraq’s president from 2005–14, died.

In the Netherlands, Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert resigned asdefence minister and was replaced the following day by KlaasDijkhoff.

The Mongolian parliament confirmed Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukhas the new prime minister. He named a cabinet includingNyamaa Enkhbold as defence minister, Chimed Khurelbaatar asfinance minister, Damdin Tsogtbaatar as foreign minister andTsend Nyamdorj as home affairs minister.

Week beginning 8 October 2017In a cabinet reshuffle in Zimbabwe, Ignatius Chombo wasnamed finance minister, Walter Mzembi foreign minister andObert Mpofu home affairs minister.

In the first round of Liberia’s presidential elections, GeorgeWeah (Coalition for Democratic Change) won 38∙4% of thevote against 28∙8% for Joseph Boakai (Unity Party). Three othercandidates each polled less than 10%. Turnout was 75∙2%.Three weeks later, the Supreme Court delayed a run-offscheduled for 7 November pending a legal challenge to theresults of the first round.

In the Netherlands, prime minister Mark Rutte was asked toform a new administration following the elections in March.His government was sworn in two weeks later and includedAnk Bijleveld as defence minister, Wopke Hoekstra as financeminister, Halbe Zijlstra as foreign minister and Kajsa Ollongrenas interior minister.

Somalia’s minister of defence, Abdirashid Abdullahi Mohamed,resigned.

Prime minister Mercedes Aráoz and her government won aconfidence vote in Peru by 83 votes to 17.

Following a reshuffle in the Solomon Islands, John Maneniarutook over the finance portfolio. Manasseh Maelanga resigned asthe minister of home affairs.

Week beginning 15 October 2017In Austria’s parliamentary elections, the Austrian People’s Partywon 62 seats with 31·5% of the vote, the Social DemocraticParty 52 (26·9%), the Freedom Party 51 (26·0%), the New

Austria 10 (5·3%) and Peter Pilz List 8 (4·4%). Turnout was80·0%. Five days later, Sebastian Kurz of the Austrian People’sParty was invited by the president to form a government.

In the presidential election in Kyrgyzstan, former primeminister Sooronbay Jeenbekov won with 54·7% of the vote,ahead of Omurbek Babanov with 33·7% and AdakhanMadumarov with 6·5%. There were eight other candidates.Turnout was 55·9%.

Nepal’s prime minister, Sher Bahadur Deuba, dismissed all hisgovernment ministers affiliated to the Communist Party ofNepal (Maoist-Centre), taking over personal responsibility forthe home and foreign affairs portfolios.

In a cabinet reshuffle in South Africa, Ayanda Dlodlo becamehome affairs minister.

Constança Urbano de Sousa resigned as Portugal’s interiorminister and was replaced by Eduardo Cabrita. Three days laterthe government of António Costa survived a no-confidencemotion by 122 to 105 votes.

Frank Bakke-Jensen became minister of defence in Norway andIne Marie Eriksen Søreide minister of foreign affairs following acabinet reshuffle.

In elections to the Czech Republic’s Chamber of Deputies, theAction of Dissatisfied Citizens gained 78 seats (29·6% of thevote), the Civic Democratic Party 25 (11·3%), the Czech PirateParty 22 (10·8%) and Freedom and Direct Democracy 22(10·6%). Five other parties and groupings took the remainingseats. Turnout was 60·8%.

Week beginning 22 October 2017In elections in Argentina, 127 of the 257 seats in the Chamberof Deputies that were not contested at the previous elections inOctober 2015 were at stake. Following the elections, Let’sChange and its allies held 107 seats, the Citizen’s Unity Front67, the Justicialist Party 40, United for a New Alternative 21,the Socialist Left 4 and others 19.

In Japan’s parliamentary elections, the coalition between theruling Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito party won313 seats (with 49·7% of the single-seat constituency vote);the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan 55seats (8·8%); Party of Hope 50 (20·6%); Japanese CommunistParty 12 (9·0%); Nippon Ishin no Kai 11 (3·2%); and SocialDemocratic Party 2 (1·1%). Independents took 22 seats.Turnout was 53·7%.

