COMMENTARY & ANALYSIS ARCHIVE :

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International Herald Tribune, 28 May 08, by editorial staff
Iran, the U.S. and the inspectors
'Amid all of the White House's saber-rattling, it is tempting to discount Iran's genuine misbehavior. The latest report from the International Atomic Energy Agency is a grim reminder that Tehran is pressing ahead with its nuclear program, and the United States and its allies don't have a strategy for containing it.'

International Herald Tribune, 28 May 08, by Jared Genser and Meghan Barron
How long must the Burmese wait?
'The junta is taking every advantage of Cyclone Nargis to tighten its grip on power.'

Christian Science Monitor, 29 May 08, by Paul Staniland
When talking with terrorists makes sense
'Used wisely, talks provide leverage, not appeasement.'

Asia Times, 29 May 08, by Kaveh L Afrasiabi
A giant backward step on Iran
'The International Atomic Energy Agency's latest report on Iran - like previous ones - gives no evidence of safeguard breaches by Tehran in its nuclear program ... Yet the uncharacteristic - and sudden - negative tone of the report has played right into the hands of those who thirst in their desire to accuse Iran of nuclear proliferation.'

Middle East Times, 22 May 08, by editorial staff
Where in the world is Uncle Sam?
'In the world of high politics, as in the world of intelligence and counter-espionage, people have a hard time believing in coincidences. One such 'coincidence' occurred yesterday leaving a number of Middle East analysts asking themselves: were two major regional developments coincidental; or can a link be found between Lebanese rivals forging a deal, and Syria and Israel announcing a resumption of talks?'

International Herald Tribune, 21 May 08, by Thant Myint-U
Aid v. Sanctions: The Burma dilemma
'UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon arrives in Yangon on Thursday at the invitation of Myanmar's ruling generals, the first official visit by a UN chief in over 40 years. ... he will not just be visiting a country reeling from its worst natural disaster ever. He will be in a country only now emerging from decades of armed conflict, where aid has long been politicized ...'

City Journal, 21 May 08, by Judith Miller
The Other Terrorism
'Because most of the world has focused on al-Qaida and its allied groups, it’s easy for outsiders to overlook the continuing danger of ETA — a seemingly anachronistic “national liberation” force in an ever more globalized world.'

Wall Street Journal, 22 May 08
Kashmir Crossroads
'As Pakistan's political parties try to shore up their governing coalition and India gears up for next year's elections, the dispute over Kashmir has taken a backseat. That's clear from the jawboning at this week's restarted India-Pakistan talks, where little of substance was accomplished. It's crucial that both sides keep talking.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 May 08, by Daniel A. Bell
China's Class Divide: Xenophobic nationalists?
'As tragic as the Sichuan earthquake has been, perhaps it can do some good by helping dispel a widespread myth: that the new generation of Chinese students are materialistic and selfish.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 May 08, by Garrison Keillor
Mutterings over soldiers' graves
'The Current Occupant tossed Nazis into a speech last week ... He likened those who would negotiate with terrorists to those who tried to appease the Nazis, an awkward comparison, since Nazis were self-defined and wore the swastika proudly, and terrorists are anybody we nominate to be terrorists ...'

Townhall.com, 21 May 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Hezbollah Scores Political Win, But Resistance Groups Forming
'On Sunday, I learned that members of Lebanon's pro-democracy movement were indeed forming a “resistance group against terrorism." That group – originating in Beirut – is composed of Christians, Druze, and Muslims (both Sunni and Shiia). This week, other reports indicate there may be like-minded resistance groups forming elsewhere in the country.'

Human Events, 20 May 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Lights Out Temporarily in Lebanon
'Several of my sources have since independently confirmed that many captured and killed soldiers operating with Hizballah were indeed Syrian and Iranian: One source confirmed many of the captured soldiers “spoke Farsi and were unable to speak Arabic." Another said Hizballah fighters operating in Beirut were “specifically ordered” not to communicate in the presence of Lebanese civilians because it would be discovered they were foreign (Iranian) soldiers.'

