The controversial decision by the State Department to participate on the United Nation’s Human Rights Council will be transparent (an Administration key word) with the launch of a new Web site on the development of the Universal Periodic Review, an evaluation of the human rights record of all 192 UN member states. Israel previously protested the participation […]
As details of David Headley’s visits to India before the 26/11 attacks come forth, India has changed its long-term tourist visa regulations. As per the changes, tourists with long-term visas would “no longer be allowed to enter India within two months of their last departure from India if their last visit was longer than ninety […]
This past weekend, Pro-Russian incumbent President Sergei Bagapsh won a Presidential election in a region that many members of the global community refuse to recognize as a valid country. On December 13, Sergei Bagapsh was announced as the winner of the Presidential elections in Abkhazia, the breakaway region of Georgia that was a site of […]
Regional cooperation was written in the cards when two avowed socialist, left wing-ish governments came to power, in turn in India and Bangladesh. And now, it seems the promise of regional cooperation between India and Bangladesh has come to pass, quite in contrast to its historic lineage and border linkage. So says the Economist. As […]
The normally quiet Israel-U.K. relationship faced two fairly substantial hurdles in the past week- the potential arrest of a visiting Israeli official and an impasse requiring labeling of Israeli products sold in British stores. Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni cancelled a trip to a speaking engagement in London after a British court issued an arrest warrant […]
Brazil’s climate change policy performance now leads the world according to Climate Change Performance Index results for 2010 published by GermanWatch and the Climate Action Network of Europe.
Zainab Jeewanjee explains why the United States can’t pull out of Afghanistan and Pakistan. Withdrawing troops entails competing foreign powers, such as China, Russia and India stepping in as influential leaders in the strategic Af-Pak region. With energy and security interests in both countries, the United States is a needed stabilizer until some security, and development is reached in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
In order to put pressure on Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan withdraws from the power grid linking the region. Power lines from Turkmenistan deliver electricity to Tajikistan while Uzbek power supplies both Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan. Without steady supplies, these impoverished and mountainous countries will face severe shortages and unheated homes. Kyrgyzstan will get humanitarian assistance from […]
Manasi Kakatkar from FPA’s India blog posted a fascinating video about the Royal Gurkha Regiment fighting in Afghanistan, produced by Atlantic. The short documentary highlights the remarkable ability of the Gurkhas, who hail from Nepal, to effectively work with both their British and Afghan partners. The video has its own soundtrack too! Check it out: […]
This is excellent news. The Awami League government is moving to standardize primary education at all levels. The Education Policy Formulation Committee, tasked with establishing a viable education system in Bangladesh has already submitted a proposal that is getting funneled through the appropriate channels. As The Daily Star reports: “The prime minister pointed out that […]
The oft-talked about settlers are a small percentage of the Israeli population. Of that minimal number, a small subset of extremists manages to give Jews and Israelis a bad name, all while evoking religion as the root cause. This weekend, a group of settlers torched a mosque in the West Bank and scrawled racist slogans […]
If an asset is more productive with a policeman guarding it, then Bangladesh Police has a lot of explaining to do. Wisdom on the street has it that if one is afraid of having something stolen, then she should notify the police of its whereabouts, and, sure enough, it will have been stolen. So the […]
An interesting discussion about whether India should send troops to Afghanistan at the blog, Acorn. Most of the people think that it would be an imprudent move to get involved militarily in Afghanistan. Some of the most recurring concerns are about the protests from Pakistan, the effect such involvement would have on the situation in […]
Reporting for the Middle East Political and Economic Institute, Foreign Policy Association blogger Manuela Paraipan brings us an exclusive interview with Aram Nerguizian, resident Middle East and North Africa scholar with the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at Center for Strategic and Security Studies (CSIS). Please visit the MEPEI website to access the interview […]