In the first round of presidential elections in Slovenia, BorutPahor (independent) won 47·2% of the vote against MarjanŠarec (Marjan Šarec List) 24·8% and Romana Tomc (SlovenianDemocratic Party) 13·7%. There were six other candidates.Turnout in the first round was 44·2%. In the run-off threeweeks later, Borut Pahor received 53·1% of votes cast against46·9% for Marjan Šarec. Turnout was 42·1%.

In Germany, Peter Altmaier replaced Wolfgang Schäuble asfinance minister on an interim basis.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Malaŵi, Cecilia Chazamabecame minister of home affairs and internal security.

Eugen Sturza was appointed minister of defence in Moldova bythe chairman of parliament, Andrian Candu, who was acting asinterim president while Igor Dodon was suspended from theoffice for his opposition to the appointment.

The Chinese Communist Party re-elected Xi Jinping as itsgeneral secretary.

xxiv C H R O N O L O G Y

In Italy, Paolo Gentiloni’s government survived five Senateconfidence votes related to the adoption of a new electoral law.

Jacinda Ardern, New Zealand’s prime minister-designate,named a cabinet including Ron Mark as defence minister,Grant Robertson as finance minister, Winston Peters as foreignminister and Tracey Martin as minister of internal affairs.

In Kenya’s re-run presidential elections, incumbent UhuruKenyatta received 98·3% and Raila Odinga 1·0% of votes castafter Odinga had urged his supporters to boycott the poll.Turnout was 38·8%.

Simón Zerpa took office as finance minister in Venezuela.

In Spain, Catalonia’s parliament voted by 70 votes to ten todeclare an independent republic. The central government inMadrid responded by suspending the region’s autonomy,dissolving its parliament and dismissing its government.

In Iceland’s parliamentary election, the Independence Partywon 16 of 63 seats with 25·2% of votes cast, the Left-GreenMovement 11 (16·9%), the Progressive Party 8 (10·7%), theSocial Democratic Alliance 7 (12·1%), the Centre Party 7(10·9%), the Pirate Party 6 (9·2%), the People’s Party 4 (6·9%)and the Reform Party 4 (6·7%). Turnout was 81·2%.

Week beginning 29 October 2017In Kuwait, Sheikh Jaber Mubarak al-Hamad al-Sabah’sgovernment resigned. Two days later, Sheikh Jaber wasreappointed premier by the Amir.

Shinzo Abe was re-elected as prime minister for a further termby the Japanese parliament.

In the Solomon Islands, Moses Garu became home affairsminister.

Ignazio Cassis took office as Switzerland’s foreign minister.

Sir Michael Fallon resigned as secretary of state for defence inthe UK and was replaced by Gavin Williamson.

Katrín Jakobsdóttir of the Left-Green Movement was invited toform a government in Iceland.

Lebanese prime minister Saad al-Hariri resigned while out ofthe country, but subsequently agreed to delay his resignation onhis return to the domestic scene.

Week beginning 5 November 2017In the Solomon Islands, prime minister Manasseh Sogavareresigned after losing a parliamentary no-confidence vote by 27to 23. He was replaced nine days later by Rick Hou, whoreceived 33 votes against 16 cast for rival candidate John MoffatFugui. Hou announced a cabinet featuring Sogavare as financeminister and Milner Tozaka as foreign minister.

Emmerson Mnangagwa was removed from the office of thevice-presidency in Zimbabwe. However, he was sworn in aspresident 18 days later following the resignation of theincumbent, Robert Mugabe. Mugabe had been under intensepressure to step down after senior military figures intervenedfollowing Mnangagwa’s initial removal from office. As president,Mnangagwa named Kembo Mohadi as defence minister, PatrickChinamasa as finance minister, Lieut.-Gen. (retd) Sibusiso Moyoas foreign minister and Obert Mpofu as home affairs minister.