International Analyst Network, 20 May 08, by Douglas Farah
Is Hezbollah Now the Greatest Threat?
'What makes Hezbollah particularly interesting and dangerous now is its hybrid status-a non-state armed actor, operating with access to state resources (Iran and Syria). This means that, while nominally outside state control and the reach of sanctions available in the international sphere, it has access to state intelligence, arsenals and financial backing.'

Assyrian International News Agency, 17 May 08
The Pretense Is Over: Hezbollah Rules Lebanon
'Lebanon's army cannot and will not fight Hezbollah. When your army tells you bluntly to give the other side what they want, it is no longer your army.'

Townhall.com, 13 May 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Bloodying Iran's Foreign Legion
'Hezbollah – Iran's Lebanon-based terrorist legion – may have bitten off more than it can chew in its recent attacks against pro-government forces in Lebanon. They've certainly underestimated the tenacity of the latter as evidenced by the underreported head-to-head thrashing Hezbollah is getting in-and-around the Chouf Mountain region, southeast of Beirut. Nevertheless, Hezbollah should never have been able to get away with what it has over the past week; or for that matter, the past 25 years. '

EuropeNews, 10 May 08, by Serge Trifkovic
Can the West be saved?
'I am not going to waste your time tonight with yet another treatise on why Islam is not the Religion of Peace, Tolerance, Compassion, etc, etc. We are beyond that. Had America agonized, in the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, whether Shinto was actually OK but only Bushido was bad, the Greater Asian Co-prosperity Sphere would be going strong to this day.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 May 08, by Richard Bernstein
Rethinking Churchill and the Allied warmongers
'Now, in this country at least, a current of opinion is gaining strength that stands Churchill on his head. It wasn't appeasement that brought about the disaster of the conflict, but warmongering on the part of the Allied leaders, Churchill first and foremost among them.'

Argus Leader, 12 May 08, by Bernie D. Hendricks
Hussein supported al-Qaida
'Walid Phares, a Middle East expert and senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, in 2004 reviewed a batch of 42 confiscated Iraqi documents. He concluded: "Saddam Hussein collaborated with and supported Islamic terrorist groups, including the terror nemesis in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi."'

Washington Post, 15 May 08, by David Ignatius
The Squeeze on the Middle East's Moderates
'The [Arab] center is under siege in Lebanon and across the Middle East as the region becomes more polarized between Iranian-backed extremists and U.S.-backed forces. Iran's proxies strike at will: seizing control of Beirut neighborhoods in a naked show of defiance; lobbing missiles into Israel from Gaza to disrupt peace talks; creating havoc in southern Iraq and Baghdad.'

International Herald Tribune, 14 May 08, by Thomas L. Friedman
The new Cold War
'The next American president will inherit many foreign policy challenges, but surely one of the biggest will be the Cold War. Yes, the next U.S. president is going to be a Cold War president - but this Cold War is with Iran.'

Los Angeles Times 'Babylon and Beyond' blog, 12 May 08, by Ramin Mostaghim in Tehran and Borzou Daragahi in Beirut
Iran: Watching Lebanon from Tehran
'... though Hezbollah might have discreetly sought its backers' OK before taking over West Beirut, the move came as a shock to most Iranians.'

Council on Foreign Relations, 12 May 08, by Bernard Gwertzman
'Prolonged Crisis' in Lebanon Reflects ‘Cold War' in Region
'Michael Young, a political analyst in Beirut, says Hezbollah's efforts to impose its will in Lebanon have led to "a prolonged crisis that is a reflection of the cold war in the region" between Iran and the United States and their respective allies.'

International Herald Tribune, 13 May 08, by editorial staff
Pakistan's coalition can't afford a split
'After an auspicious start, the leaders of Pakistan's new coalition government have let political rivalries thwart their efforts to rebuild their battered country.'

