In The News

'Global warming real' say new studies

Reuters February 18, 2005
The Kyoto Protocol, part of an international effort to protect the earth’s climate, came into force this past Wednesday. A day later, a team led by Tim Barnett of the Scripps Institution of Oceanography unveiled fresh evidence detailing the very real effects of global warming. By focusing on ocean temperatures rather than the atmosphere, scientists have found what they claim is indisputable...

International Community Calls for a Free and Sovereign Lebanon

Marianne Stigset February 17, 2005
Though President Bush did not include Syria in his famous "Axis of Evil," he may as well have. Thanks to Syria's defiant and often belligerent stance towards US policy in the Middle East, officials in Washington have taken an increasingly critical approach to the country and its Baathist government. The assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri has only heaped...

Iranian Cleric Blogs for Free Expression

Reuters February 16, 2005
Mohammad Ali Abtahi, like so many politically conscious world citizens today, writes an internet web log, or "blog." Abtahi's story seems ordinary – except that he is an Iranian presidential adviser and a Muslim cleric. This revolutionary action, undertaken by a very senior member of the Iranian government, is aimed at promoting an open discourse for expression, political or...

An Empire's Fraying Edge

February 15, 2005
The strife in Chechnya has shown no signs of abating. Countless terrorist acts, mostly perpetrated by Islamic radicals, have made the Russian republic one of the most insecure regions in Europe. In response, Russia has cracked down, dispatching security services to track down and disarm the militants. Part of the trouble, however, is that many Chechnyans have a historical perception of Moscow as...

Questions of Timing…

William C. Triplett II February 14, 2005
North Korea's recent announcement left many observers questioning its timing. One factor may have been the recent visit to China by members of President Bush's National Security Council. During their visit, US officials told their counterparts in Beijing that Libyan nuclear materials had been scientifically tested. These tests showed that certain materials had come from North Korea,...

Despite Rhetoric Trans-Atlantic Alliance is Alive and Well

Mohammed Ayoob February 14, 2005
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice last week delivered a speech urging reconciliation among allies ostensibly torn asunder by the US invasion of Iraq. According to international affairs scholar Mohammed Ayoob, however, the US-EU alliance was never in danger. Whatever differences might arise over specific foreign policy issues, Ayoob maintains, the overriding objective of the Concert is to...

Beijing Counts Cost of Supporting an Embarrassing Old Friend

Hamish McDonald February 14, 2005
During the Korean War, hundreds of thousands of Chinese soldiers came to the aid of North Korea in battling US forces. Over fifty years later, it is clear that history will not repeat itself: China is not prepared to make sacrifices for a regime that has become a political embarrassment and a possible threat to China's own economic development. Observers of Chinese policy now say that...