In The News

Saudi Oil Facilities: Al Qaeda’s Next Target?

John C.K. Daly March 7, 2006
Osama bin Laden’s January promise of more attacks on the US was soon followed by a failed suicide attack on a refinery in Saudi Arabia. Any attack on Saudi oil facilities would bring immediate harm to the US and the rest of the world. Iraq already provides a powerful example of the deleterious effects of strikes against oil facilities. Since June 2003, Iraq facilities have been hit 298 times,...

Nuclear Pact Launches India Into Uncharted Waters

Pratap Bhanu Mehta March 7, 2006
The deal between the US and India is historic, recognizing India’s evolution from a regional to global nuclear power. The deal – yet to be approved by the US Congress, the Indian parliament and the Nuclear Suppliers Group – offers short-term benefits for India, but the long-term implications are less clear, cautions policy analyst Pratap Bhanu Mehta. The agreement marks a major improvement in...

Hacia Aguas Ignotas

Pratap Bhanu Mehta March 7, 2006

A Welcome End to India's Pariah Status

Bronwen Maddox March 3, 2006
US President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced an agreement that would allow shipment of nuclear components to India for peaceful energy development. India agreed to “irreversibly” turn nearly two-thirds of its 22 nuclear reactors into civilian facilities that will be open for inspection. The agreement is not final, and the US Congress could block the deal, taking advantage of...

Dubai Limps Into Port

March 2, 2006
Intense bipartisan opposition to Dubai Ports Worldwide, a company from the United Arab Emirates, taking control of six US ports represents extreme and uncontrollable fear, according to this editorial from a Singapore newspaper. The uproar has cast suspicion on a moderate Arab country that has been a key US ally in the war on terror. The US ports are controlled by a British company, and the UK...

Think Again: Soft Power

Joseph S. Nye Jr. March 1, 2006
In 1990, “Foreign Policy” first analyzed “soft power.” Here, Joseph S. Nye, Jr., author of the original article, returns to correct notions that have since become associated with soft power. The concept, he asserts, is the power of “attraction,” as opposed to the power of “coercion” or “payment.” Soft power is not exclusively cultural power, yet exporting cultural goods that hold attraction...

India: Pro-America, Pro-Bush

March 1, 2006
Since the beginning of Iraq war, anti-Americanism has increased around the world. According to a new study by the Pew Research Center, however, India not only bucked the trend, but improved its opinion of the US. Seven out of every ten Indians reported a favorable view of the US. Of the 17 countries polled - including US allies like the UK, Canada, and Poland - only Americans felt more positively...