'Hostage diplomacy': a growing headache for the West

23 Sept 05:18 Key points summarised by AI

"Hostage diplomacy" is an escalating tactic where countries like Iran, China, Russia, and Venezuela detain foreign nationals on dubious charges to extract concessions from Western governments.
Western nations face a critical dilemma: negotiating releases often involves significant concessions, such as prisoner exchanges or unfreezing assets, which critics argue rewards the hostage-takers and perpetuates the practice.
High-profile cases, including recent US-Iran, Belgium-Iran, and US-Russia exchanges, highlight the complex, time-consuming, and often controversial nature of these diplomatic negotiations.
Experts suggest that while negotiations are often the sole method to secure a hostage's return, long-term deterrence requires punishing individuals responsible within hostage-taking states and continuously raising public awareness about travel risks.

Examining Thailand’s four-part education revolution

Yesterday 14:22 Key points summarised by AI

Thailand's Education Ministry is implementing a four-pronged strategy to address its students' below-average performance in PISA 2025 and tackle significant educational inequality.
The plan prioritizes closing performance gaps by increasing funding for small and low-income schools, overhauling the curriculum to foster critical thinking, and adopting a data-driven management system to reduce teacher workload.
Key initiatives include enhancing school safety, combating cyberbullying, and expanding mental health support through peer-to-peer networks, recognizing the severe impact of distress on academic performance.
An education expert advises verifying if PISA improvements stem from structural changes, advocating for a revived STEM curriculum with practical 'learn by doing' methods, and urging bureaucratic reform to link teacher evaluations to student development.