International Herald Tribune, 12 May 08, by editorial staff
The mental suffering of American soldiers
'The Department of Veterans Affairs is struggling to cope with a task for which it was tragically unready: the care of soldiers who left Afghanistan and Iraq with an extra burden of brain injury and psychic anguish. The last thing they need is the blend of secrecy and heedlessness that helped to send many of them into harm's way.'

International Herald Tribune, 12 May 08, by editorial staff
The lucrative arts of war and not paying taxes
'Congress is finally moving to shut one of the more egregious forms of Iraq war profiteering: defense contractors using offshore shell companies to avoid paying their fair share of payroll taxes. The practice is widespread and congressional investigators have been dispatched to one of the prime tax refuges, the Cayman Islands, to seek a firsthand estimate of how much the U.S. Treasury is being shorted.'

International Herald Tribune, 08 May 08, by Alex Rondos
What side are we on?
'Georgia is under threat of partial occupation by Russia and thus has become a moral lightning rod for the West. All the demons of our 20th-century history are bubbling up again in this embattled outpost of Western interests.'

International Herald Tribune, 07 May 08, by editorial staff
Medvedev's first crisis
'Russia is playing a game of cat-and-mouse with Georgia that could quickly turn deadly.'

Christian Science Monitor, 07 May 08, by editorial staff
Burma's Katrina moment
'A cyclone's ruin exposes a need for the kind of democracy that responds well to disasters.'

Washington Times, 07 May 08, by J. Peter Pham
Ships of fools?
'To fully appreciate the complications and dangers America faces in the post Sept. 11, 2001, world, consider recent actions taken by the government of one of America's strategic allies. ... the Mongolian government in recent years has encouraged the development of a fleet of ships. It now has a significant and a growing maritime presence. ... Despite receiving millions of dollars from America's public purse, Mongolia appears to have no problem renting out its flag to weapons proliferators, criminals and other shady figures who endanger the security of the United States and its allies.'

Los Angeles Times 'Babylon and Beyond' blog, 07 May 08, by Tina Susman
IRAQ: The language of war
'The United States' language toward Sadr and his Mahdi Army has undergone a radical change since last year when, at news conferences and in interviews, U.S. military and political leaders freely referred to it by its Arabic acronym, JAM. Splinter groups were known as Rogue JAM. When Sadr last August called on JAM to cease armed activities, ostensibly so he could sort out the Rogue JAM from the real JAM, some began referring to his truce-abiding fighters as Frozen JAM.'

Christian Science Monitor, 02 May 08, by Ben White
In praise of Palestinian steadfastness
'Despite 60 years of hardship, real achievement, too.'

Asia Times, 01 May 08, by Sami Moubayed
The heat is on Muqtada
'The fierce battle raging in Baghdad's Sadr City between Muqtada al-Sadr's Mahdi Army and United States and Iraqi forces has claimed more than 1,000 lives over the past few weeks. What is not clear is the motive behind the offensive against the Shi'ite militia. It could be the Americans, trying to nip in the bud any united front between Muqtada and Sunnis. Or the Iranians, wanting to eliminate a potential thorn in their side. Either way, Muqtada has a fight on his hands.'

Christian Science Monitor, 30 Apr 08, by Russell D. Howard and Erik Iverson
Fight Al Qaeda's plan, not its ideas
'The cold war showed it's easier to fight strategy than ideology.'

Christian Science Monitor, 28 Apr 08, by editorial staff
New ways to quell Al Qaeda?
'Pakistan's new leaders go soft with jihadists. But that takes hard tactics to pull off.'

Stratfor, 29 Apr 08, by George Friedman and Peter Zeihan
The Shift Toward an Israeli-Syrian Agreement
'The Middle East, already monstrously complex, grew more complex last week. First, there were strong indications that both Israel and Syria were prepared to engage in discussions on peace. That alone is startling enough. But with the indicators arising in the same week that the United States decided to reveal that the purpose behind Israel's raid on Syria in September 2007 was to destroy a North Korean-supplied nuclear reactor, the situation becomes even more baffling.'

