Just yesterday I had written a qualified warning against blaming Russian media meekness entirely on the Kremlin. Now, I am really tempted to take it all back. In a case of unabashed, iron gripped censorship of one of the most courageous, outspoken and thoughtful publications in the country, Russian Federal investigators have targeted The Exile, […]
IMPRESSIVE RUSSIA CRUSH LITHUANIA in Euro 2008 warm-up. (Though I’m sure many Russia fans were disppointed it was not Estonia, to have another excuse for a bit of ultra-violence….)
Here's an interesting op-ed by Fouad Ajami in today's Wall Street Journal. An ardent supporter of the Iraq war since the beginning, Ajami harshly criticizes Scott McClellan's accusations towards the Bush administration. He also says, “With the luxury of hindsight, the critics of the war now depict the arguments made for it as a case […]
Here's a story, in fact really a series of events, in which I have not heard much about. The governments of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and even resource-poor Tajikistan have led many ‘urban renewal’ projects in their respective capitals and major cities. This makes sense in many ways as most of these states are receiving large […]
Today's New York Times carries on its front page an article all about how the Kremlin silences its opponents in the media. Now, it appears, the Russian government is even adopting Stalin-era airbrushing to literally photoshop people with uncomfortably critical views out of already-recorded shows. Everything in the article is true (and, frankly, something that […]
As can be easily found in my article discussing India's growing influence and interest in Central Asia, they are not alone. Those of you who check this blog often, know that it features many pieces analyzing great power relations involving Central Asia. Although the ‘Great Game’ designation has been way overplayed, it is true that […]
Yesterday, the UN Security Council voted unanimously, to extend for another six months the mandate of the UN investigator looking into the 2005 murder of former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri. Resolution 1815, which was drafted by France, renewed the mandate, which expires June 15, until December 31. Michael Young on Hariri's assassination. Hariri's killing triggered […]
Thabo Mbeki is receiving criticism from just about all sides these days. His reactions to the xenophobic violence are being called “too little, too late.” The country's manufacturers fear that rising costs will cut into competitiveness, and heads of state always suffer when their economies falter. Morgan Tsvangirai has asserted that Mbeki is unfit to broker […]
How does a country reconcile itself after horrific paroxysms of violence? Numerous countries have had to deal with precisely this dilemma. South Africa, through its Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), did so most famously and most extensively. And the TRC process has served as a model, an inspiration, and as a template for several other […]
The costs of food and fuel are hurting Africa perhaps more than any other continent, and of course on the whole Africans can least afford the economic disruption. South Africa's Mail & Guardian has a feature revealing the myriad ways Africa is effected and how different countries are responding to the newest global economic crisis to disproportionately […]
Bad news tends to follow on bad news in Zimbabwe. The latest blast comes from Zim's battered agricultural sector. Experts believe that the winter wheat season is set to be a failure, with only 13% of the planned wheat crops having even been planted. Food shortages are already acute across Zimbabwe and especially in the urban areas. […]
IRIN has this important “Backgrounder” feature (with lots of useful links) on the Sahel, the poorest region in one of the poorest parts of the world. Global climate change is only likely to exacerbate matters.
Dmitry Medvedev has dropped a proposed libel law that would have shut down publications accused of libel without a court order, reports the liberal radio station Ekho Moskvy. Mikhail Fedotov, head of the Russian Union of Journalists, welcomed the move, and said that he was sure that Medvedev, a lawyer by training, would have been […]
Drug-related murders in Mexico have soared in the last two months. Municipal, state, and federal police officers have died in clashes against heavily armed commandos or have been assassinated on the orders of drug bosses. It has been argued that this rise in violence is a signal of the Mexican government's progress in the War […]
Australian soldiers are leaving Iraq as of Sunday, June 1, which fulfills the election promises of the current government. This comes on the heels of an interesting article in The Times last week, where Australian soldiers said they were ‘ashamed’ at their lack of frontline role in both Afghanistan and Iraq. The article comes from […]