In The News

Have US Sanctions Against Venezuela Helped Maduro?

José R. Cárdenas April 13, 2015
The United States implemented human rights sanctions on seven Venezuelan officials in March. Initially, Latin Americans criticized this move because aggressive moves from Washington could allow Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro to rally his waning supporters. Although Maduro did seize another presidential victory, polls show that Maduro’s popularity has not improved as predicted. Unlike Hugo...

Can Authoritarian Capitalism Outlive Lee Kuan Yew?

John Cassidy April 6, 2015
From 1959 to 1990, Lee Kuan Yew guided Singapore’s remarkable rise to an Asian economic powerhouse. The Singaporean prime minister trail-blazed the creation of an “authoritarian capitalist” model of economic development, soon followed by China. The model was built on western ideas favored by Lee including meritocracy, universal public education, and emphasis on science and technology.. But the...

Global Push Aims to Change China's Mind on Bank Rules: US Official

Krista Hughes March 23, 2015
Japan, the EU and the US are urging China to delay enforcing new rules “that would force technology vendors to Chinese banks to hand over secret source code and adopt Chinese encryption algorithms,” reports Krista Hughes for Reuters Canada. China expects those hoping to do business in the world’s most populous nation to abide by Chinese law. The rules – proposed as cybersecurity and...

Divided Europe Mired in Crises

Chris Miller March 17, 2015
For a few short decades, Europe was viewed as a model for human rights and economic security. Many Europeans were eager for the continent to become an influential geopolitical actor, acting independently of the United States, notes Chris Miller, a Yale doctoral candidate and research associate at the Hoover Institution. But polarization within the Union and the institutional failure to address a...

New Fees, Regulations on Tap for Employers of Foreign Workers

Tara Carman February 23, 2015
Canada is backing away from open borders for skilled labor. New rules require employers who hope to hire a foreign worker must submit copies of the employment offer, details about their business operations and a $230 fee. The government’s aim is to protect Canadian workers against displacement, with the new requirements applying only to businesses that don’t conduct Labor Market Impact...

The Fight Against ISIS After the Death of Jordan’s Pilot

Aaron David Miller February 6, 2015
The civilized world is repulsed by the war crimes committed by the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq: rape and coerced marriages for young girls; numerous beheadings of aid workers, journalists as well as the organization’s own foot soldiers who question orders; the execution of a young Jordanian pilot by burning him alive. Writing for the Wall Street Journal, Aaron David Miller suggests the war...

Tunisia Remains Arab Spring’s Lone Success Story

Chris Miller February 5, 2015
The wave of protests that swept through the Middle East in 2011, known as the Arab Spring, rocked governments and ended a handful of dictatorships. Citizens of those countries anticipated a new era in the region’s politics amid the power of activism. “All of the revolts of 2011, except for Tunisia’s, have ended in tragedy,” notes Chris Miller, PhD candidate at Yale University and research...