1. Is a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas still possible?
2. Can Angola broker peace between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda?
3. Is Yoon Suk Yeol’s vision of Korean unification one that the West should embrace?
4. Why has Africa become the world’s new battleground against Islamic extremism?
5. Is the Taliban’s hold over Afghanistan growing weaker?
6. Should the EU decouple from China?
7. Is Peru’s Congress amassing too much power?
8. Will the attempted enlistment of Haredim troops bring down Netanyahu’s government?
9. Should Mexican legislators pass AMLO’s judicial overhaul?
10. Is Botswana doing enough to address its drought?
Category: International Extemp Page 2 of 57
1. Is a good offense the best defense for Ukraine in its fight with Russia?
2. Should Macron work with the Popular Front or fight against it?
3. Has Sudan become the next Syria?
4. Who should be Japan’s next prime minister?
5. How can the WHO best contain mpox?
6. What steps can India’s government take to reduce violence against women?
7. Should Great Britain and France increase the size of their nuclear arsenals?
8. What economic reforms does Ethiopia need?
9. Should Israel pre-emptively strike Iran?
10. Is Lula failing in his effort to help Brazil’s indigenous populations?
1. How much of a setback for Russia is Ukraine’s incursion into Kursk?
2. Will recent riots force the British government to increase social media regulations?
3. Is the Chinese economy stuck?
4. Should European multinational institutions expel Hungary?
5. Is Kenya’s police mission in Haiti working?
6. Why was Sheikh Hasina forced out?
7. How will Iran respond to Israel’s assassination of Ismail Haniyeh?
8. Is Japan engaging in unfair currency practices?
9. Has COVID become endemic?
10. Should South Africa reorient its foreign policy to be more friendly to the West?
Here are the first extemp questions of the 2024-2025 season! We will be rolling out some additional content this month as it can be completed. Remember that news quizzes will resume Labor Day week (September 4).
1. Does the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh make it easier or more difficult to wind down the ongoing Israel-Hamas war?
2. Who would China prefer to win the U.S. presidential election?
3. What should democratic activists in Venezuela do now?
4. Is ISIS rising again?
5. Would it be unwise for Israel to go to war with Hezbollah?
6. How should the British Conservative Party rebuild?
7. Have the Paris Olympics been a success?
8. How can Somalia best counter al-Shabab?
9. Will European nations have to pay for more of their own defense in the next decade?
10. How can the Yemeni Civil War be ended?
Note: These will be the last practice questions for the 2023-2024 season. Check back for new questions on August 5.
