In The News

North Korea Tests China and the World

Shim Jae Hoon January 28, 2013
Foreign relations with isolated North Korea are in an unending winter – hints of a thaw repeatedly followed by hard freezes. The country’s young leader, Kim Jong Un, gave a speech, the first broadcast by a North Korean leader since 1994, suggesting that his country might be ready for dialogue with South Korea President-elect Park Geun Hye. Then, responding to UN Security Council Resolution 2087,...

Pursuing Ambitious Global Goals, But Strategy Is More

David E. Sanger January 22, 2013
The world still has high hopes for a transformative second and final term of US President Barack Obama. The president is ambitious and aware, ready to move an agenda to fulfill those expectations, reports David E. Sanger for the New York Times. The United States celebrated the president’s inauguration on Monday; the inaugural speech was progressive yet realistic, pointing to the need to battle...

The Al Qaeda Menace in Africa

Bruce Riedel January 21, 2013
Throughout 2011, protests that came to be known as the Arab Spring swept through Northern Africa and the Middle East. NATO stepped in on the Libyan protests, restricted to civilian protection. But the US gave a nod to Qatar sending machine guns, ammunition to rebels in the Libyan rebels; France provided guns and grenades, too. Because of looting and trade, weapons intended for rebels and civilian...

Deafness at Doomsday

Lawrence M. Krauss January 17, 2013
Global leaders routinely ignore the views of scientists in many areas of policymaking, and this threatens global security. “Scientists’ voices are crucial in the debates over the global challenges of climate change, nuclear proliferation and the potential creation of new and deadly pathogens,” writes Lawrence M. Krauss, theoretical physicist at Arizona State University. Nine countries have...

Two Diverging Roads for Afghanistan

Thomas Barfield January 11, 2013
US President Barack Obama and Afghan President Hamid Karzai are meeting throughout the day at the White House, developing specifics on troop withdrawal from Afghanistan and the US role in the region. Afghanistan faces two futures. “The direction depends on whether Afghanistan breaks its longstanding lack of economic integration with the outside world,” suggests Thomas Barfield, Afghanistan...

Japan and China Step Up Drone Race, Tension Builds Over Disputed Islands

Jonathan Kaiman, Justin McCurry January 11, 2013
About 200 kilometers north of Taiwan are small islands claimed by major trade partners Japan and China. The islands are uninhabited, but analysts have suggested that oil and gas reserves could rest underneath nearby waters. The new leaders of the two nations are turning to drones and fighter jets for surveillance of the islands, called Diaoyu by China and Senkaku by Japan. Japan plans on...

State Secrets Revealed in Vietnam

David Brown January 10, 2013
Though it’s rare for officials in Vietnam to speak freely on foreign affairs, a colonel’s speech to an academic audience was secretly recorded and posted online. “The occasion was a meeting of senior Party cadre who administer or teach at colleges and universities in the capital area, and who double as functionaries charged with propaganda and training,” writes David Brown for Asia Times. The...