In The News

April 18, 2005
In his previous book, "The Lexus and the Olive Tree," New York Times foreign affairs columnist and author Thomas L. Friedman wrote about this shrinking world. Discussing his recent book, "The World Is Flat," with Nayan Chanda, editor of YaleGlobal Online, Friedman observes that not only has the world shrunk to a tiny size thanks to a communication revolution, it has even been...
George Perkovich April 18, 2005
After years of distrust and suspicion, India and Pakistan are discussing the possibility of a joint pipeline, which will bring badly needed gas to western India. Aside from the potential economic benefits to both countries, the project is environmentally safe and most importantly, will encourage the two countries to cooperate more. The problem, however, is that the oil pipeline would originate...
April 18, 2005
Since Columbus discovered the New World in 1492 and reconnected peoples that had been separated for ten millennia, globalization has become increasingly fast-paced. The interconnected world, facilitated by information technology and trade liberalization in the late 20th century, is the most recent wave of human societies' efforts to connect each other even more closely. In his previous book...
David McNeill April 11, 2005
The worsening relations between Japan and its northeast Asian neighbors sank a few notches as demonstrators in China attacked Japanese diplomatic missions and businesses. South Koreans, too, have vented their anger at Japan's attempt to whitewash history. Recently, Japan's Ministry of Education has approved history and civics textbooks for use in schools that are either silent over past...
Nayan Chanda April 11, 2005
Nearly six hundred years after Chinese ships visited the Persian Gulf, the ground is being laid again for a permanent Chinese presence in the area through which some 40 percent of the world's oil resources travel. As Nayan Chanda writes, Chinese diplomatic visit to Pakistan last week resulted in an agreement to expand a Chinese-built port there, leaving US, Japanese, and Indian governments...
Rob Trudel April 8, 2005
A significant lobby in Washington is pressuring Beijing to revalue its currency relative to the US dollar, claiming that the artificially low renminbi gives China an unfair competitive advantage. To be sure, Chinese resent the pressure and worry that an appreciation of the renminbi relative to the dollar would raise the price of Chinese goods and curb its dominance of the export market. But in...
Tony Hotland April 7, 2005
Newspapers are reporting that the Indonesian government may have used tsunami relief money to purchase an eight million dollar villa for their ambassador to Switzerland. The report has prompted an uproar from Indonesians and international donors, who fear further misuse of relief money. Given the scope of reconstruction projects, say donors, well-connected officials in any affected country could...