Hard Numbers: Colombians sour on Duque, Tigray famine looms, monster ship arrives in US, Dutch climate ruling

Hard Numbers: Colombians sour on Duque, Tigray famine looms, monster ship arrives in US, Dutch climate ruling
Colombia's President Ivan Duque looks on during the announcement of the granting of legal status of temporary protection to Venezuelan migrants in Bogota.
REUTERS/Luisa González

76: Iván Duque is now the most unpopular president in Colombian history. His disapproval rating — disapproval! — has plunged to 76 percent in the wake of widespread protests against his (now-abandoned) tax hike plans, which have since morphed into an ongoing national strike to demand broader social reforms.

2: The UN has warned that Ethiopia's war-torn Tigray region is at serious risk of famine if food assistance is not scaled up in two months. The conflict between the Ethiopian army and Tigrayan separatists has destroyed harvests and killed most of the region's livestock, while aid groups are often blocked from delivering supplies.

16,000: The CMA CGM Marco Polo this week became the largest cargo ship ever to arrive on a US port, visiting the US East Coast — and Signal writer Willis Sparks' mom saw it in person! The vessel is longer than the Empire State Building is tall, and it can store more than 16,000 20-foot (6.1-meter) containers. Hopefully a strong wind doesn't come along...

45: A court in the Netherlands ordered energy giant Shell to cut its carbon emissions by 45 percent from 2019 levels by the end of the decade. Environmental groups had sued Shell for violating the human rights of the Dutch people by extracting fossil fuels. The landmark ruling could make it easier to take legal action against energy companies over their contribution to climate change.

More from GZERO Media

Fire authorities search for the missing and recover the deceased at the site of an accident near Muan International Airport in Jeollanam-do, South Korea, on Dec. 29, 2024.
Chris Jung/NurPhoto via Reuters

The country's deadliest aviation disaster since 1997 comes at a politically volatile time.

President-elect Donald Trump greets Elon Musk before attending a viewing of the launch of the sixth test flight of the SpaceX Starship rocket, in Brownsville, Texas, U.S., on Nov. 19, 2024.
Brandon Bell/Pool via REUTERS

Is Elon Musk a 21st-century Svengali? Two weeks after being accused of acting like the president – instead of a presidential advisor – when he attempted to sway Congress to torpedo a spending bill, the tech magnate is wielding political influence once again – and enraging some supporters of President-elect Donald Trump.

- YouTube

Jimmy Carter, the 39th President of the United States, has died at the age of 100. A one-term president whose administration was marred by inflation, a gas crisis, and the Iranian hostage standoff, Carter went on to have one of the most illustrious post-presidencies in American history. Here's a remembrance from Ian Bremmer on President Carter’s foreign policy legacy.

A day before the controversial inauguration of Georgian Dream loyalist Mikheil Kavelashvili as the country's new president, Georgian citizens demonstrate with pro-EU placards and Georgian, American, and European Union flags as they protest the government's decision to suspend European membership talks in Tbilisi, Georgia, on Dec. 28, 2024.
Jerome Gilles/NurPhoto via Reuters

On Sunday, Georgia inaugurated President Mikheil Kavelashvili amid growing demonstrations and accusations of election fraud perpetrated by Moscow. Kavelashvili, a former soccer player, was selected by a 300-member electoral college controlled by the ruling Georgian Dream party, which now dominates every major government institution.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov speaks during the Doha Forum 2024 on Dec. 7, 2024.
DOHA Qatar Copyright: xNOUSHADx via Reuters

Russia no longer considers itself bound by its unilateral moratorium on the deployment of intermediate and shorter-range nuclear-capable missiles, clearing the way for Moscow to deploy the weapons across Europe and Asia.

Economic Outlook 2025 reveals the trends and shifts that will shape the global economy in the coming year, according to the Mastercard Economics Institute. The report explores a few key economic themes, leveraging Mastercard’s aggregated and anonymized data to provide a unique perspective. This includes cyclical changes – such as shifts in consumption as central banks lower rates or prices change – and structural changes like the impact of migration on capital flows or workplace flexibility driving greater female workforce engagement.

Every January, Eurasia Group, GZERO’s parent company, produces a report with its forecast for the top 10 geopolitical risks for the world in the year ahead. Its authors are EG PresidentIan Bremmerand EG ChairmanCliff Kupchan. The 2025 report will drop on Jan. 6.

But first, let’s look back at the 2024 Top Risks report – you can read the full report hereto see where Bremmer and Kupchan hit or missed the mark.

- YouTube

Ian Bremmer's Quick Take: Is stapling green cards to STEM PhDs the answer to closing America’s talent gaps? What becomes of "America First"? In this Quick Take, Ian Bremmer discusses Vivek Ramaswamy's provocative proposal and the stir it’s causing among Trump supporters over immigration policy.