In The News

Will Guns Fall Silent in South Asia?

Paula R. Newberg December 5, 2006
Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf’s recent announcement that Pakistan is willing to give up its claim to Kashmir under certain conditions has rekindled hopes for a settlement. It also underlines the need for finding peace in Kashmir if South Asia is to break out of the grip of misery. Violent conflict changes the basic equations of governance, and sustained violence makes it all the more...

Globalization and God – Part II

Bruce Mazlish November 28, 2006
A spike in religious violence around the globe leads many observers to assume that secularism has a diminished influence in international politics. But surges of religious fervor in the Middle East, Europe, Africa and the US are a backlash against modernity, whose ideas and freedoms cannot be swept under some global rug and forgotten. In the second part of this two-part series, historian Bruce...

The Withdrawal Syndrome – Part II

Dilip Hiro November 2, 2006
With daily bombings, sniper attacks and abductions, the US struggles to devise a withdrawal plan while maintaining control in Baghdad. This two-part series analyzes how policymakers and citizens in both the US and Iraq question the value of a US presence in the country. With the mid-term election in the US on Tuesday, Republicans could lose control of one chamber in Congress, and President George...

The Withdrawal Syndrome – Part I

Richard N. Haass October 31, 2006
Three years into the endless violence and destruction of the Iraq war, sentiment in both Iraq and the US calls for American withdrawal. This two-part series reviews how the US government is dealing with that sentiment and analyzes the implications of US withdrawal for both nations. The first article – written by Richard Haass, president of the Council of Foreign Relations and former director of...

Silence Is a Decree All Should Fear

Umberto Eco October 30, 2006
People increasingly fear posing questions about other cultures or engaging in criticism. Religious fundamentalists are not the only culprits, according to writer Umberto Eco. He also criticizes Western cultures that promote political correctness for stirring fear about free speech. Eco warns that outrage about every gaffe and a growing culture of silence will mask history, polarize those with...

China Gets Tough With North Korea

Susan L. Shirk October 26, 2006
Destitute and isolated, North Korea is a desperate state. The nation may have nuclear weapons, but survives only with economic aid from China and South Korea. Despite many provocations, China has been steadfast in refusing to penalize North Korea. But a North Korean nuclear test in early October, despite Chinese warnings against conducting it, proved too much. China surprised the world by siding...

Can You Tell a Sunni From a Shiite?

Jeff Stein October 26, 2006
Some of the worst violence in Iraq is a result of sectarian conflict, pitting followers of the Shiite branch of Islam against Sunni adherents. The sectarian violence draws in neighboring states and adds to the challenge of the US military in the region. Unsettling is the lack of US understanding about the difference between Sunnis and Shiites, as described by journalist Jeff Stein. Questions...