Mai Ahmad Fatty was dismissed as minister of the interior inThe Gambia, with justice minister Abubacarr Tambadou takingover the portfolio.

In St Vincent and the Grenadines, Camillo Gonsalves becamefinance minister in a cabinet reshuffle.

Week beginning 12 November 2017

In Equatorial Guinea’s parliamentary elections, the DemocraticParty of Equatorial Guinea and allied groups took 99 of the 100seats in the House of People’s Representatives and all 55directly-elected seats in the Senate. Turnout was 84·0%.

Borut Pahor retained the presidency in Slovenia, claiming53·1% of the vote against 46·9% for Marjan Šarec in a run-offelection. Turnout was 42·1%.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Georgia, Mamuka Bakhtadzebecame finance minister and Giorgi Gakharia interior minister.

In Tonga’s parliamentary elections, the Democratic Party won14 of the 17 popularly elected seats, with independents takingthe other three. Turnout was 67·0%.

Week beginning 19 November 2017Christian Georges Diguimbaye was dismissed as Chad’s financeminister, with Abdoulaye Sabre Fadoul replacing him in anacting capacity.

Prime minister Mihai Tudose survived a parliamentary no-confidence vote in Romania.

In Kyrgyzstan, Sooronbay Jeenbekov was sworn in as president.

Week beginning 26 November 2017

In presidential elections in Honduras, incumbent Juan OrlandoHernández won 43·0% of the vote, Salvador Nasralla 41·4%and Luis Orlando Zelaya 14·7%. Turnout was 57·5%. Inparliamentary elections held at the same time, the NationalParty won 61 of 128 seats, Liberty and Refoundation 30 and theLiberal Party 26.

Mohamed Mursal Osman was appointed defence minister inSomalia.

José Antonio Meade resigned as Mexico’s finance minister, withJosé Antonio González Anaya replacing him.

In Uzbekistan, Jamshid Kuchkarov was named finance minister.

Bohuslav Sobotka’s government resigned in the Czech Republic.

Week beginning 3 December 2017In The Gambia, Habib Saihou Drammeh was named interiorminister.

In a cabinet reshuffle in Sierra Leone, Alfred Palo Conteh wasappointed minister of defence, Kaifala Marah minister offoreign affairs and Ismael Sengu Koroma minister of internalaffairs.

Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen’s former president, was killed in thecountry’s civil war.

Lebanon’s prime minister, Saad al-Hariri, rescinded his earlierresignation.

Commins Aston Mewa became minister of home affairs in theSolomon Islands.

In the Czech Republic, Andrej Babiš assumed office as primeminister. His government, sworn in a week later, included KarlaSlechtová as defence minister, Alena Schillerová as financeminister, Martin Stropnický as foreign minister and LubomírMetnar as interior minister.

Alain Berset was elected president for 2018 by the Swissparliament with effect from 1 January.

xxvC H R O N O L O G Y

Following the second round of elections to Nepal’s House ofRepresentatives (12 days after the first round), the CommunistParty of Nepal (Unified Marxist-Leninist) held 121 of the 275seats, the Nepali Congress won 63, the Communist Party ofNepal (Maoist-Centre) 53, the Rastriya Janata Party Nepal 17and the Federal Socialist Forum-Nepal 16. The five remainingseats were shared among other parties and independents.

Beata Szydło resigned as prime minister of Poland, despitesurviving a parliamentary no-confidence vote. She was replacedby finance minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who announced alargely unchanged cabinet that secured a parliamentary vote ofconfidence five days later.

Week beginning 10 December 2017A cabinet reshuffle in Kuwait resulted in Sheikh Nasser Sabahal-Hamad al-Sabah’s appointment as defence minister, withNayef Falah al-Hajraf named as finance minister.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Mozambique, José ConduguaAntónio Pacheco became foreign minister.

Jens Stoltenberg’s tenure as Secretary General of NATO wasextended to 30 September 2020.

