In The News

At the Crossroads of History

Kofi Annan June 30, 2003
In a speech delivered at the World Economic Forum meeting in Jordan, Kofi Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations, spoke of the follies of the past to present his vision for the future. The first half of the 20th century, marked by two world wars, totalitarianism, holocaust and Hiroshima should not be emulated in this new century. Rather, humanity should "build on the achievements of...

America Goes Backward

Stanley Hoffman June 27, 2003
After the war in Iraq, the US Bush administration is once again criticized by many. In this feature article in the New York Review of Books, Harvard scholar Stanley Hoffmann argues that not only has the administration's unilateralism resulted in anti-Americanism overseas, but also domestic concerns of justice issues, among others. Furthermore, seeing itself as the world's peacekeeper,...

Insecurity Drives WMD Proliferation – ElBaradei

Roula Khalaf June 23, 2003
After Iraq, Iran has become the new focus in the Middle East. With the US insisting that Iran has been active in building weapons of mass destruction (WMD), UN weapons inspection teams have been called upon to verify the allegations. Mohamed ElBaradei, the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), says a twofold measure is necessary to effectively diffuse the crisis. While continuing...

2 Nuclear Weapons Challenges, 2 Different Strategies

David E. Sanger June 21, 2003
The U.S. has warned both Iran and North Korea that nuclear weapons programs will “not be tolerated”. But Washington is pursuing differing strategies with each country. With North Korea, which admits it already has weapons and is developing more, the Bush Administration is attempting to cut off development by slowing imports and exports. With Iran, which maintains that its program is peaceful and...

Preempting North Korean Threat in the Sea

Michael O'Hanlon June 20, 2003
In recent months, the United States has struggled to halt North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Now, the Bush Administration has proposed a “Proliferation Security Initiative” designed to cut off the communist country's trade in illicit weaponry and material. This is a worthy multilateral effort, argue Brookings Institution scholars Michael O'Hanlon and Michael A. Levi, but its...

Not So Fast!

Omayma Abdel-Latif June 13, 2003
The question 'was it a war of occupation or liberation' dominated much of the international debate on the US-led war in Iraq. Now, the debate has reached the local level. The decision by the US administrator for Iraq, Paul Bremer, to appoint a council of Iraqis in an advisory capacity has many local political and religious leaders upset. Leading up to the fall of Baghdad, those in...

Roosevelt Was Right about Multilateralism

Ernesto Zedillo June 13, 2003
What would provide the world with real hope of living in prosperity and peace? Global cooperation is a good starting point, says Ernesto Zedillo, former President of Mexico and current Director of the Yale Center for the Study of Globalization. The United States once took the lead in establishing international institutions to prevent conflict and promote global well-being. As such, the United...