Persecution of Christians outside of the Islamic World

While persecution of Christians is most violent and pronounced in the Islamic world, other regions have also engaged in the practice.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide emphasizes, according to the Commission, that “One of the worst countries in the world for the persecution of Christians is North Korea. With the exception of four official state-controlled churches in Pyongyang, Christians in North Korea face the risk of detention in the prison camps, severe torture and, in some cases, execution for practicing their religious beliefs. North Koreans suspected of having contact with South Korean or other foreign missionaries in China, and those caught in possession of a Bible, have been known to be executed.”

North Korea’s economic sponsor, China, also engages in oppression against Christians. In May, Think Progress reported: “the provincial government of Zhejiang made public a new draft proposal calling for the removal of crosses from the tops of churches and outlining a rigid policy that would greatly restrict their display. According to the New York Times, the regulations will reduce the Christian symbol to obscurity, mandating that they only be installed on the side — not the top — of structures, be a color that blends into their surroundings, and extend no more than one-tenth the height of the building’s facade. Carsten Vala, research fellow at Purdue University’s Center on Religion and Chinese Society, told ThinkProgress that the policy appears to be the latest move in a sustained effort by local officials to reduce the visibility and influence of Christianity in Zhejiang, whose unusually large Christian presence — roughly 10 percent of the local population — has earned the city the nickname “China’s Jerusalem.” Despite heated protests, the government has forcibly removed the crosses from several churches in the province over the past year, and even tore down the 180-foot spire of state-sponsored Sanjiang Church in Wenzhou, China last May.”

The U.S. State Department notes: While most incidents involved the removal of crosses and steeples, a handful of prominent churches were demolished, including the Sanjiang Church in the city of Wenzhou that was leveled in April despite efforts by its parishioners to form human shields to protect it. Zhejiang officials stated that crosses and churches needed to be “demolished” as “illegal structures” that violated local zoning laws. Unofficial “house” church members continued to face harassment and detention. Security officials frequently interrupted outdoor services of the unregistered Shouwang Church in Beijing and detained people attending those services for several days without charge. Reports indicated the average length of these detentions increased from hours to days.

Consuming kamagra is low cost levitra an easy process you just have taken yesterday. When you get behind the wheel of your car, you need to be sure that you have taken soft tablets within 24 hours * Consume the tablet before recommended duration * Do not take the medicine with other nitrate medicines * Take the tablets with full glass of order generic cialis water and on empty stomach Do not overdose or increase the dosage for yourself. For instance, a gentle massage, hot bath, chocolate treat at dinner, etc., can be some useful additions to the buy levitra. Sometimes, they are not able to have good purchase cialis from india intercourse and provide sexual satisfaction. Russia, through its proxies, has also engaged in repression of Christians, notes the State Department. In the eastern Ukrainian oblasts of Donetsk and Luhansk, Russian-backed separatists proclaimed the so-called Donetsk and Luhansk People’s Republics. In the areas they control, the separatists have kidnapped, beaten, and threatened Protestants, Catholics, and members of the Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Kyiv Patriarchate, as well as participated in anti-Semitic acts.

Police, local authorities, and hired men in Vietnam ‘s Binh Duong Province began a campaign of harassment against an unregistered Mennonite group in June, according to their pastors. Church leaders reported government forces throughout the year raided Bible classes, detained and beat congregants, and harassed members of the religious community. Reports also state that hired men prevented the movement of church members, vandalized a Mennonite church, and barred followers from leaving their houses.

At the start of 2015, it was reported by Christian Solidarity Worldwide that “Violations of religious freedom are increasing in Cuba, according to Christian Solidarity Worldwide.The number of recorded violations has risen year on year. There were 220 recorded incidences in 2014, up from 180 the previous year, 120 in 2012, and 40 in 2011.The incidences have also become more violent, with cases of Protestant pastors being arbitrarily detained or beaten and churches being demolished…

“Religious life in Cuba is regulated by the Communist Party’s Office of Religious Affairs (ORA), which has the power to recognise certain religious groups and permit them to build new premises while denying others. But even churches that are registered, legally operating church can face intimidation. CSW’s spokesperson said members of the congregation can be threatened with losing their jobs, pastors’ children are often singled out at school, and the ORA can refuse to allow building repair work to be done. Unregistered churches can experience anything from the confiscation of property to the demolition of the church building.”

