In The News

Growing Divide in Saudi Arabia Between Rulers, Ruled

Karen Elliott House March 15, 2013
Saudi Arabia has a diverse arsenal for squashing dissent against the repressive regime, ranging from bribes and government jobs to harassment and long jail sentences. Two moderate activists received 10-year prison sentences for supporting a constitutional monarchy and human rights, reports author Karen Elliott House in an opinion essay for the Washington Post. The Arab Spring has spurred activism...

US Must Adopt Law of the Sea

Ziad Haider March 13, 2013
At a time when North Korea’s nuclear brinkmanship requires a common front, growing maritime disputes over small islands in the South China Sea and East China Sea are pitting major countries against one another. Key players, including China, Japan and South Korea, are at odds and increasingly relying on military bluster. Attorney Ziad Haider urges the United States to lead in easing the tensions...

The Kafkaesque Reality of Pakistan's Blasphemy Laws

Samira Shackle March 13, 2013
Blasphemy is a serious crime in Pakistan, but the law sets out no guidance, standards on evidence or safeguards against false accusations. As such, the law is subject to great abuse. Witnesses, police and court officials avoid repeating alleged comments, out of fear of attracting new charges. “The blasphemy law has created and facilitated a culture of vigilantism,” writes Samira Shackle in the...

Annoyed, China Sticks With North Korea

Nayan Chanda March 11, 2013
In 1961, China and North Korea signed the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance, committing either party to come to the aid of the other if attacked. China has since been doling out food and energy aid despite North Korea regularly issuing threats to South Korea and the US, as well as repeatedly defying UN resolutions on nuclear and missile tests. In a departure from past...

The Financial Crash Will Not Bring About “Globalization on Steroids”

Joshua Kurlantzick March 11, 2013
Despite the international outlook of the leaders of the world’s two biggest economies – the US and China – Joshua Kurlantzick argues that there is a new trend of deglobalization. The precarious state of the world economy is contributing to the prominence of national boundaries in shaping economic policies. Foreign investment has dried up as national legislatures reject takeovers or funding for...

Kim Blows Up Again

March 8, 2013
Managing North Korea – isolated, dysfunctional, belligerent – is a pressing challenge, particularly for immediate neighbors South Korea and China. Another set of tough sanctions against North Korea for its February nuclear test have been imposed by the United Nations, and North Korea has responded with a threat to disregard the 1953 armistice that ended the Korean War. Joint US–South Korean...

Citizenship of Convenience

Tyler Grant March 5, 2013
Lifting restrictions on travel visas is supposed to spur tourism. Yet a few citizens do quick cost-benefit checks of other nations’ laws, then hop on planes, relocating for benefits: With the 14th Amendment to the US Constitution providing citizenship to those born in the United States, thousands of pregnant women travel to give birth, thus ensuring those children access to US public education....