Although American statesmen and Republican politicians of the Bush era hate to admit it, one of the foundational aims of the war in Iraq – the creation of a liberal democracy – guaranteed an increase in Iranian influence both within Iraq and across the region. The politics of Shi’a majority were immediately advantaged by electoral […]
Internally—where it matters the most—the overall status of a government is judged by how the average citizen perceives it. From that perspective, and due to a number of factors, in Somalia not much has changed in the past three decades since the military government went astray. Still, the average Somali sees his/her government as the […]
During his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama advocated diplomacy over coercion to resolve the Iranian nuclear threat, pledging to open the lines of communication and work to reinstate trust between Washington and Tehran. Barely having time to file for a change of address to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, newly sworn-in President Obama’s Iran policy was challenged […]
As Russia counts its dead from yet another summer tragedy, investigations continue into how flooding had killed 171 in Krymsk, near the Black Sea. “A system to warn the residents was set up,” confessed Emergency Minister Vladimir Puchkov yesterday, “but, unfortunately, not everyone was warned early enough.” The regional governor immediately dismissed the head of the Krymsk […]
During the Vietnam War, the United States dropped as many as 2 million tons of cluster bombs on Laos. It was called a secret air war but was, of course, no secret to the Laotians. Thousands of people have been killed and wounded by the bombs, which continue to litter the countryside. What director […]
Recently, the general gloom about Mexico has been replaced by a bit of positive reportage. Mexico’s economy grew faster than Brazil’s last year, and it is set to do so again in 2012. Largely, that’s because NAFTA is once again paying dividends for Mexico. Higher wages in China and volatile transport costs have made Mexico the […]
We’ll soon find out whether Prime Minister Singh can salvage something positive from his final two years in office A previous post focused on the recent political crisis in Pakistan that resulted in Prime Minister Gilani’s removal and in the process further destabilizing the civilian government as well as complicating efforts to repair spiraling U.S.-Pakistan relations. […]
Southeast Asia’s youngest and poorest country, Timor-Leste, went to the polls on Saturday in the second round of parliamentary elections that will determine their next government as well as whether UN peacekeepers might be able to leave the country by year’s end. According to the World Bank, nearly half of the country’s 1.1 million people […]
Way back in February I expanded on a report in the Christian Science Monitor that suggested al Qaeda in Iraq (AQI) had set up shop against the Assad regime, in Syria. Writing both here and for The American Spectator, I joined the chorus of analysts, academics and pundits who urged caution against arming Syrian rebels – precisely because it’s unthinkable to equip battle-hardened […]
The United Nations has a long history of, what some have called, anti-Israel bias. Many factors contributed to that, including several lop-sided human rights conferences that disproportionately condemned Israel and a high profile report on Israel’s operations against Hamas in the winter of 2008-2009. That report was subsequently delegitimized after its chief author, Richard Goldstone, admitted that […]
Farnaz Fassihi is the Senior Middle East Correspondent for the The Wall Street Journal . Through her first account coverage of the region, her ability to look at events with an astutuly critical look, Farnaz has proved to be one of the leading authorities in Middle East politics. A graduate of English Literature from Tehran University and a […]
Winning over Pakistani hearts and minds is proving difficult Two new reports provide further insight into the breakdown of U.S.-Pakistan relations. The first, put out by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, charts the growing hostility of Pakistani public opinion toward the United States. The second, issued by the International Crisis Group (ICG), a respected non-governmental […]
The organization Global Witness recently released a briefing entitled “A Hidden Crisis? Increase in killings as tensions rise over land and forests.” The briefing shows that 711 activists defending rights related to land and forests have been assassinated in the last decade (2002-2011), word-wide. The report shows that Latin America is home to three of the […]
The Chinese icebreaker Xue Long departed Shanghai on June 27 for a three-month expedition that will take it to the Arctic. 120 people are on board, including scientists from France, Denmark, Iceland, and Taiwan. According to China Daily, researchers will study the effects of changes in the Arctic ecosystem on the climate of China and […]
I can recall being in graduate school in New York having a conversation about Third World development with a fellow student, an American originally from Connecticut. At the time, the end of 2010, I had just returned from a stint with the South African Human Rights Commission and was pretty sour on the potential for […]