Western retaliation against Russia for its actions in Georgia will do it more good than harm, according to the academic and actvist Boris Kagarlitsky. As Russian troops finally begin to withdraw from Georgia, the US and Nato are pondering the best punishment for its earlier invasion. The respected International Crisis group suggested that “the West […]
Given the non-stop turmoil in Pakistan, and the role of military in Pakistan's affairs, political or otherwise, it was understandable when Pakistan watchers took great interest in Crossed Swords by Shuja Nawaz. Almost no one knows the author except for the few fortunate, but there is a simple way to introduce him. Shuja Nawaz, the […]
Good Friday, Friday Good. Today I want to take some time out and showcase some of the excellent work done by other FPA writers and bloggers that either directly or indirectly affect Central Asia, most involving the Georgia-Russia conflict. FPA contributer Marco Vicenzino has written two solid analyses of a Reassertive Russia Part I, Part […]
The newest issue of the incomparable journal Foreign Affairs has several short reviews of books on Africa. The topics of the books under review include Botswana's economic successes, another book on that country's military, the failure to establish democratic institutions in the Republic of Congo, Africa's political economy, and the role of Africa in the […]
During the past few days I have had the chance to meet very interesting individuals. As soon as WSN [World Security Network] publishes the interviews I will add the links here. One of the things that I observed is that in Lebanon people always talk of details, of fixing this issue, fixing that issue, and […]
Taliban Claim Responsibility for Pakistan Blasts Pakistan is going through one of the most difficult times in its history. Not only is the political situation too tumultuous, but economical uncertainly, terrorism, lack of electricity, fast diminishing water resources, and exploding population are factors threatening Pakistan's very core. We have seen back to back suicide bombings […]
On July 22, just days before the Russian-Georgia conflict, US Assistant Secretary for South and Central Asian Affairs Richard Boucher spoke before the OSCE Helsinki Commission regarding Kazakhstan's democratic and human rights progress before their scheduled 2010 OSCE Chairmanship. Before we get into how the US views their progress so far, it's never a bad […]
Every happy president is happy in his own way; all unhappy presidents resemble one another, by going to war to boost their approval ratings. (Medvedev approval rating courtesy of Levada Center poll, quoted in “Reiting Voennogo Vremeni”, Gazeta.ru, 20 Aug 2008).
In The Star Ufrieda Ho shows how many argue that Eskom's proposed rationing recommendations will hit the poor disproportionately: A 10 percent power cut for a Sandton man means his air-conditioner gathers dust; for the Soweto man it means he spends his nights in darkness. This is skewed equity Eskom-style, says environmental activist Bobby Peek. […]
In a recent article in The Mail & Guardian Michael Georgy makes the case that the deadlock in Zimbabwe represents yet another failure for Thabo Mbeki, another sign of his waning credibility and fading influence at home and abroad. The case seems pretty strong. Yet something about this argument does not strike me as being […]
China's Xinhua Press is reporting that China welcomes the Georgia-Russia peace plan regarding South Ossetia on Wednesday, with optimism that the ceasefire would generate dialogue that would bring both nations on a common path to a solution. China's position on the conflict favors an agreement between both parties, and has remained netural as far as […]
The incomparable South African political observer and journalist Allister Sparks has an important column in the Cape Times. Here is the introduction: While everyone is anxious to see the Zimbabwe negotiations succeed in bringing relief to the long-suffering people of that country, it is nonetheless galling that the process should be taking place at all. […]
Somalia might be the most chaotic state in the world, to the point that it barely qualifies as a state any more. It's location on the Gulf of Aden means that Somalia also represents a sort of wild west for piracy. In the last two weeks two ships have been hijacked off the coast of […]
Zambian President Levy Mwanawasa, whose health has been in question for some time now (Thabo Mbeki caused a bit of a stir when he mistakenly announced a few weeks ago that Mwanawasa had died) has passed away. Observers fear that Mwanawasa's death could have two repurcussions, the first being causing political instability in Zambia, the […]
”I want to implement complete Islamic laws where the Koran and the Sunnat are supreme.” This is a direct quote from Nawaz Sharif's speech in the parliament when he was Pakistan's Prime Minister. Before he triggered a crisis that brought Musharraf into power, Nawaz Sharif was on his way to trashing everything non-religious in […]