In The News

Can US Transit Visa Rule Prevent Terrorist Strike?

August 5, 2003
Thousands of air passengers pass through the US each year on their way to other destinations, but after the US begins requiring them to first apply for transit visas, that process won't be so easy. Washington has cited fears of terrorism and the resultant need for increased security as the reason for the new rules, but this editorial in the Khaleej Times is skeptical of that rationale:...

Talks for Peace Deal

August 4, 2003
North Korea should count its friends carefully, says this editorial in Seoul's Korea Herald. During the upcoming talks with the US, China, Russia, South Korea, and Japan, Pyongyang may not be able to lean so heavily on China and Russia to support its demands for aid, economic assistance, and security guarantees from Washington. Realistically, the paper says, the North must come to the...

German Companies Look to Iraq

Aaron Kirchfeld August 1, 2003
Germany's efforts to rebuild its once extensive trade relationship with Iraq face many obstacles, not the least of which is residual tensions with the US from the Iraq War. The US and Britain remain reluctant to contract with companies from countries that did not support the coalition. At the same time, the German companies that are receiving contracts remain reluctant to discuss their...

North Korea Agrees to Multilateral Talks

Don Kirk August 1, 2003
After months of diplomatic posturing and much bravado, North Korea and the US have agreed to sit down together to find a way to deal with Pyongyang's nuclear ambitions, its security fears, and its urgent need for fuel and food aid. Representatives of China, Russia, South Korea, and Japan will be joining the US and North Korea in multi-lateral talks, a format Washington has insisted upon as...

Arab Press Review

Salamander Davoidi August 1, 2003
Anti-American sentiment pervaded Arab newspapers this week. The intensity varies from writer to writer, as does the focus; however, this weekly survey of Arab newspapers shows Middle Eastern media united in their denouncement of American power. One heated Syrian journalist described the US government as violent and stupid, and denounced the US for imposing sanctions on Syria until it has...

Superpower in the South Pacific

C. Raja Mohan July 30, 2003
Australia has long been the premier power in the South Pacific. According to this opinion in an Indian daily, however, Australia is increasingly matching its economic and military capabilities with the political will to exercise its power. The author says that national security concerns are behind Canberra's new policies of intervention and preemption in failing microstates where terrorist...

The Pentagon's Eastern Obsession

Lawrence J. Korb July 30, 2003
Proponents of the US military’s proposed move from bases in Western Europe to Eastern Europe claim that the advantages would include reduced costs and proximity to hotspots like Central Asia and Middle East. However, according to former assistant defense secretary Lawrence Korb, such claims are unfounded. The current bases in Western Europe aren't as expensive to maintain as the numbers may...