The People’s Party and the far-right Freedom Party announcedthat they would form a coalition in Austria, with Sebastian Kurzas chancellor, Mario Kunasek as minister of defence, HartwigLöger as finance minister, Karin Kneissl as foreign minister andHerbert Kickl as interior minister.

Week beginning 17 December 2017Sebastián Piñera won Chile’s presidential run-off election,winning 54∙6% of the vote against 45∙4% for Alejandro Guillier.Six other candidates had participated in the first round ofvoting a month earlier. Turnout was 46·7% in the first roundand 49·0% in the second.

‘Akilisi Pohiva was re-elected as Tonga’s prime minister,winning 14 parliamentary votes against 12 for Siaosi Sovaleni.

In a cabinet reshuffle, Peter Dutton became Australia’s homeaffairs minister.

In Vanuatu, a cabinet reshuffle saw Ralph Regenvanu becomeforeign minister and Andrew Napuat minister of internalaffairs before the prime minister, Charlot Salwai, survived aparliamentary no-confidence vote by 37 votes to 13.

Peru’s president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski narrowly survivedan impeachment vote in parliament. Carlos Basombrío resignedas interior minister the following day, with Vicente Romeroreplacing him five days later.

Week beginning 24 December 2017In a cabinet reshuffle in Chad, Abdoulaye Sabre Fadoul wasnamed finance minister and Mahamat Zène Chérif foreignminister.

In a run-off election for the presidency in Liberia, George Weah(Coalition for Democratic Change) won with 61∙5% of the voteagainst 38∙5% for Joseph Boakai (Unity Party). Turnout was55∙8%.

In Pakistan, Miftah Ismail was named adviser to the primeminister for finance, revenue and economic affairs.

Constantino Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi were appointedvice presidents in Zimbabwe, with Chiwenga also responsiblefor the defence portfolio.

Mali’s government resigned, with the president, IbrahimBoubacar Keïta, appointing Soumeylou Boubèye Maïga asprime minister in succession to Abdoulaye Idrissa Maïga. In thenew cabinet Tieman Coulibaly was named foreign minister,while Tiéna Coulibaly and Boubou Cissé remained defenceminister and finance minister respectively.

Week beginning 31 December 2017

In a cabinet reshuffle in Syria, Gen. Ali Abdullah Ayyoub wasappointed minister of defence.

Ecuador’s vice-president Jorge Glas Espinel was removed fromoffice after being found guilty on corruption charges. He wasreplaced four days later by María Alejandra Vicuña.

Peru’s defence minister Jorge Nieto resigned and was replacedsix days later by Jorge Kisic. Cayetana Aljovín was namedforeign minister.

Ahmed Isse Awad became foreign minister and Mohamed AbdiSabriye interior minister following a cabinet reshuffle in Somalia.

Dato Paduka Lim Jock Hoi of Brunei was sworn in as secretary-general of the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN).

Week beginning 7 January 2018In The Gambia, Ebrima M. Mballow was named as interiorminister.

George Maxwell Richards, Trinidad and Tobago’s presidentwho served from 2003–13, died.

Joseph Malanji was appointed Zambia’s foreign minister.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Poland, Mariusz Błaszczak wasappointed defence minister, Teresa Czerwińska financeminister, Jacek Czaputowicz foreign minister and JoachimBrudziński interior minister.

Miguel Ángel Osorio Chong resigned as Mexico’s interiorminister, with Alfonso Navarrete succeeding him.

In Moldova, Tudor Ulianovschi was sworn in as foreign minister.

Umaro Sissoco Embaló resigned as Guinea-Bissau’s primeminister. He was succeeded by Artur Silva at the end of themonth.

Week beginning 14 January 2018In Romania, Mihai Tudose resigned as prime minister. Aftertwo other successors were proposed and rejected, VioricaDăncilă took up the post two days later, naming Eugen OrlandoTeodorovici as her finance minister.

The government of Andrej Babiš lost a vote of confidence in theCzech Republic’s parliament and resigned the following day.

