In The News

North Korea’s Changing Propaganda Style: Economist

April 9, 2019
North Korea’s state press coverage, historically fixed in its language and form, is showing hints of cosmetic change. A year ago, North Korea’s media outlets chastised the United States as “evil imperialists,” while recent months have witnessed the state’s media arm take a softer tone in coverage of foreign affairs. As a recent article for the Economist notes, “Apart from a rebuke of ‘gangster-...

Israel and US Politics: New York Times

Nathan Thrall March 31, 2019
Support for strong US-Israel relations crossed party lines from the 1970s to the start of this century. More recently, though, a rift has opened between the two major parties as surveys show that the least pro-Israel demographics – among black, Hispanic, the young and nonreligious voters – represent a larger proportion of the Democratic Party. "Many blacks and Hispanics draw strong parallels...

Sanctions or Saving Lives? Foreign Policy

Colum Lynch March 25, 2019
Since the start of this year, the Trump administration has gradually lifted key sanctions placed on North Korea after its maximum-pressure campaign received criticism from relief agencies and international organizations for denying life-saving supplies for the impoverished nation. These lifted restrictions include a freeze on the inflow of medical supplies and relief workers into Pyongyang. Many...

Netanyahu Should Step Down: Economist

March 23, 2019
Recent charges of bribery, fraud, and breach of trust against Binyamin Netanyahu have drawn the Israeli prime minister into tangled public controversy as opponents and critics call for his resignation. As a recent article for the Economist observes, “Netanyahu refuses to go.” From all indications, he has no intentions to resign and still hopes to be re-elected. He helped engineer an electoral...

US Golan Heights Decision: Middle East Eye

Mohsen Abu Ramadan March 22, 2019
Israel has occupied large sections of Palestinian territory for more than 50 years, and the US president suggested on Twitter: “it is time for the United States to fully recognize Israel's Sovereignty over the Golan Heights, which is of critical strategic and security importance to the State of Israel and Regional Stability.” The stance reinforces policies of Israel’s prime minister before a...

World Bank Can Be Sued: NPR

Tim McDonnell March 7, 2019
The US Supreme Court, in a 7-1 ruling, ruled that international organizations can be sued when overseas development projects bring harm to local communities. A group of farmers and fishermen in Gujarat, India, filed the lawsuit in 2015 after a coal-fired power plant came on line and contaminated local water sources despite promises of environmental protections. The decision in Jam v....

Africa Drawdown: International Policy Digest

Steven Leach March 5, 2019
The United States is planning to reduce its forces stationed in Africa. The poorest nations in Africa are vulnerable to extremist ideologies due to poverty and poor governance. “It is no accident that al Shabaab evolved in a defunct Somali state (in some ways it is shocking that it did not happen sooner), that al Qaeda found a safe haven in rural Afghanistan, that Boko Haram resides on the...