1. Was the result of the Indian elections a major setback for Narendra Modi?
2. Is America’s national debt imperiling the global economy?
3. To what degree should Claudia Sheinbaum stick with AMLO’s agenda?
4. Could the Conservative Party finish third in the British parliamentary elections?
5. Is there anything the West can do to push China to improve its human rights record?
6. Would “deglobalization” make the world less safe?
7. Should Germany consider a nuclear weapons program?
8. Would it be in Turkey’s best interest to form a closer relationship to China?
9. Will battles over “culture war” issues inhibit cooperation among nations in the Americas?
10. How can South Africa best tackle income inequality?
1. How should the results of the South African elections be interpreted?
2. Is Netanyahu right to reject President Biden’s three-phase deal to end its war with Hamas?
3. Do democracy activists in Hong Kong have any more cards to play?
4. Is the international community failing to cure the causes of refugee flight?
5. Have drug cartels damaged the credibility of Mexican elections?
6. Will the fighting in el-Fasher decide the outcome of Sudan’s civil war?
7. How should South Korea respond to North Korea’s trash balloon campaign?
8. Will Rolexgate shorten the presidential term of Dina Boluarte?
9. Is it too soon for the European Central Bank to lower interest rates?
10. Will the new Dutch coalition live up to its pledge to reduce immigration?
1. Who will be Iran’s next president?
2. Will China squeeze, rather than seize, Taiwan?
3. Would an ICC indictment of Benjamin Netanyahu hasten the end of the war in Gaza?
4. Does Germany need an early election?
5. Are Haiti’s gangs getting stronger?
6. Is a summer election more advantageous for the Conservative Party than holding an election in the fall?
7. Should the West ease its rules on what its weapons in Ukraine can be used for?
8. Is the Philippines doing enough to stabilize Mindanao?
9. Should Mexico follow El Salvador’s approach to crime?
10. How can wealthier nations increase the number of people willing to do military service?
1. What does the sacking of Sergei Shoigu signal about the future of Russia’s war in Ukraine?
2. Should the EU shrink its existing membership?
3. Does Tajikistan have a jihadism problem?
4. How will rising unemployment impact the South African elections?
5. Are the high debt levels of Western European nations too high?
6. Is North Korea gearing up for an invasion of South Korea?
7. Should Panama shut down migrants passage through the Darien Gap?
8. Has Mexican democracy slid backwards under AMLO?
9. Is the rise of digital ID systems a threat to privacy rights worldwide?
10. How would the end of Israel’s wartime coalition affect its war with Hamas?
1. Do more open migration policies by Western governments make it easier for totalitarian states to hold onto power?
2. Are the fates of Ukraine and Taiwan interconnected?
3. How significant is the global competition for semiconductors?
4. Should Israel have been allowed to compete at Eurovision?
5. How will East Asia’s demographic crunch affect global politics?
6. Has the Israel-Hamas war proved that Hamas is incapable of governing?
7. What does a warming global climate mean for global health outcomes?
8. Would it be a mistake for the Democratic Alliance to coalition with the ANC after the next South African election?
9. Is China winning its “cold war” with the West?
10. Will the result of the Panamanian presidential election produce positive economic results?
1. Should Ukraine lower its mobilization age further?
2. Is “lawfare” having a detrimental impact on Spain’s politics?
3. Has the Scottish nationalist movement collapsed?
4. Should the Japanese government stop defending the yen?
5. Is an anti-Iran alliance emerging in the Middle East?
6. How will Colombia’s decision to sever diplomatic ties with Israel affect its economy?
7. What is the biggest challenge that will face the next Mexican president?
8. How would a non-junta government in Myanmar affect its neighbors?
9. Has Venezuela scrapped plans to invade Guyana?
10. Does Japan need to reform its immigration policies?
1. Could anger over Israeli operations in Gaza produce a new “Arab Spring”?
2. What is the biggest obstacle for India becoming a great power?
3. Can a pro-Russian electoral bloc in Moldova keep the country out of the European Union?
4. Could the Philippines, instead of Taiwan, serve as the starting point for a military clash between China and the United States in the Pacific?
5. Will favorable views of Russia and China in the Sahel last?
6. Is anything working when it comes to global climate policy?
7. Should the “Global South” reject the current international system?
8. Is the British NHS falling apart?
9. Should the level of France’s public debt be a cause of concern?
10. What should be the first priority of Haiti’s transitional council?
1. Would a Maduro victory create a larger refugee crisis for Venezuela’s neighbors?
2. Did Iran’s recent attack on Israel backfire?
3. Is deflation the biggest threat facing China’s economy?
4. Should Germany liberalize its abortion laws?
5. Have international organizations lost their moral authority?
6. Should Palestine be given membership in the United Nations?
7. How will farmers protests affect European parliamentary elections this summer?
8. Should NATO admit Argentina as a global partner?
9. Will the new American aid package for Ukraine have an immediate impact on the battlefield?
10. Is Ethiopia’s conflict with Tigray heating back up?
1. Will Ecuador’s diplomat spat with Mexico provide a political boost to Daniel Noboa?
2. Is Ethiopia the biggest threat to regional security in East Africa?
3. How will the European Court of Human Rights ruling on climate change affect future climate-change litigation in Europe?
4. Is Xi Jinping adopting the wrong cure for China’s economic woes?
5. Should humanitarian obligations or national interests play a larger role in rendering a final decision on the EU’s Aslyum and Migration Pact?
6. What do the results of the South Korean parliamentary elections mean for the future of President Yook Suk Yeol’s political agenda?
7. Why have voters in democratic countries become more skeptical about the fairness of elections?
8. How would a large war between Israel and Iran affect the stability of other Middle Eastern monarchies?
9. What should a transitional government for Haiti look like?
10. How can European nations prevent fentanyl from becoming a major problem?
1. Do local election results in Turkey signal the beginning of the end of Erdogan’s rule?
2. Will the warming of relations between Japan and South Korea last?
3. Was Israel’s assassination of Zahedi necessary?
4. Can Dina Boluarte overcome “Rolexgate”?
5. Will the launch of the ZiG stabilize Zimbabwe’s economy?
6. How can governments best prevent non-state actors from employing drone technology for evil purposes?
7. Will Western governments eventually need to put boots on the ground in Ukraine in order to prevent it from losing its war with Russia?
8. Have Rwanda’s reconciliation efforts succeeded 30 years after its genocide?
9. Should European nations condition aid on whether developing nations help its limit migration?
10. Will a bird flu be the next global pandemic?
1. What will be needed to bring the Syrian Civil War to a conclusion?
2. Has the international community abandoned Afghan women?
3. Is Pope Francis strengthening or weakening the standing of the Catholic Church?
4. How can Milei build more support for the 2025 Argentinian midterm elections?
5. If Labour wins the British general election, should it attempt to take Britain back into the European Union?
6. Will China’s demographic crunch short circuit its bid for global dominance?
7. Should Great Britain extradite Julian Assange to the United States?
8. Has Myanmar’s junta lost control of its borders?
9. How will Japan’s large public indebtedness affect future monetary policy?
10. Has the UN become too compromised to play a role in the Israeli-Palestinian peace process?