Foreign Policy Blogs

Archive | April, 2009

JANE ADDAMS CHILDREN’S BOOK AWARDS ANNOUNCED

The winners of the 2009 Jane Addams Children’s Book Awards were announced today by the Jane Addams Peace Association.
Planting the Trees of Kenya: The Story of Wangari Maathai, written and illustrated by Claire A. Nivola, is the winner in the Books for Younger Children Category.  Planting the Trees of Kenya: …

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NAM meeting: Castro responds to Obama

NAM meeting: Castro responds to Obama

The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) is a collection of nations whose mission is to protect members’ sovereignty “against imperialism, colonialism, neo-colonialism, racism, and all forms of foreign aggression, occupation, domination, interference or hegemony as well as against great power and bloc politics.” Associated countries account for 2/3 of the members of …

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100 Days: The Foreign Policy Team

100 Days: The Foreign Policy Team

The media has been saturated with 100 day retrospectives and most of them (understandably so) have focused on economic policy and the financial crisis. I found this analysis focused on foreign policy at the Carnegie Endowment for Peace website. In

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Live Webcast of World Press Freedom Report

Freedom House will have a live webcast of the unveiling of it’s annual press freedom report on May 1 at 10a.m. EST. The report, which shows declines in press freedoms in every region for the first time, will be released two days ahead of World Press Freedom Day …

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World Press Freedom Day Somber Occassion

The United Nations has called World Press Freedom Day (May 3), a day to “celebrate the fundamental principles of press freedom; to evaluate press freedom, to defend the media from attacks on their independence and to pay tribute to journalists who have lost their lives in the line …

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Two Tasty and Nutritious Full-Course Menus on Sustainability

The Financial Times had a great series of articles the other day in a special report on Energy-Efficient Buildings.  The FT team on this, led by environmental reporter Fiona Harvey, covers topics from design, climate-proofing, and microgeneration to supply chains and waste reduction.  Look at the interactive …

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5 Questions with Thomas Wright

Thomas Wright, an expert on international relations, says the “great dramas of the 21st century will play out in Asia rather than Europe.”
Mr. Wright is the executive director of studies at the Chicago Council on Global Affairs and previously served as the senior researcher for the …

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Tribunal Releases Generals

A judge has ordered the release of four generals that were being held in connection with the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in 2005. Belgian judge Daniel Fransen ordered the men to be freed Wednesday after it was determined that the evidence being used to hold them  …

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ICC double standards?

ICC double standards?

The International Criminal Court (ICC) has had its fair share of criticisms throughout its short existence.  The accusation of double standards is a common one.  Why does the ICC seem to focus all its energy on Africa?  What about Israel, what about North Korea, what about torture …

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Pal. Unity Talks Postponed to Mid-May

The most recent Palestinian reconciliation talks concluded with only one breakthrough, as negotiators postponed the renewal of negotiations to May 16 and 17. Both Hamas and Fatah officially state that they are willing to compromise, but many observers deem the process futile. The delay to mid-May occurred to …

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Widespread violence afflicts Karachi

Widespread violence afflicts Karachi

KARACHI: At least 25 people were killed and over 40 others injured in a fresh wave of ethnic violence in different parts of Karachi on Wednesday. About 20 vehicles were torched.
Tension and panic gripped parts of the city as unidentified attackers went on a shooting spree, killing most of the …

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100 Days of Decline or Revival?

100 Days of Decline or Revival?


“I’m confident in the future but I’m not content with the present,” said President Barack Obama on his 100th day in office. Two public events were organized to mark the “Hallmark holiday” and Obama emphasized that the administration is “off to a good start, …

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Time for a new "consensus" in Washington

Time for a new "consensus" in Washington

 
No one, including British economist John Williamson himself, could have predicted the viral-like application of one of his own political theories when he first introduced the term “Washington Consensus” in 1989. What was once simply applied to a grouping of commonly shared “policy instruments” used by Washington-based financial institutions like …

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EU & Canada negotiate trade deal, US risks isolation.

EU & Canada negotiate trade deal, US risks isolation.

Next Wednesday negotiations will begin on a possible EU/Canada trade deal. A study has estimated that the deal  could bring real income gains of €20billion annually for both partners. Which only makes the absence of a similar EU/US deal more conspicious. In fact it is the increased protectionist feeling in the …

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Karzai Strong, Iran Present

Two items of note:
Weak Opposition to Karzai, So Far…
The Afghan Election Commission started excepting nominations for presidential and provincial offices for the upcoming August elections and one thing seems clear, incumbent President Hamid Karzai appears to have a strong chance at retaining his position. No other major …

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