In The News

Cancun Trade Meeting Should Leave Investment Issue Alone

Susan Ariel Aaronson August 29, 2003
When the WTO meets in Cancun on September 10, representatives of the nearly 150 members will have a lot on their plates. It is their job to negotiate agreements on many divisive issues and to forge new trade policies on agriculture, services, and intellectual property rights to meet the needs of developing countries. These matters are complex and important enough to warrant adding another...

Why the US needs the UN in Iraq

Paul Reynolds August 28, 2003
The chief US administrator in Iraq, Paul Bremer, claims that Iraq is "not a country is chaos and Baghdad is not a city in chaos," yet Washington is edging ever closer to asking for multilateral assistance from the UN. This article from BBC News says that Washington's stance is changing because of both domestic politics and the growing complexity of the situation in Iraq. At home...

US, North Korea Far Apart as Negotiators Meet in Beijing

Reuters August 27, 2003
As six-way talks begin in Beijing on August 27, all participants – excepting North Korea – agree on one thing: the Korean peninsula must remain nuclear free. Aside from this fundamental point, however, all participants remain divided about the appropriate course of action. North Korea continues to demand security guarantees before dismantling its program and the United States refuses to make...

Iran Admits Foreign Help on Nuclear Facility

Joby Warrick August 27, 2003
The UN nuclear watchdog agency – the IAEA – noted many improvements in the quality of information and cooperation Iran gave them during inspections last month. However, environmental samples taken from nuclear facilities outside Tehran tested positive for enriched uranium, a key ingredient in the manufacture of nuclear weapons. In an effort to explain the test results, Iran deviated greatly...

UN Agency Still Probing Iran's Enriched Uranium

Louis Charbonneau August 26, 2003
A recent report from the UN nuclear watchdog agency was optimistic about Iran's increased cooperation in recent months, but was riddled with doubts about the country's nuclear ambitions. In the report, the IAEA praised Iran because it "has demonstrated an increased degree of cooperation in relation to the amount and detail of information provided to the agency and in allowing...

Coping With the Newest Threat to Global Health - Fat

Derek Yach August 26, 2003
Obesity is as great a threat to global health as malnutrition, says Derek Yach, the Representative of the Director-General of the WHO. One billion people -or one out of six --are overweight worldwide - the same number as are malnourished - and some 300 million of those are clinically obese, leading to a global rise in chronic conditions such as cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes....

Looking for Legitimacy in All the Wrong Places

Robert Kagan August 26, 2003
America's unparalleled - if benevolent - power makes even its closest allies nervous. As a result, many have begun to question the legitimacy of the superpower's actions, particularly after it went into Iraq without UN approval. Foreign policy expert Robert Kagan says, "A perceived pattern of illegitimate behavior can limit the cooperation other countries are willing to offer and...