In Tonga, the government of ‘Akilisi Pohiva was sworn in, withPohiva Tu‘i‘onetoa as finance minister and ‘Akosita HaviliLavulavu as internal affairs minister. Three days later the primeminister was also given responsibility for the foreign affairsportfolio.

In Trinidad and Tobago, Paula-Mae Weekes was declaredpresident-elect by parliament unopposed. She was scheduled totake office in March.

Week beginning 21 January 2018

George Weah was sworn in as president in Liberia. Heannounced a cabinet including Daniel Dee Ziankahn as ministerof defence, Samuel Tweah as finance minister and GbehzohngarFindley as foreign minister.

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Chile’s president-elect Sebastián Piñera appointed Alberto Espinaas defence minister, Roberto Ampuero as foreign minister,Andrés Chadwick as interior minister and Felipe Larraín astreasury minister.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Chad, Ahmat Mahamat Bachirbecame minister of public security.

Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta nominated Monica Juma asforeign minister and Fred Matiang’i as interior minister in acabinet reshuffle following his re-election, with RaychelleOmamo and Henry Rotich remaining as ministers of defenceand the treasury respectively.

In Timor-Leste, president Francisco Guterres dissolved parliamentand called new elections after Mari Alkatiri’s government failed tohave its policy programme passed by parliament.

In a run-off presidential election in the Czech Republic, MilošZeman (Party of Civic Rights) won 51·4% of the vote against48·6% for Jiří Drahoš (independent). In the first round, heldtwo weeks earlier, Zeman had received 38·6% of the vote, whileDrahos took 26·6%, Pavel Fischer (independent) 10·2%, MichalHorácek (independent) 9·2%, Marek Hilser (independent) 8·8%and Mirek Topolánek (independent) 4·3%.

In a cabinet reshuffle in Honduras, Isabel Rocío Tábora wasnamed minister of finance.

Week beginning 28 January 2018Rwanda’s president Paul Kagame was elected chairperson of theAfrican Union.

Incumbent Sauli Niinistö won 62·7% of the vote in Finland’spresidential election, against 12·4% for Pekka Haavisto, 6·9% forLaura Huhtasaari, 6·2% for Paavo Väyrynen and 4·1% for MattiVanhanen.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Burkina Faso, Clément Sawadogobecame security minister.

In Namibia, Pendukeni Iivula-Ithana was removed as ministerof home affairs, with Frans Kapofi replacing him.

Ariel Martínez was appointed interior minister in Paraguay.

In Equatorial Guinea, the government of Francisco PascualObama Asue was dissolved following the elections of November2017. Two days later Pascual Obama Asue was reappointed asprime minister by president Teodoro Obiang. He announced agovernment including Alejandro Bacale Ncogo as minister ofdefence, Lucas Abaga Nchama as minister of finance andSimeón Oyono Esono Angue as minister of foreign affairs.

Week beginning 4 February 2018In the presidential run-off election in Cyprus, NicosAnastasiades (Democratic Rally) won 56·0% of the vote against44·0% for Stavros Malas (Progressive Party of Working People).In the first round held a week earlier none of the ninecandidates obtained the necessary 50% of the vote to win anoutright majority. Turnout was 71·9% in the first round and74·0% in the second.

Abdul Hamid was elected by parliament unopposed for asecond presidential term in Bangladesh.

Week beginning 11 February 2018

In Monaco’s parliamentary elections, Priorité Monaco (Primo!)won 21 of 24 seats against 2 for Horizon Monaco and 1 forUnion Monégasque.

Kai Mykkänen was named as Finland’s new interior minister.

The foreign minister of the Netherlands, Halbe Zijlstra,resigned and was replaced in an acting capacity by Sigrid Kaag.Meanwhile, parliament rejected a no-confidence motion againstthe prime minister, Mark Rutte, by 101 to 43.

Monica Juma was sworn in as Kenya’s new foreign minister.

Ruud Lubbers, who served as prime minister in the Netherlandsfrom 1982–94, died.

