In The News

India: Pro-America, Pro-Bush

March 1, 2006
Since the beginning of Iraq war, anti-Americanism has increased around the world. According to a new study by the Pew Research Center, however, India not only bucked the trend, but improved its opinion of the US. Seven out of every ten Indians reported a favorable view of the US. Of the 17 countries polled - including US allies like the UK, Canada, and Poland - only Americans felt more positively...

Think Again: Soft Power

Joseph S. Nye Jr. March 1, 2006
In 1990, “Foreign Policy” first analyzed “soft power.” Here, Joseph S. Nye, Jr., author of the original article, returns to correct notions that have since become associated with soft power. The concept, he asserts, is the power of “attraction,” as opposed to the power of “coercion” or “payment.” Soft power is not exclusively cultural power, yet exporting cultural goods that hold attraction...

US Ceded Control of Ports

William Glanz February 28, 2006
The Bush administration’s approval for a United Arab Emirates company’s takeover of operations at six US ports ignited furious debate in Washington over the threat to national security. Yet the deal only reflects the global nature of today’s shipping industry: A Scandinavian ship – flying a Panama flag, carrying Chinese cargo and a Filipino crew – can dock at a California port managed by a...

Nigeria Counts 100 Deaths over Danish Caricatures

Lydia Polgreen February 27, 2006
Violence over the Danish cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed that has resulted in more than 100 deaths in Nigeria offers an example of global issues impinging on the country’s domestic politics. The country’s Muslims and Christians have a history of tension, and the cartoons prompted tit-for-tat violence. Political analysts suggest that, in Nigeria, the cartoon controversy functioned as a pretext...

US Approves Visa for Indian Scientist

Shankar Vedantam February 27, 2006
Since the 2001 terrorist attacks the US has implemented a stricter, more time-consuming visa policy citing concerns for national security., However, the recent denial of a visa to Goverdhan Mehta, an Indian scientist who is the president of the International Council for Science, has offered proof that this system remains far from perfect. In a case that caused furor in India just days before a...

Exit Without a Strategy

Sami Ramadani February 24, 2006
After the destruction of Samarra’s sacred al-Askari mosque, media outlets speculated about imminent civil war between Sunni and Shia in Iraq. Since the early days of the American occupation, much ink has been spilt on the supposedly ancient “communal” divisions of Iraq’s population. Sami Ramadani, a political exile during Saddam’s regime, begs to differ. He argues that fair analysis of Iraqis’...

Un-American

Mansoor Ijaz February 24, 2006
US lawmakers’ rejection of the Dubai ports deal stems from prejudice more than concerns about national security. Such attitudes are dangerous at a time when US needs all the friends in the Muslim world that it can get. Instead of rejecting the Dubai deal, the US could embrace the opportunity to work with a company run by educated and talented Muslim professionals who strive to overturn...