In The News

Manila's Iraq Pullout Due to Clout of Overseas Workers

Luz Baguioro July 16, 2004
Philippine President Gloria Arroyo faced a political conundrum of global proportions this week when deciding whether to pull troops from Iraq after Iraqi militants threatened to behead a Filipino truck driver. In deciding to withdraw troops from Iraq, the Philippines angered the United States, a country with whom military and trade connections are of the greatest importance. Arroyo's final...

Japan's Equivocal Defence Posture

July 13, 2004
Japan’s most recent defense report states that the greatest threats to Japanese security are diffuse and include terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction. As such, the new Defense White Paper recommends Tokyo pursue regional cooperation. At the same time, however, the paper also cites regional powers such as North Korea, China, and Russia as potential security threats. By...

U.S. Is seen Losing Its Moral Authority

Thomas Fuller July 5, 2004
Many diplomats, academics, and human rights groups claim that recent American policies and blunders have “eroded the moral leadership that Washington has pursued without embarrassment for years.” Citing the Iraq war, prisoner detention at Guantánamo Bay, the promulgation of the Patriot Act, and the Abu Ghraib prison scandal, critics charge that America’s newly tarnished image has harmed its...

Security Above All

July 2, 2004
With the coming into force of a United Nations-initiated shipping code a new barrier has been erected in global trading. The International Ships and Port Facility Security Code which was adopted by the UN members in 2002 requires countries to undertake security measures to prevent terrorist use of international shipping. This editorial in a South African newspaper echoes the mixed reaction the...

Blair: NATO Lacks Sense of Urgency

Matthew Tempest June 30, 2004
With the handover of sovereignty to Iraq now officially complete, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair is calling on NATO to step up to the plate. In Iraq and Afghanistan, Blair said today, the transatlantic alliance must act soon and show resolve to build a peaceful and democratic polity. Currently, he said, NATO "lacked the right sense of urgency" in these two hot spots. Lamenting the fact...

Gulf Security in a Globalizing World: Going beyond US Hegemony

Michael Kraig June 29, 2004
War and domestic political uncertainty have reigned in the Middle East during the past three decades. But one strategic reality has steadfastly evolved: the rise of the United States as an external guarantor of Gulf security. The continued presence of 138,000 US troops in Iraq after the formal handover of sovereignty is the latest reminder. However, while US military dominance may be...

Handover Advanced but Problems Remain

Paul Reynolds June 28, 2004
The unexpected early handover of sovereignty in Iraq may be a public relations coup for the US and the UK, but realities on the ground indicate that the road ahead is not easy. Although members of the new Iraqi government are claiming they are "ready", says this BBC article, they are in fact ill-prepared to deal with the challenges of government and the security threats that continue...