In The News

Seeking Effective Ways to Talk to the World

Daoud Kuttab October 17, 2005
In the wake of Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, Palestinians have to rebuild more than their country's physical infrastructure. The top brass of Palestinian public and private sectors gathered recently to discuss how to mold a more effective image of Palestine. Speakers agreed that while international public opinion bills the Palestinian cause as one of "the world's most just...

Kashmir: Amid Tragedy, Peace Beckons

Ahmed Rashid October 17, 2005
For half a century, India and Pakistan have disputed ownership of Kashmir. Now that a devastating earthquake has reduced the cities and towns of Kashmir to rubble, the opportunity – and necessity – for peace between the two nations is greater than ever before. On the Pakistani side of the border, the enormous devastation has left at least two million people without homes. On the Indian side,...

George W. Bush’s Suicidal Statecraft

Zbigniew Brzezinski October 14, 2005
Zibigniew Brzezinski, former national security adviser of President Jimmy Carter, is sounding an alarm at the danger that the current US policy has created for the country. In a sweeping criticism, he says that the invasion of Iraq has had a disastrous effect worldwide. “An intense political hatred for America, Britain and Israel,” he writes, “is drawing recruits for terrorism, not only from the...

U.S. faces challenges on three fronts

Kwon Ji-young October 14, 2005
In a speech at the World Knowledge forum in Seoul, Korea, renowned historian Paul Kennedy warned that America's status as an unchallenged global hegemon may be on the decline. The US faces three challenges that are currently threatening its sole-superpower status: terrorism, economic rivalries and a diminishing cultural reputation. At their current rates of growth, the economies of China...

Turkey and the European Tent – Part II

Mohammed Ayoob October 13, 2005
In the second installment of a two-part series on the ramifications of the Turkey-EU negotiations, Mohammed Ayoob wonders if in the end Turkey will be ever be inside the European tent. Turkey became an associate member of the European community in 1963, but has waited more than 40 years for membership talks to begin. In spite of loyal membership in NATO, Turkish citizens are well aware that...

Cracks in the Social Net

Alexander Osang October 13, 2005
“We left that city like the colonial powers left Africa,” lamented the ex-head of personnel at what was one of the largest textile mills in North Carolina. In 2003, the Pillowtex plant, based in the city of Kannapolis, closed and laid off its five thousand workers overnight. In a region where unionization was militantly discouraged, the mill provided an entire framework of life for the community...

As Polar Ice Turns to Water, Dreams of Treasure Abound

Clifford Krauss October 11, 2005
What will be left when the Arctic's polar ice cap is gone? The answer, in the eyes of the nations who border the Arctic Ocean, is untapped economic opportunity. New oil deposits, new fisheries, and new trade routes – including the fabled Northwest Passage – all promise tantalizing riches to what are now barren, frozen outposts. But who will get to tap those riches? Russia, Canada, Norway...