In his most recent flamboyant sign of making a clear break with the past, Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s Prime Minister, has taken the unexpected step of moving out of the Hungarian equivalent of the White House, choosing instead a not-too-shabby castle in the historical Buda Castle District, the former place of residence for Hungary’s kings of yore.
Our favorite longreads and blog posts from the past week.
Neither Russia’s violation of its international legal obligations nor its institutional blockade of the U.N. Security Council can possibly be in the interest of the other U.N. member states, least of all in the interest of the less mighty among them. Hence, when the world’s leaders gather for this year’s opening of the United Nations’ 69th General Assembly they would be well-advised to address this dual attack on the foundations of global governance.
Far from being an anomalous event, Russia’s coercive military pressure on Ukraine in the aftermath of the Maidan revolution is typical of the way great powers, including the United States, have behaved in the past.
As the leaders of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) convene in Wales for a two-day conference, the world watches how the most important and powerful joint-military and political alliance will handle the myriad of problems it must face in many corners of the globe. With Russia knocking on the door of Eastern Europe and […]
Our five favorite longreads and blog posts from the past week.
Sanctions are all the rage in contemporary foreign policy circles. Following interventions in Iraq, Afghanistan and Libya, Western populations rightly are less and less supportive of direct military action, especially of any initiative involving “boots on the ground.” Sanctions provide a tempting policy solution to decision makers all too conscious of public opinion; a sort of “financial […]
Investments in Colombia in the ’80s and ’90s were often limited to large multinational companies. These companies would take the risks to mine in Colombia’s regions despite the dangers present to their employees. On many occasions, Colombians and foreign nationals were kidnapped for ransom, and many international workers and influential Colombians would not survive or were […]
Reza Marashi is Research Director at the National Iranian American Council (NIAC). Prior to NIAC, Mr. Marashi worked in the Office of Iranian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State. He was also a political analyst at the Institute for National Strategic Studies (INSS), covering China-Middle East issues, and previously a consultant at a Tehran-based […]
G20 Trade Ministers met July 19 in Sydney, Australia, and reported the proceedings in a Chairman’s Summary. The only major media coverage of the event highlighted a joint report, of the OECD, World Bank, and WTO, on “Global Value Chains (GVCs).” For those acquainted with trade policy, the ministers’ call for trade-supporting measures is familiar. […]
The last three weeks in world politics has been nothing less than a complete disaster of the international community. Since the end of the 2014 World Cup, it appears that anything that President Obama would have considered to be a major issue has appeared as a crisis upon a crisis. Unfortunately, there has been mostly […]
Our favorite longform articles and blogs from around the web this week!
Karen Elliot House, Bessma Momani, Kamran Bokhari and Ayham Kamel joined Reza Akhlaghi of the Foreign Policy Association to discuss the growing regional instability, Arab policy, and the breakdown of security structure in Iraq and Syria.
Our favorite longform articles, blogs and podcasts from around the web this week.
Clearly, there is a danger in the prospects of a bomb controlled by such Iranian hardliners. However, there are those in the United States who continue to apply a punitive calculus formulated on every perceived lie and outright deception by the Iranian government over the last 30 years — of which there admittedly have been many — as justification to force a no domestic enrichment agreement. This position is wrong, indefensible, and risks diplomatic failure.