South Africa’s president Jacob Zuma resigned, with CyrilRamaphosa elected unopposed to succeed him. A week and ahalf later David Mabuza was appointed deputy president,Nhlanhla Nene finance minister, Lindiwe Nonceba Sisuluforeign minister and Malusi Gigaba home affairs minister.

Margaret Mwanakatwe became Zambia’s finance minister.

Morgan Tsvangirai, Zimbabwe’s prime minister from 2009–13,died.

Hailemariam Desalegn resigned as Ethiopia’s prime minister.

Sher Bahadur Deuba resigned as Nepal’s prime minister, withKhadga Prasad Oli replacing him. A week and a half laterIshwor Pokharel was sworn in as defence minister, YuvarajKhatiwada as finance minister and Ram Bahadur Thapa ashome affairs minister.

Week beginning 18 February 2018The government of prime minister Hani Al Mulki survived ano-confidence vote in Jordan’s parliament by 67 votes to 49.

Henry Mova Sakanyi became interior minister in theDemocratic Republic of the Congo.

In parliamentary elections in Djibouti, the Union for aPresidential Majority won 58 of 65 seats and the coalitionbetween the Djibouti Union for Democracy and Justice and theDjibouti Party for Development 7. The opposition boycottedthe election.

In a cabinet reshuffle in Taiwan, Yen De-fa became minister ofdefence and Joseph Wu minister of foreign affairs.

Week beginning 25 February 2018Samir Mubaidin was appointed Jordan’s interior minister in acabinet reshuffle.

Raul Jungmann became Brazil’s minister of public security, withGen. Joaquim Silva e Luna replacing him in an acting capacityas minister of defence.

Armen Sarkissian, the only candidate, was elected president byArmenia’s National Assembly by 90 votes to 10.

Following a cabinet reshuffle in Cameroon, Louis-Paul Motazebecame finance minister.

Week beginning 4 March 2018

In El Salvador’s parliamentary elections, the NationalistRepublican Alliance won 37 of a possible 84 seats in theLegislative Assembly (42·3% of the vote), ahead of theFarabundo Martí National Liberation Front (FMLN) with 23(24·4%), the Grand Alliance for National Unity (GANA) 11(11·5%), the National Coalition (PCN) 8 (10·8%), the ChristianDemocratic Party (PDC) 3 (3·2%) and Democratic Change 1(0·9%). An independent candidate also won a seat.

In parliamentary elections in Italy, Matteo Salvini’s centre-rightcoalition won 265 of 630 seats in the Chamber of Deputies(including the League with 125 seats), the Five Star Movement227, Matteo Renzi’s centre-left coalition 122 (including the

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Democratic Party, 112), and Free and Equal 14. In the Senate,Salvini’s coalition won 137 of 315 seats (including the League,58), the Five Star Movement 112, Renzi’s coalition 60, and Freeand Equal 4.

Stef Blok was appointed minister of foreign affairs in theNetherlands.

In the first round of Sierra Leone’s presidential elections, JuliusMaada Bio of the Sierra Leone People’s Party (SLPP) received43·3% of the vote and Samura Kamara of the All People’sCongress (APC) 42·7%. There were 14 other candidates. Therun-off held at the end of the month was won by Bio with51∙8% of the vote, against 48∙2% for Kamara. In parliamentaryelections, the APC won 68 of 132 seats returned by popularvote; the SLPP, 48; Coalition for Change, 8; National GrandCoalition, 4; independents, 3. One seat remained vacant and anadditional 12 were allocated for elected chiefs.

Week beginning 11 March 2018Sebastián Piñera was sworn in as Chile’s president.

