April 15, 2020
Repercussions of COVID-19; Economic Tailspin; Lockdown Lift?; World Health Organization in the Hot Seat; and Necessary Negotiations
“ We have a lot of problems, and we don’t have much to brag about.” 
-- President Vladimir Putin, in a bleak statement Monday about the COVID-19 situation in Russia.

" In a largely atheist yet spiritual nation with little tradition of praying, the digital Wailing Wall allows the Chinese people to share their sadness, frustration, and aspirations with someone they trusted and loved."
-- Li Yuan, New York Times columnist, in an article Monday about Dr. Li Wenliang, who tried to warn China about the novel coronavirus but was silenced and ultimately died from it.
Repercussions of COVID-19
“ The Virus Should Wake Up the West” John Micklethwait and Adrian Wooldridge -- Bloomberg, April 12, 2020 

“ Saving Europe from Corona’s Nasty Geopolitics” Jan Techau -- EU Observer, April 15, 2020 

“ Are COVID-19 Restrictions Inflaming Religious Tensions?” Geneive Abdo and Anna Jacobs -- Brookings, April 13, 2020  

“ U.S.’s Digital Divide ‘Is Going to Kill People’ as COVID-19 Exposes Inequalities” Amanda Holpuch -- The Guardian, April 13, 2020 

“ The World After COVID-19" Lowy Institute, April 9, 2020  
Economic Tailspin
“ The Great Lockdown: Worst Economic Downturn Since the Great Depression” Gita Gopinath -- International Monetary Fund, April 14, 2020 

“ Anatomy of the Coronavirus Collapse” Eswar Prasad and Ethan Wu -- Project Syndicate, April 13, 2020 

“ The World Economy Is Now Collapsing” Martin Wolf -- Financial Times, April 14, 2020 

“ Coronavirus: 5 Predictions for How the Economy Might Recover” Dhara Ranasinghe and Ritvik Carvalho -- World Economic Forum, April 14, 2020 
Lockdown Lift?
“ Trump Says It’s His Call to Reopen the Country. The Constitution Says Otherwise” Jonathan Turley -- The Washington Post, April 14, 2020 
 
“ States Unite on Reopening Economies: ‘Science, Not Politics, Will Guide Decisions” Bill Chappell -- National Public Radio, April 13, 2020 

World Health Organization in the Hot Seat
“ The U.S. Is Halting Funding to the WHO. What Does This Actually Mean?” Jessie Yeung -- CNN, April 15, 2020 

“ How China Deceived the WHO" Kathy Gilsinan -- The Atlantic, April 12, 2020 

“ Poor Countries Need to Think Twice About Social Distancing” Ahmed Mushfiq Mobarak and Zachary Barnett-Howell -- Foreign Policy, April 10, 2020 

“ Dumped Milk, Smashed Eggs, Plowed Vegetables: Food Waste of the Pandemic” David Yaffe-Bellany and Michael Corkery -- New York Times, April 11, 2020 
 
“ The Tangled History of Illness and Idiocy” Jessi Jezewska Stevens -- The Nation, April 13, 2020 
Necessary Negotiations
“ G20 Oil Agreement Doomed To Fail as All Earlier OPEC Deals Have Failed” Tim Treadgold -- Forbes, April 11, 2020 
 
“ Afghanistan: Taliban Prisoner Exchange ‘An Important Step’, Says U.S. Envoy” Timothy Jones -- Deutsche Welle, April 13, 2020 

“ EU Agrees on €500B of Economic Aid But No ‘Corona Bonds’” Bjarke Smith Meyer -- Politico, April 10, 2020 
 
“ Saudi Arabia Wants Out of Yemen” Bruce Riedel -- Brookings, April 13, 2020 

“ Netanyahu, Gantz Resume Talks in Effort to Finalize Deal” Gil Hoffman -- The Jerusalem Post, April 14, 2020