China ready to ease tension with the U.S. China is ready to ease the military standoff with the United States in the South China Sea, according to Chinese military officials. The defense sources assured that there were no plans for an increase in Chinese military presence in the disputed region. China and the U.S. both […]
No one in Pakistan will support the reported plans in Washington to extend American drone attacks from the Tribal Areas to the already disturbed province of Balochistan. The Foreign Office in Islamabad has dismissed the news about the broadening of attacks published in the New York Times as speculation, and the Frontier Corps commander in […]
Even though the possibility of the return of abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit lost significant momentum this week, some Egyptian sources indicate that a deal may still be possible before PM Ehud Olmert leaves office. His term may last longer than expected, seeing that Likud Chairman Binyamin Netanyahu intends to request additional time to form […]
Good news for both states as building begins for a railroad to carry non-lethal NATO supplies through Russia to Afghanistan. Radio Liberty reports that “The cost of building the 146-kilometer link is estimated at $131 million.” Let’s hope the building continues at a reasonable pace and leads to development on both sides of the border. Tajikistan’s […]
Last night I led my local Foreign Policy Association’s Great Decision discussion group on the Afghanistan/Pakistan conflict. My presentation largely stemmed from FPA’s Great Decision article written by Afghan expert and US government consultant on Afghanistan, Barnett R. Rubin, and an accompanying video debating the key issues of the conflict. I strongly recommend getting the […]
It must be a bit of a mystery (if not a source of annoyance) for most European leaders to see President Obama, the leader of the most powerful nation on earth devoting much of his last Tuesday to one of the smallest countries in Europe – one that is not even a military ally of […]
… of thinking about Iraq, Reidar Vissar argues for a. continued international and U.S. attention to the security and political development of the country, even as focus shifts to Afghanistan, b. a disaggregation of Sunni/Shia issues from Arab/Kurd issues, thus taking the idea of three-chunk partition off the table, and c. constitutional reform, hopefully with […]
Yuan rises to highest level this year Together with other major Asian currencies the Chinese yuan strengthened against the US dollar. The yuan hit its strongest level this year, easing concerns that China would depreciate its currency to help a struggling export sector. China’s central bank continues to be trapped between calls for a stronger […]
A recent Haaretz expose describes abuse of Palestinians by Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip in December and January. The article bases the claims on the accounts of soldiers regarding their experiences in the territories. A New York Times story outlines the potential isolation of Israel due to the recent Gaza offensive and the accession […]
MULTAN: A gang-rape victim who shunned custom and rose to global fame by speaking out about her case has defied another local taboo – she just got married. Mukhtar Mai is now the second wife of Nasir Abbas Gabol, a police officer who was assigned to protect her as her case gained notoriety. He said […]
WASHINGTON: A bipartisan group of 15 US congressmen warned the US administration on Wednesday that increased US military activities in Pakistan would have dangerous consequences for the entire region. In a signed letter to President Barak Obama, the lawmakers also opposed US drone attacks in Pakistan, saying that it’s the continuation of the Bush administration’s […]
The Council on Foreign Relations today published an interview with Pavel Felgenhauer, the outspoken Putin opponent and astute defence analyst with Anna Politkovskaya’s old paper Novaya Gazeta, about all the main geopolitical questions facing Russia today. The most interesting part of this was his assertion that Russia believes that the US missile shield in Eastern […]
Gordon, a scholar at the Brookings Institute, has been appointed as assistant secretary of state for Europe and Eurasia, though he has yet to be confirmed by the Senate. EurasiaNet reports that this is a political appointment as Gordon is a close associate of Obama’s with little experience in the former Soviet Union. Apparently, this […]
As the US government tries to recover money granted to AIG, the Mexican government is trying to recover sovereignty over Ciudad Juarez. The city on the US-Mexico border is currently occupied by more than 7,000 Mexican troops. Relative to the total size of armed forces, this is equivalent to a deployment of 41,000 US soldiers. […]
A team of scientists from Denmark and Canada are preparing to map out the Arctic Ocean with the eventual goal of extending their countries’ territorial reaches. The researchers have already set up a base camp at Ward Hunt Ice Shelf on Ellesmere Island, Canada’s northernmost piece of land. Expeditions will also set out from Greenland, […]