In Colombia’s parliamentary polling, the Colombian LiberalParty won 35 of 166 elected seats in the House ofRepresentatives with 16∙6% of the vote, the Democratic Center32 (16∙0%), Radical Change 30 (14∙4%), the Social NationalUnity Party 25 (12∙4%), the Colombian Conservative Party21 (12∙2%) and the Green Alliance 9 (5∙9%). Five seats werereserved for the Revolutionary Alternative Force of theCommon People (formerly the rebel group FARC) and one forthe vice-presidential runner-up in elections due in May 2018.The Democratic Center won 19 of the 102 Senate seats (16∙4%of the vote), Radical Change 16 (14∙1%), the ColombianConservative Party 15 (12∙6%), the Colombian Liberal Party 14(12∙4%), the Social National Unity Party 14 (12∙1%) and theGreen Alliance 10 (8∙6%). Again, five seats were reserved for theRevolutionary Alternative Force of the Common People andalso one for the presidential runner-up in the May 2018elections.

In elections to Cuba’s National Assembly, all 605 nominallyindependent candidates received the requisite 50% of votes forelection.

Khadga Prasad Oli, Nepal’s prime minister, won a parliamentaryconfidence vote by 208 votes to 60. Five days later PradeepKumar Gyawali was sworn in as foreign minister.

Robert Kaliňák resigned as Slovakia’s minister of the interior.Three days later Robert Fico resigned as prime minister andwas succeeded by Peter Pellegrini, whose cabinet includedTomáš Drucker as interior minister.

In South Sudan, Stephen Dhieu Dau was dismissed as ministerof finance and was succeeded by Salvatore Garang Mabiordit.

In Grenada’s elections to the House of Representatives, theruling New National Party won all 15 seats for the secondconsecutive time, with 58·9% of the votes cast against 40·5% forthe National Democratic Congress.

An electoral college comprising members of Nepal’s parliamentand provincial assemblies re-elected Bidhya Devi Bhandari aspresident in preference to her opponent, Kumari Laxmi Rai.

US President Donald Trump dismissed Rex Tillerson assecretary of state and nominated Mike Pompeo, director of theCentral Intelligence Agency, to succeed him.

The German Bundestag re-elected Angela Merkel as chancellorby 364 votes to 315. Her cabinet included Olaf Scholz as financeminister, Heiko Maas as foreign minister and Horst Seehofer asinterior minister.

Miro Cerar resigned as Slovenia’s prime minister, although hestayed on in a caretaker capacity.

Bakir Izetbegović assumed the chairmanship of Bosnia andHerzegovina’s presidency.

China’s parliament re-elected Xi Jinping as president and LiKeqiang as premier, while also electing Wang Qishan as vice-president. Gen. Wei Fenghe was named minister of defence andLiu Kun minister of finance.

Ameenah Gurib-Fakim resigned as president of Mauritius, withvice president Barlen Vyapoory taking over the post in anacting capacity.

Week beginning 18 March 2018Vladimir Putin was re-elected president in Russia with 76·7% ofthe votes cast. Pavel Grudinin (Communist Party of the RussianFederation) took 11·8% of the vote and Vladimir Zhirinovsky(Liberal Democratic Party) 5·6%. Five other candidates receivedless than 2% of the vote each.

Paula-Mae Weekes was sworn in as Trinidad and Tobago’spresident.

In parliamentary elections in Antigua and Barbuda, the rulingLabour Party won 15 of 17 seats with 59∙2% of the vote,with the United Progressive Party taking 1 seat (37∙2%) andthe Barbuda People’s Movement 1 (1∙4%). The DemocraticNational Alliance claimed 1∙9% of the vote but did not win anyseats. Paul ‘Chet’ Greene was appointed foreign minister in thenew cabinet.

President Htin Kyaw resigned in Myanmar, with first vicepresident Myint Swe replacing him in an acting capacity. Aweek later Myint Swe lost to Win Myint in a parliamentary votefor the presidency by 403 votes to 211.

Peru’s president Pedro Pablo Kuczynski resigned. First vice-president Martín Vizcarra replaced him and nominated CésarVillanueva as prime minister.

Week beginning 25 March 2018In a cabinet reshuffle in Jamaica, Nigel Clarke became financeminister and Horace Chang security minister.

Abdel Fattah al-Sisi was re-elected in Egypt’s presidentialelections with 97∙1% of the vote.

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