In The News

Historic Chance for Myanmar Peace Probably Scuttled

Michele Penna January 9, 2017
Hope is dwindling for an end to Myanmar’s ethnic conflict underway since 1947. An outbreak of violence in Rakhine State has been linked to Harakah al-Yaqin, reports Michele Penna, adding that the International Crisis Group has linked the trouble with hardships and discrimination suffered by the Rohingya. “Conflict is also dragging on in Kachin and Shan States, where the army is staging...

To Confront North Korea, Talk First and Get Tough Later

William J. Perry January 9, 2017
North Korea borders China, South Korea and Russia, respectively the world’s second, eleventh and twelfth largest economies, and the nation is a few hundred miles away from Japan, third largest economy. North Korea’s nuclear program and erratic leadership could trigger war and economic crisis. The nation is signaling that its intercontinental ballistic missile program is a priority, explains...

The Hopes for Peace and Palestinian Statehood Fade Away

January 6, 2017
Conflicts that linger for decades are costly in many ways and threaten security and reduce trust for all concerned. The Economist reports on the speech by US Secretary of State John Kerry on the ongoing failure to end the “stubborn struggle” between Israel and Palestine. Kerry described the Netanyahu administration as “the most right-wing in Israeli history” and questioned how a hardline agenda...

Factory Farming Blamed for Massive Bird Flu Outbreak: Experts

Kim Da-sol January 6, 2017
A highly pathogenic form of avian flu was detected in South Korea in November, and experts suggest that crowded conditions in industrial poultry farms have accelerated the spread of disease. “While the government has yet to offer clear reason for the worsening situation, casting the blame on migratory birds, experts pointed out that the battery cage-facilities at poultry farms and stockbreeding...

Obama: Reaching Out to Adversaries, Alienating Allies

Uri Friedman January 5, 2017
Following the US abstention from a UN Security Council vote on Israeli settlements and Secretary of State John Kerry’s speech lambasting the policy, President Barack Obama’s foreign policy toward allies has been called into question. Uri Friedman writes in The Atlantic that Obama ran on a platform of embracing US allies as well as extending an open hand to adversarial nations such as Cuba and...

More Chinese Send Children to US Schools

Miriam Jordan January 5, 2017
Many Chinese parents regard US universities as a pinnacle in education, and the number of Chinese sending children to study in US elementary schools is rising. The numbers are still relatively small – 2450 elementary students and just over 46,000 high school students in 2015. Parents interviewed by Miriam Jordan for the article in the Wall Street Journal express appreciation for independent...

Alaska Airport Is a Big Link for the Global Supply Chain

Will Swagel January 5, 2017
Alaska is sparsely populated with about 750,000 people. Still, the state’s largest city has emerged as a vital link along the global supply chain, and the Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport takes full advantage of being within 10 hours by air to 90 percent of the industrialized world. The subarctic airport ranks fourth in the world for cargo and is a “natural place for refueling,”...