In The News

Why Iran Seeks Nuclear Weapons

Arch Roberts Jr. January 8, 2009
With the US at war in bordering Iraq and Afghanistan, with Israel invading the Gaza Strip, any quest by Iran for nuclear weapons does not seem so outlandish. Iran insists its uranium-enrichment program is for peaceful purposes, but by sending rockets to its proxies, Hamas in Palestine and Hezbollah in Lebanon, to cause harm to Israel, it has not proved peaceful intentions. The success in its...

The Struggle for a Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone in Central Asia

Togzhan Kassenova January 8, 2009
Some countries want nothing to do with nuclear weapons, and that’s particularly true of former Soviet satellites that were subjected to numerous nuclear tests during the Cold War. A treaty on a nuclear-weapon-free-zone in Central Asia, agreed to by Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, 10 years in the making and signed in 2006, is about to come into force. “The...

Six-Party Standstill

December 18, 2008
Five nations have worked for years, trying to convince North Korea to give up on a nuclear-weapons program. “Success will inevitably remain out of reach,” argues the Economist, and that’s because “the regime has no intention of ever halting its nuclear activities.” The only reason that major powers like China, the US, Russia and Japan pay much attention to North Korea is because of its weapons...

Powering Africa's Future

Vera Kwakofi December 12, 2008
About two thirds of Africa’s people lack electric power. Eager to secure electric power that would help struggling economies, African nations must decide on an energy source and are inpatient about waiting for alternative sources like solar power. South Africa once produced enough power to share with neighbors like Zambia, Botswana and Zimbabwe, but now finds itself in short supply. “Now, the...

Burma’s Nuclear Temptation

Bertil Lintner December 3, 2008
The landmark Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, put in force in 1970, has three goals: preventing spread of nuclear weapons or technology, promoting cooperation in peaceful uses of nuclear energy and encouraging nuclear disarmament. Because disarmament has not been a priority, the technology has slowly spread, as individuals or nations sell expertise for money or influence....

Lessons Obama Can Learn from the Wily North Korean

Peter M. Beck November 26, 2008
President-elect Barack Obama will enter office on January 20 with multiple security dilemmas around the globe clamoring for attention. Impoverished North Korea, with its nuclear weapons program and ruled by a ruthless dictator, is one security matter that should be on the top of his list, argues Korea analyst Peter M. Beck. Except when President Bill Clinton threatened to use force against North...

A Need to Master the Tyranny of the Urgent

Strobe Talbott November 7, 2008
The number of issues awaiting President-elect Barack Obama and his administration lengthens as storm clouds of recession form worldwide. Obama and his team have stressed that quick fixes won't magically erase the many financial problems. Strobe Talbott, former deputy secretary of state under President Clinton, would agree with the Obama camp's cautionary tone, while also stressing that...