In The News

A Nuclear Hand of Friendship

Vinod Khosla July 4, 2006
India is not a signatory of the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty; its first nuclear tests were conducted after the treaty’s 1967 deadline, and it is not formally recognized as a nuclear power. Because India will unlikely submit its reactors to the NPT guidelines without such recognition, Vinod Khosla sees the agreement between that country and the US as a positive way to draw India into the...

Behind the Rise of Iran's President: A Populist Economic Agenda

Bill Spindle June 30, 2006
Extravagant government spending could cause more economic harm to Iran than any sanctions by Europe and the US over the country’s nuclear program. President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s promise to “put the oil revenue on the dinner table of every Iranian” garners him the loyalty of Iran’s working class. Buoyed by oil money, he has proposed $4 billion for school renovations, raised salaries for state...

Chinese Premier Boosts Trade with Seven-Nation Africa Tour

Rory Carroll June 29, 2006
Chinese foreign policy officials have dubbed 2006 “the Year of Africa,” a policy in action as Wen Jiabao, China’s premier, visits with leaders of seven countries on the continent. While Africa’s natural resources pose the most obvious interest for the Chinese, Wen will also conduct talks on issues as varied as nuclear power, textile imports, regional alliances, and investment and trade. African...

North Korean Nuclear Conundrum

Chung Min Lee June 29, 2006
As North Korea plans to launch a long-range missile, the US threatens sanctions and military intervention. But public policy Professor Chung Min Lee asserts that it may be too late to dismantle North Korea’s nuclear arsenal. Analysts suggest that the country has enough weapons-grade plutonium for a dozen nuclear weapons. Since the early 1990s, North Korea has worked with highly enriched uranium...

China’s Portuguese Connection

Loro Horta June 22, 2006
Patience is power, suggests a Chinese proverb, and that describes how China pursues diplomacy. The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (CPLP) consists of eight states around the world, encompassing 230 million people – but is rarely regarded as a priority in global politics. Bucking conventional thinking, China diligently pursues diplomacy with the CPLP, foreseeing benefits such as new...

Greek Fleet Swells

Robert MacDonald June 16, 2006
Shipping by sea is a cyclical business, reliant on global trade, and shipping magnates pay close attention to global affairs. Freight rates were at record highs from 2003 to 2005, but have slipped since. Recent developments, all interconnected, cause worries for the shippers: China’s move to increase interest rates to curb inflation could slow its economic growth; the massive US deficit could...

Pollution From Chinese Coal Casts a Global Shadow

Keith Bradsher June 16, 2006
Currently, China uses more coal than the US, the European Union and Japan combined. China’s global-warming gases such as carbon dioxide will “probably exceed that for all industrialized countries over the next 25 years,” note journalists Keith Bradsher and David Barboza in “The New York Times.” These emissions have widespread impact, increasing global temperatures and releasing harmful sulfur...