In The News

Three Myths About the Arab Uprisings

Ellen Lust and Jakob Wichmann July 24, 2012
The series of protests in 2011 that overturned governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Libya have ushered in activism and new debate in the Arab world. Analyzing the reasons behind the surge of discontent requires an understanding of each nation’s history, regional relationships, demographics and governance failures. Achieving representative government and social justice is not a matter of simple...

Global Rebalancing: Now or Never

Stephen S. Roach July 19, 2012
Recent history – the Latin America debt crisis, the US subprime mortgage crisis and now the European debt crisis – offers a lesson that global imbalances are unsustainable. Lured by false promises of future growth, countries borrow big, risking prosperity and stability. Global growth is in question: Wary of debt, US consumers have tightened spending; India and China, as emerging economies, cannot...

Syria: No End in Sight

Fawaz A. Gerges July 17, 2012
With Damascus in flames and massacres in the countryside, a diplomatic solution to the Syrian crisis seems impossible. International and regional powers are fiercely divided: The US and other Western powers won’t try a military intervention without approval from the UN Security Council. Russia and China, permanent members of the UN Security Council, threaten to veto military intervention, and US...

Emerging Economies – Rich And Confident

Bruce Stokes July 12, 2012
The emerging economies account for an increasing share of the globe’s billionaires. But widespread public attitudes can wield far more influence over an economy than the wealth of a few hundred people, suggests Bruce Stokes, director of Global Economic Attitudes at the Pew Research Center in Washington. While people polled in the US and Europe are pessimistic about their future prospects,...

Is Islam to Blame for Freedom Deficit in Middle East?

Riaz Hassan July 5, 2012
The fury of the Arab Spring, with widespread demands for freedom quickly followed by a re-emergence of authoritarian ways, has renewed debate about Islam and democracy in the Middle East, notes sociologist Riaz Hassan. Circa 1000 AD, the Middle East represented 10 percent of global GDP, as compared to Europe’s 9 percent – religious powers in both regions protected elites and the status quo. Seven...

Eurozone Heaves Sigh of Relief – For How Long?

Jean-Pierre Lehmann July 3, 2012
The European Union’s heads of state avoided disaster for the time being, preventing impending collapse of Spanish banks and offering assistance to Italy, too. Europe has decided to move toward a more complete integration. The steps are cautious, but “the USE – United States of Europe – would seem to be the ultimate destination, in fact if not in name,” explains Jean-Pierre Lehmann. Yet nobody...

Syrian Conflict Promises Toxic Outcome – Part II

Dilip Hiro June 28, 2012
Underlying unrest and conflict in Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East is sectarian divide. In Syria, Alawites, a Shia sub-sect, rule over a population that’s 70 percent Sunni. Sunni-run Qatar and Saudi Arabia supply weapons to Syrian rebels, mostly Sunni, even while hoping to keep their own sizable Shia populations at bay. War in Syria poses regional dangers, and in the second article of a two...