In The News

Xi-Obama Summit: Bridging the Trust Deficit in US-China Ties?

Robert A. Manning September 29, 2015
China and the United States disagree on many issues – including claims for the South China Sea, intellectual property protections, open access to the internet and free speech. Leaders of the world’s two largest economies also have reason to cooperate on global initiatives. Xi Jinping, China’s president and general secretary of the Communist Party, visited the United States, meeting US President...

Is ASEAN Losing Its Way?

Amitav Acharya September 24, 2015
The charter for the Association of Southeast Asia Nations emphasizes economic growth and principles that support cooperation, renunciation of the use of force, mutual respect for members, and rejection of external interference or coercion. ASEAN’s track record for peaceful resolution of disputes through consensus may be at risk as unity erodes, warns author and researcher Amitav Acharya. Members...

We Should Have Seen This Refugee Crisis Coming

Rana Novack September 23, 2015
Conflict combined with high rates of fertility, poverty, failed governance and lack of opportunity is behind the refugee crisis in the Middle East and Africa. The world’s developed economies should have prepared, argues Rana Novack in an opinion essay for Wired. “Predictive analytics provides the ability to extract meaningful information from vast amounts of data allowing us to identify patterns...

UN Development Goals Ignore Population Growth

Joseph Chamie September 22, 2015
Population growth is linked to conflict, water shortages and resource depletion, climate change and mass migrations. The global population is now 7.3 billion people, up from 2.5 billion in 1950, and is expected to swell to near 11 billion by the end of the century. World leaders convene this week at the United Nations and prepare to adopt new Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. The draft...

Putin’s Plan: Moscow Handles Syria, US Looks After Iraq

Raghida Dergham September 21, 2015
Policymakers in the West had anticipated immigration to bring terrorism to their shores, but the reverse has occurred. Hundreds of thousands refugees flee homes in the Middle East and parts of Africa to escape brutal extremism and failed governance. Russian President Vladimir Putin prepares to intervene on behalf of the Assad regime in Syria while the United States assists Iraq. US President...

China Wins the Gray Zone by Default

Denny Roy September 18, 2015
China employs a “gray zone” strategy as a rival to the United States, argues Denny Roy, senior fellow at the East-West Center – employing measured, often indirect aggression while not overstepping boundaries that trigger military retaliation. US military expenditures are about triple those of China’s, yet “Beijing demonstrates its skill at finding ways of advancing the Chinese strategic agenda –...

Defiant Chinese Admiral’s Message: South China Sea “Belongs to China”

Marcus Weisgerber September 16, 2015
Naval officers from around the globe attended the Defence & Security Equipment International conference in London, and admirals from the United States and China offered views on security in the South China Sea. According to an article in Defense One, Yuan Yubai, who commands the North Sea Fleet for the People’s Liberation Army Navy, pointed out the body of water’s name suggests that the sea...