In The News

Emerging Democracies Coy on Denouncing Syrian Repression

Christophe Jaffrelot October 10, 2011
The Arab Spring protests have put emerging powers on the spot. French scholar Christophe Jaffrelot explores whether fledgling democracies have an obligation to aid the citizens of repressive states in securing democratic freedoms – why India, Brazil and South Africa resisted a UN Security Council resolution to intervene in Libya and declined to seek resolution against Sryia’s al-Bassad regime for...

China’s Diversified Energy Strategy

S. Kumar October 3, 2011
China, the world’s biggest consumer of energy, “faces challenges in the area of energy security” due to its contentious political relationships and dependence on supply routes. In this opinion piece for Al Jazeera, S. Kumar describes diversified energy strategy that China is employing with both foreign governments and companies. For example, China is “actively trying to attract investments from...

Pakistan Seeks Control of Its Afghanistan Endgame

Bruce Riedel September 30, 2011
Encouraging Taliban attacks on NATO, leaders of the Pakistan military and its intelligence service are impatient for the US to abandon the war in Afghanistan. The Pakistani goal is to prevent a pro-India government in Afghanistan and install instead a puppet Islamic regime. In testimony before the US Senate Armed Services Committee, the outgoing chairman of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral...

The Arab Spring’s Unintended Consequences

Christopher Hill September 29, 2011
As the Arab Spring protests continue, the region endures repression and economic upheaval, to be exacerbated with impending US troop withdrawal from Iraq. Christopher Hill, former US assistant secretary of state for Asia during the Bush administration, links sectarian clashes with US withdrawal in Iraq in a Project Syndicate essay. A US-led international coalition deposed Iraq’s dictator, leading...

Message to Perry: Stop Banging on About Israel

Simon Schama September 28, 2011
Global communications put US politicians and presidential candidates on the world stage with constant scrutiny. Attempts by Texas Governor Rick Perry, a Republican candidate for US president, to blast President Barack Obama’s Middle East policies and support Israel, may have backfired, revealing an ignorance of history, US policies and security issues that’s alarming, argues author Simon Schama,...

After the Arab Spring – Part II

Daniel Bethlehem September 23, 2011
Statehood for Palestine in name only won’t ensure peace, equal footing with Israel and policies that serve the people living within those borders. A three-part series explores the aftermath of the Arab Spring including the motivations behind the Palestinian quest for statehood and consequences. “A balance of dignity between the parties is a necessary step towards a more durable accommodation,”...

The G-20 Must Get Serious

Gordon Brown, Felipe Gonzalez and Ernesto Zedillo September 23, 2011
World leaders could do more to pursue coordinated action on the global economy, contend former UK Prime Minister Gordon Brown, former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe Gonzalez and former Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo in an opinion essay for the International Herald Tribune. Failure to follow up on pledges to strengthen global financial regulation, find agreement on the delayed World Trade...