In The News

The Guardian: Merkel Says EU Cannot Completely Rely on US and Britain Anymore

Jon Henley May 30, 2017
The United States as reliable partner is a campaign issue for other countries. “We Europeans truly have to take its fate into its own hands,” said Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel at campaign rally. The Guardian reported on Merkel’s comments: “Speaking after bruising meetings of Nato and the G7 group of wealthy nations last week, the German chancellor suggested the postwar western alliance had...

New Statesman: The Age of Lies

Mark Damazer May 25, 2017
Many politicians, desperate to stay in power, lack the courage to ask voters to make tough choices – often tax hikes or reductions in services. Many rely on catchy soundbites and clichés, and titles of specific pieces of legislation are often contrary to what bills purport to do. The media is tasked with holding political leaders accountable, analyzing the legislation and policies against...

The Diplomat: It’s Good to Be the Tatmadaw

Ben Dunant May 24, 2017
The 2015 general election in Myanmar marked a critical transition to democracy from military rule, when the people elected Aung San Suu Kyi in the first openly-contested election in a quarter-century. However, the military, known as the Tatmadaw in Burmese, still controls much of the country’s economy and political discourse. The Tatmadaw’s commander-in-chief helms three key security ministries,...

Reuters: Iranians Deliver Emphatic Victory for Rouhani

Parisa Hafezi and Babak Dehghanpisheh May 20, 2017
Iranian voters have demonstrated patience, rejecting a populist hardliner and reelecting President Hassan Rouhani who has taken incremental steps to integrate Iran with the world. The pragmatist won 57 percent of the vote, a decisive win despite analysts’ predictions that the vote could be close. “Although the powers of the elected president are limited by those of unelected Supreme Leader...

NPR: Who Is Robert Mueller, Special Counsel Overseeing Russia Investigation?

Carrie Johnson May 19, 2017
The world closely followed the 2016 US presidential campaign, and will continue to do so with multiple investigations into reports of Russian interference during the election. Robert Mueller, former director of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation, has been nominated as special counselor with broad powers to investigate. Mueller started his job as FBI director a week before the 9/11 attacks,...

Financial Times: Iran’s Divided Electorate Unites Behind Foreign Policy Stance

Andrew England, Najmeh Bozorgmehr and Monavar Khalaj May 18, 2017
Foreign policy unites an otherwise divided Iranian electorate. Voters expect security and maintain that requires close ties and even interventions in neighboring states. “Iran’s Quds Force, the wing of the elite Revolutionary Guards responsible for operations abroad, is providing crucial support to Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad in his country’s six-year war and is active in Iraq, Afghanistan...

Reuters: Liberal Moon Jae-in Wins South Korean Election

Ju-min Park and Se Young Lee May 9, 2017
Moon Jae-in, a progressive in a field of 13 candidates, decisively won the presidential election in South Korea with more than 40 percent of the vote including many young supporters. “A decisive win by Moon would end months of political turmoil stemming from a parliamentary vote in December to impeach former President Park Geun-hye over an extensive corruption scandal,” reports Reuters. “Moon,...