Two speeches in the past couple of days have the tone for NATO’s position on conflict and cooperation in the Arctic. Currently, the organization is emphasizing diplomacy and communication over military disputes. Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the new Secretary General of NATO and former Prime Minister of Denmark, spoke at a joint conference organized by NATO […]
Two seizures last week resulted in the largest meth-related interdiction in Mexican history. Seventeen tons of 2-phenylacetaminde were seized entering Mexico from the customs point at Nuevo Laredo. Twenty tons of sodium phenylacetate were uncovered at the Pacific Ocean port of Manzanillo. Both ingredients are integral to the manufacture of methamphetamine and could have been […]
The recently released video clip of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit reinvigorated rallies in support of a prisoner exchange and placed a major dilemma on the shoulders of Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu. Instead of maintaining a refusal to trade over 1,000 Palestinian prisoners for Shalit, Netanyahu faces renewed pressure to agree to an exchange […]
The Obama Administration is undertaking an intense, high-profile deliberation over what to do next in Afghanistan. Accounts of this week’s White House meetings indicate a lively, open debate, punctuated by General Stanley McChrystal’s calls for increased troop levels, answered by skeptical questioning from Vice President Biden. Some of this debate is being carried out in […]
In exactly a year India will host one of the biggest international sports event in its history. The 19th Commonwealth Games will be held in New Delhi from Oct 3-14, 2010. A total of 71 countries are expected to participate in 17 different events. Not only are the Games a matter of pride for India, […]
Yesterday was a very historical day as the Iranian delegation met with the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Germany, China and Russia in Geneva. It is a little too soon to judge the efficacy of these talks, but there has been some positive news. As the New York Times reported, Iran has agreed to […]
The first exchange is complete. Israel swapped 19 female prisoners for a one-minute video of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. The video, shot recently with Shalit holding the September 14 2009 issue of a Palestinian newspaper, shows Shalit in decent health and assuages concerns that the soldier died long ago. Many analysts and officials contend […]
President Hugo Chávez gave an interview to CNN’s Larry King shortly after his speech to the United Nations General Assembly last week. It provides some further perspective into the Venezuelan President’s take on the world, and perhaps shows a more human side that is not always covered by international media. Chávez talked about his personal […]
“War in South Ossetia: Georgia started it” Thus did today’s editorial in Britain’s Guardian say what almost the entire US media elite refused to do last summer. It referred to the comprehensive EU investigation that found the war to have been started by Georgia and not Russia, but could just as easily have been quoting […]
Scores of Lebanese Shiites have recently been expelled from the United Arab Emirates, allegedly for their refusal to inform on Hizballah. The expulsion of the Lebanese nationals started after the June 7 parliamentary elections in Lebanon, but had not been widely known or reported on until the group went public. Lebanon’s President Suleiman reportedly traveled […]
After a meeting between Pakistan’s President Asif Zardari and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, It was announced that an Italian Delegation led by Italy’s Prime Minster Silvio Berlusconi will visit Pakistan sometime this year to explore business and investment opportunities. President’s spokesman told the media after the meeting that president Zardari had requested Italian Prime […]
As the Obama administration deliberates on what strategy and how many resources to commit or implement in Afghanistan, there has been growing comparisons between Obama’s dilemma and Bush’s prior to the Iraqi surge. Though the comparison has several important leaks, there is much to discern in both President’s leadership styles and decision making methods. The […]
Countries within the Southern Hemisphere are on the move. This past weekend member states of UNASUR and the African Union met on Margarita Island, Venezuela, in order to strengthen ties between their countries and continents. One of the ideas proposed by President Hugo Chávez, as well as Moammar Gadhafi, of Libya, is an alliance among […]
Tomorrow Obama administration’s essay at diplomacy with Iran will take place. While some are applauding this move as a new era in the Iran- U.S. relationship, the Wall Street Journal is reminding people that this is not the first time the United States has reached across to negotiate with Iran. In his Op-ed, We’ve Been […]
Last week in an op-ed in The Washington Post Rwandan President Paul Kagame put forward an argument as to why the United States and Africa need one another. It’s a compelling argument, one that many of us have been making for years yet has not gained all that much traction.