In The News

Viruses, Security Issues Undermine Internet

Ariana Eunjung Cha June 27, 2005
Designed originally by the US Department of Defense as a limited experiment in communications, the internet was not intended to be the global network it is today. Since the system was originally used by only a small community of researchers and friends, the popularized version was not equipped with the security measures necessary to cope with the enormous number of current– largely anonomous –...

American Character Gets Mixed Reviews

June 23, 2005
According to a survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, America's worldwide reputation continues to suffer. The Pew Global Attitudes Project, co-chaired by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright and former Senator John C. Danforth, surveyed nearly 17,000 countries to assess their opinions about their own nations and the rest of the world. The 2005 survey revealed that, although US...

A Moment to Seize with North Korea

Donald Gregg June 22, 2005
Last Friday, North Korean leader Kim Jong-il issued a statement indicating his willingness to return to six-nation talks and reverse his nuclear program. In this commentary for The Washington Post, Donald Gregg and Don Oberdorfer analyze the import of Kim's message. According to the authors, Kim's statements present "a golden opportunity to take the US offers to the one and only...

Whither Africa Avenue?

V. Sudarshan June 20, 2005
As a result of maneuvering by the so-called G4 (Japan, Germany, Brazil and India) to gain permanent seats on the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), a meeting of African Union members in early July will play a large role in determining which of the four will be successful. The meeting, which will take place in Sirte, Libya, will decide on two African countries which will put forward their own...

Change in Syria?

Mohamed Sid-Ahmed June 17, 2005
At a long-awaited regional congress this week, Syria's Baath Party met to consider political and economic reforms. The Syrian leadership has faced much criticism for many aspects of its regime. Human rights abuses, assassinations and continued intelligence operations in Lebanon, and a shutdown of participatory government are some of the charges that the international community is laying at...

Fallout from the War on Terror – Part II

J Alexander Thier June 16, 2005
The complex effects of the US war on terror extend far beyond security – and the unintended results are not all positive. In this two-part series, YaleGlobal explores how US anti-terrorism policy is changing America's position in the world. In part two, J Alexander Thier , a former legal adviser in Afghanistan, considers the effects of human rights violations on the US standing in the Muslim...

For Democratic Change, Deal with Moderate Islamists

Amr Hamzawy June 15, 2005
In its push to spread democracy to the Middle East, the West has favored secular liberal movements in countries around the region as their partners of choice. These alliances make sense on an ideological level, as many Arab liberals and non-religious parties wholeheartedly espouse the Western democracy model and Enlightenment political philosophy. However, such movements tend to lack popular...