In The News

Stepping into a Burgeoning Gap

Amira Howeidy January 29, 2003
What effects would a UK- and US-led war on Iraq have on Egypt’s economy, society and political position? What effects are already taking place at the prospect of war? This article in Egypt's Al-Ahram Weekly says Egypt would suffer heavy economic losses, for not only would the war hurt its vital tourism industry, it would also disrupt trade with Iraq and destabilize jobs for Egyptian...

A Quietly Growing Nuclear Danger in North Korea

Nayan Chanda January 28, 2003
Since the first test of a nuclear weapon at Alamogordo, New Mexico on a summer day in 1945, a terrible device for mass slaughter has continued to gain ground. Although only five permanent members of the UN Security Council are nuclear weapons powers, two others - India and Pakistan - have blasted their way into the nuclear club. Israel, which, like India and Pakistan, has not signed the nuclear...

Text, Chief UN Weapons Inspector Hans Blix's Report on Iraq

January 27, 2003
In compliance with the U.N. resolutions governing the weapons inspections in Iraq since November, Chief Inspector Hans Blix reported today to the Security Council about the progress of his team. Mr. Blix both commended the Iraqi government for granting access to weapons sites and lamented the Iraqis' lack of compliance with the substance of weapons restrictions. Questions still remain as...

Landmark China-Taiwan Flight Thaws Ties, for Now

January 27, 2003
To loud fanfare, an airline flight from Taiwan to Hong Kong, and then on to Shanghai, was hailed as a first step towards direct transportation across the Taiwan Strait. Though about 800,000 Taiwanese live and work in China, they have traditionally had to make complex connections to fly home for the New Year’s holiday. Taiwan's China Airlines is leading five other airlines that wish to make...

North Koreans Still Demand Direct Talks With the U.S.

James Brooke January 26, 2003
Many countries in the region of North Korea have sent diplomats to its capital, Pyongyang, in recent weeks, hoping to quell the dangerous storm currently brewing over that country’s nuclear weapons program. North Korea itself is simultaneously condemning these diplomatic efforts and calling for negotiations and a nonaggression pact with the United States only. Meanwhile, the possibility of armed...

Why We Know Iraq Is Lying

Condoleezza Rice January 23, 2003
In an article in the New York Times, US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice says that Iraq's behavior shows it does not intend to cooperate with the United Nations resolution calling for its disarmament. Contrasting Iraq with other nations that have voluntarily disarmed in the recent past – including South Africa, South Africa, Ukraine and Kazakhstan – Rice says "Iraq is not...

Bush at the Rubicon

Strobe Talbott January 23, 2003
US President George W. Bush seems to have his heart set on going to war against Iraq. No matter what entreaties for patience are offered, he appears more convinced than ever that military action to bring down Saddam Hussein is the only way to ensure Iraq will not threaten the world with biological and chemical weapons. – YaleGlobal