Riley is a writer and reporter for GZERO. When she isn’t writing about global politics, you can find her making GZERO’s crossword puzzles, conducting research on American politics, or persisting in her lifelong quest to learn French. Riley spends her time outside of work grilling, dancing, and wearing many hats (both literally and figuratively).
Moldova votes amid a broader Russia-vs-EU tug of war
The tiny former Soviet republic of Moldova heads to the polls this Sunday, amid allegations that Russia is sowing confusion and disinformation to promote anti-European candidates. The current government of the country, which borders Ukraine, has pledged to join the EU by 2030, but the coalition is polling neck-and-neck with a pro-Russian opposition party that opposes that plan. Beneath all the high-stakes geopolitical drama, voters are focused keenly on economic issues in what is still one of Europe’s poorest countries – inflation remains high, corruption is rampant, and broader reforms have stalled.
China’s trade war with Mexico is heating up.
Beijing has launched a broad investigation into Mexico’s trade policies, accusing Latin America’s second largest economy of unfair tariffs and dumping. Mexico recently slapped a 50% duty on Chinese cars, partly to address Washington’s concern that China uses Mexico’s free trade agreement with the US as a “back door” to circumvent US tariffs. Mexico’s relations with China are tricky: For Mexican industries, China is at once a source of competition and, more recently, investment. Still, with the US by far its most important partner, Mexico finds itself increasingly at odds with Beijing, as the US-China rivalry deepens.