Alaska Senator Mark Begich – the Democrat who defeated Ted Stevens in November 2008 – has devised a list of five initiatives to usher in what he calls the “Second Arctic Century,” a reference to the discovery of the North Pole 100 years ago. He discussed some of his proposals in a radio interview recently […]
First off, my friends at Rising Powers beat me to a SCO Summit report. In the shadow of the Iranian election drama and the first real BRIC get together, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (Don’t know what the SCO is?) held their annual Heads of State Summit in the Russian Ural city of Yekaterinburg. The Heads […]
Check out my review of the latest Shanghai Cooperation Organization Summit in Yekaterinburg, Russia over at FPA’s Central Asia blog. I’m not cheating on you Afghanistan, I just think we should see other regions once in a while.
Amidst the economic collapse, something is blooming in Russia: Potatoes! In yet another unmissable tidbit of post-Soviet life from Laurie Taylor’s excellent Thinking Allowed show on BBC Radio 4, he interviews a Syracuse university professor who claims that a boom in potato cultivation since 1991 reflects Russia’s spiralling poverty and social stratification since the collapse […]
Why would a shrewd Russian oligarch want to buy two notoriously loss making English newspapers? According to billionaire Alexander Lebedev, it was his fond memories of scouring the London dailies for information as a young Soviet spy, as well as being a “good way to waste money”. But really he just wanted to hang out […]
According to President Obama’s special envoy to Sudan, retired Air Force Maj. Gen. J. Scott Gration, the Sudanese government is no longer engaging in a “coordinated” campaign of mass murder in Darfur. This is a change from previous characterizations of the violence there as an “ongoing genocide.” I suppose it is possible to try to […]
Bafana Bafana yesterday defeated New Zealand 2-0 in a Confederations Cup match that was even more lopsided than the score suggests. The South Africans dominated in most every way imaginable, and at times looked as if they were fielding fifteen men on the pitch. The narrative still is that the hosts blew it against Iraq […]
It appears that tensions are already brewing between the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) and President Jacob Zuma. Who could have seen this coming? Other than me, and plenty of others, I mean. (Pardon the self indulgence.) COSATU feels as if it catapulted Jacob Zuma to the presidency, not only by its support […]
My editor sent me this story on rape statistics in South Africa with an apt one-word comment: “Wow.” The gist: South Africa’s Medical Research Council conducted a survey on rape in the country and by any measure, even taking into account questions about methodology, the statistics are shocking.
A new report from the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs evaluates the new, hastily put together Palestinian Authority government led by Prime Minister Salam Fayyad. The article outlines opposition to Fayyad and illustrates the inability of any leaders in the West Bank and Gaza Strip to generate support. Instead, the backing for any leader remains fickle […]
Beijing defending “Buy Chinese” Policy Qin Gang, spokesman of China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, defended Beijing’s government purchase policies. In early June, China’s National Development and Reform Commission, together with a number of other ministries, issued a notice requiring government bodies to source domestically for projects financed by the state. According to Mr. Qin, the […]
Citizens of Karachi have been without electricity for 22 hours! Yes, 22 hours in this excruciating heat. Electricity went out without any plausible reason and there was no answer or definitive time frame about electricity restoration from the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation. So, people were left with no option but to curse the government and […]
Most of what we read about the Arctic comes in the form of news articles, foreign policy statements, speeches, and scientific reports. Any books are generally historical recounts of expeditions. However, a novel about the Arctic called Rankin Inlet, by Mara Feeney, has just been published. Feeney became interested in the Arctic after spending a […]
Quick little round up… McKiernan officially out, McChrystal officially in as the top US and overall commander of forces in Afghanistan. McChrystal, known for his special ops strategic strikes in Iraq, has been hammering the point that protecting Afghan civilians is what will bring a change in the conflict’s direction. He is already reviewing troop […]
Within one week of each other Iran and Lebanon held national elections, the outcomes of which could not be more different. In volatile Lebanon, the chance for trouble before, during, and after the polling was high. With so many religious sects, ethnicities, and political parties, as well as its recent history of violence between them, […]