In The News

Reviving an Old Dream of Afro-Asian Cooperation

Thomas Abraham May 24, 2005
In 1955, the giants of the developing world gathered in Bandung, Indonesia, in an historic attempt to promote Asian-African solidarity. Despite their hopes, few of the participating countries were stable enough to ensure meaningful change. Fifty years later, developing country leaders gathered in the same city, with the same purpose: to promote cooperation between the two regions. Though the...

A Dangerous Mix of Politics and Trade

Philip Bowring May 23, 2005
China's surging textile exports have recently been subject to international scrutiny, with the United States re-imposing quotas. On Friday, Beijing voluntarily raised its textile export tariffs, a largely symbolic gesture designed to calm nerves overseas while asserting its own sovereignty. These examples of world trade tit-for-tat are not only short-sighted, writes commentator Philip...

Double Vision in Beirut

Frances Z. Brown May 12, 2005
In the three months since the assassination of Lebanon's former Prime Minister Rafiq Hariri, the Middle Eastern country has seen a remarkable transformation. Large-scale and tenacious street protests resulted in the resignation of the incumbent pro-Syrian prime minister. As Western powers acclaim the "Cedar Revolution" – named after the emblem adorning the Lebanese flag, and...

Spain Grants Amnesty to 700,000 Migrants

Giles Tremlett May 11, 2005
Going against the grain of regional ideology, Spain this week granted political amnesty to nearly 700,000 illegal immigrants living in the country. This is the latest in several blanket amnesties since 1990. During a three-month period in which illegal workers and their employers could file for the necessary papers, thousands of immigrants, from Latin America and around Europe came out from...

Public Diplomacy: America Is Job No. 1

Bruce Stokes May 9, 2005
As the Bush administration prepares for another round of international public diplomacy – at least its third campaign since September 11 – it is necessary to first examine the lessons from the past few years. In this National Journal article, Bruce Stokes writes that while the goal for US public diplomacy has been "to convince people overseas of the inherent merit of the US point of view on...

Tangled Threads of Protectionism – Part II

Edward Gresser May 5, 2005
One of the textile industry's oldest problems is again under focus: how to adjust in the face of changing technology, tastes, and economic fundamentals. Politicians are calling, not surprisingly, for a populist solution – protect jobs by raising walls against imports. In a three-part series, trade experts examine the issues surrounding the post-quota state of the textile industry. With the...

China and the Power Game

Nayan Chanda May 2, 2005
Thirty years ago, when US troops withdrew from Vietnam, the war-torn country was totally left on its own, without support from either its supposedly Communist allies (China) or former colonial powers (France). In this article, Nayan Chanda, who covered Saigon at the time, discusses the changes in power relations amongst the various players surrounding Vietnam since 1975. To be sure, Vietnam...