Quick Analysis

Ukraine’s Frozen Conflict

As we approach winter in the northern hemisphere, the war in Ukraine is beginning to resemble a “frozen conflict” from many perspectives. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky recently told the media he hopes the war will end faster once President-elect Trump takes over in January. Opinions in Moscow, however, differ from that of the Ukrainian leader. Russian President Vladimir Putin argues that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) needs to exclude Ukraine from joining in “exchange” for peace. If it does not, he says, then no end to the war is in sight. So far there is no Christmas solution. Several NATO countries, according to Vladimir Socor of the Jamestown Foundation, are tentatively considering “coalitions-of-the-willing” to provide security for Ukraine outside of the formal NATO framework. There is, however, no collective mechanism today under which such an arrangement is viable. According to the NATO Charter, while Ukraine is a NATO partner country, it may not join as a full member since it has not fulfilled the requirements for membership. That has not stopped NATO and allies from continuing “to provide Ukraine with unprecedented levels of support, helping to uphold its fundamental right to self-defence,” according to the organization. Socor says that keeping Ukraine out of NATO will not advance peace with Russia. Waiting for a peace settlement, he suggests, would only serve to encourage Moscow to continue the war indefinitely. Although the Biden Administration officially withdrew its support for Ukrainian membership in 2021, NATO maintains an “open door” policy toward membership-seeking countries. The current White House position led the way for European states to oppose Ukraine’s membership saying that a decision should be delayed until “conditions are met.” Biden pushed for changing “open door” to a “bridge” metaphor. It is not intended as an across-the-board NATO policy and has been implemented in the past on a case-by-case basis, says Socor. “The alliance’s open-door policy was not fully insulated from Russia’s non-statutory blocking power, and NATO-aspirant countries’ path toward membership was not always irreversible.” Russia has successfully blocked states like Georgia from joining, first in 2008 and again after the war in Ukraine began in 2014. Russia recognizes the value add of Ukraine to NATO is enormous and that Kyiv has a better case than some other nations. Putin’s invasion was, in part, intended to foreclose that option. By 2021, Moscow was pushing hard to maximize its war objectives, which included further annexations of Ukrainian territory. A main goal for Putin was, and is, to ensure there is no Ukraine left to join NATO. As President-elect Trump prepares to assume office in January, he is faced with the historical challenges presented by the war. Post-conflict security guarantees were the center of several proposals made during the 2023 military stalemate. The incoming Trump Administration has yet to outline how it intends to handle the Russia-Ukraine war. Analysts in Washington believe that the new Administration will expect its European allies to guarantee the majority of Ukraine’s security needs. As we approach 2025, several European nations have acknowledged that they do not view Ukraine as eligible for NATO membership as it would draw the organization into the middle of the conflict. Others want to wait until the war is over or pending a “peace” settlement before considering Ukrainian membership. Socor reports that some “influential voices” are suggesting that “Kyiv should join NATO after “freezing” the war along a stable armistice line, de facto accepting Ukraine’s partition, with NATO security guarantees applying de jure to the government-controlled territory only.” This would mean starting accession talks soon with the actual talks to commence only after a ceasefire is in place. Trump arrives in Washington at a time when Putin’s hybrid strategies of war in Ukraine have eviscerated commonly-held differences between war and peace. “Absent a political consensus in NATO over Ukrainian membership, certain European allies, including France’s President Emmanuel Macron, are holding informal consultations about post-conflict security guarantees to Kyiv by NATO members outside of NATO’s framework,” according to the Jamestown Foundation. The Biden Administration downplayed the discussions on possible forms of military assistance and defense industry cooperation by sending only an Assistant Secretary of State. For a European peace to hold the Trump Administration would need to formally extend the United States’ nuclear deterrence to Ukraine. Options under discussion in Europe include a “coalition of the resolute” to deploy forces to Ukraine as part of a possible armistice package, deterring further Russian attacks, says Secor. European officials are also debating, without any agreement, whether its military forces could perform non-combat logistical roles to free Ukrainian forces to fight. None of the possible courses of action has moved forward as all eyes are waiting on the incoming Trump Administration for clues about its intended level of support for a NATO framework and other non-NATO proposals. Daria Novak served in the U.S. State Dept.