In The News

Illusions of Empire: Defining the New American Order

G. John Ikenberry March 2, 2004
From an unprecedented era of global power to a soon-to-be realized decline, five new books on American empire run the gamut of explaining and forecasting the long-term possibilities of American power. In this review for Foreign Affairs, G. John Ikenberry notes where each author gets his analysis correct, but he also suggests what they fail to see. All describe America as an empire, but that...

Nuke Quarantine

Amir Mir February 26, 2004
The United States government is placing pressure on Pakistan to allow an inspection of its nuclear arsenal, and to put into place, a joint Pakistan-US monitoring mechanism. The American pressure follows the recent disclosure of a Pakistan based global network that supplied nuclear technology to Iran, Libya and North Korea. Pakistan, a vital ally in the US led war against global terrorism, needs...

The Fallout of Pakistani Revelations on North Korea

Phillip C. Saunders February 23, 2004
North Korean nuclear programs have long been a puzzle for the international intelligence community to solve. No one is quite sure when they started, how they started, or how far along towards producing weapons-grade uranium and plutonium they are. The recent revelation by Pakistani scientist A.Q. Khan that he sold technology to the North Koreans could begin to unravel the mystery. Talks this...

Little Headway Seen in 6-Party Talks

Seo Hyun-jin February 18, 2004
Prospects for the upcoming talks between the two Koreas, the US, China, Japan, and Russia already look bleak. Although officials of the participating countries – particularly South Korea – are trying to stay optimistic and are suggesting measures to regularize the multilateral talks, many feel that there is little hope for a successful outcome, unless the deadlock between Washington and Pyongyang...

President Bush's New Plan to Stop Proliferation

Joseph Cirincione February 13, 2004
Under US President George W. Bush's newly proposed plan, only a handful of countries would be allowed to develop nuclear fuel. These countries could, in turn, sell fuel only to states that renounce enrichment and reprocessing. Joseph Cirincione, Director of the Non-Proliferation Project at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, believes that although the proposal does represent an...

Hidden Nuclear Drawings Found in Iran

Sonni Efron February 13, 2004
The discovery of blueprints for a device used to enrich uranium has renewed Washington's suspicions of a covert nuclear program in Iran. Washington is considering referring Iran's nuclear activities to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the United Nations Security Council. As the international community considers the most appropriate international response, investigators...

Bush Seeks New Push to Curb N-Weapons

Edward Alden February 12, 2004
To stem the spread of nuclear weapons, President Bush proposes a ban on all sales of civilian nuclear enrichment technology. Under his new plan, nuclear countries would provide fuel only to those countries that renounce enrichment. Recognizing that this could fundamentally change the Nuclear Non-proliferation Treaty, Bush is seeking to make changes through the Nuclear Suppliers Group, a 40-nation...