Human Events, 29 Apr 08, by John Gizzi
Why Won't White House Deal With North Korean 'Identity Crisis' in Syrian Caper?
'One thing is certain: this is not going away, no matter how much the President's top spokesman refers me or any other reporter to another outlet of information.'

Christian Science Monitor, 30 Apr 08, by Mark Lange
The only way to alter China's hand in Darfur
'Shame won't work. But enlisting its self-interest can.'

Townhall.com, 30 Apr 08, by Austin Bay
Darfur: Facing the Peacekeeping Conundrum
'Motivated people who really want to have an effect on the ground in Darfur should call for reform of the entire United Nations. Huge job? Yes. One that challenges the "politically correct" and "transnational" (usually anti-American) elites who always demand "international action" and look to the United Nations as a great "force for good"? Yes again. But reform needs to happen if effective peacekeeping is to occur.'

Human Events, 29 Apr 08, by Robert Spencer
No Jihadis Here!
'Last week the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and the National Counter Terrorism Center issued new guidelines forbidding personnel from using the words "jihad" or "jihadist" in reference to Islamic terrorism and its perpetrators.'

Christian Science Monitor, 28 Apr 08, by Helena Cobban
America's apartheid mentality toward the world
'What kind of relationship do Americans want to build with the world's 6 billion other people in the years ahead? This question is urgent, since the past seven years have seen an unprecedented drop in our country's global favorability rating. In today's hyper-connected world, that has huge consequences for Washington's ability to protect American interests.'

The Heritage Foundation, 26 Apr 08, by James Jay Carafano
Weapons Wal-Mart
'Intelligence officials yesterday briefed key members of Congress on evidence that North Korea was helping Syria build a nuclear reactor like the one that cranks out plutonium for Kim Jong-Il's nuke factory. US and Israeli evidence even includes a damning covert video.'

Townhall.com, 28 Apr 08, by Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.
Incoherence on Deterrence
'Hillary Clinton, Barak Obama and John McCain – and, for that matter, every other candidate for federal office – must address forthrightly their views on the need for U.S. nuclear deterrence.'

International Herald Tribune, 23 Apr 08, by editorial staff
The despot of Zimbabwe and his enablers
'Prevented from unloading its cargo by dock workers acting in solidarity with the people of Zimbabwe, a Chinese ship loaded with weapons for Zimbabwe's despot, Robert Mugabe, has been sailing from port to port along the coast of southern Africa. The rejection of the Chinese vessel and its lethal cargo is a tale about the power of commoners when they act in concert, about the corruption of onetime liberation leaders, and the involvement of China's communist rulers with the world's worst dictators.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 Apr 08, by Rami G. Khouri
America through Arab eyes
'One of the paradoxes of the complex relationship between the Arab world and the United States relates to the rhetoric and reality of democratic values. The Bush administration has made democracy promotion a central pillar of its foreign policy in the Middle East at the level of rhetoric, but in practice it pays little heed to behaving democratically in its interaction with the Arab people.'

Washington Post, 22 apr 08, by editorial staff
Aggression in Georgia
'Vladimir Putin steps up his campaign against Russia's democratic neighbor -- and bets that NATO won't respond.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 Apr 08, by editorial staff
China's new nationalists revealed
'As the Summer Olympics approach, some disturbing aspects of contemporary China are coming into view. A worldwide audience has learned what human rights activists have long known about Beijing's complicity with dictatorships in Sudan and Burma.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 Apr 08, by Jeff Jacoby
One man's misrule
'In retrospect, it was an exercise in naïveté to have imagined that Zimbabwe's brutal strongman, Robert Mugabe, would relinquish power just because he had lost an election.'

International Herald Tribune, 21 Apr 08, by Martin Neil Baily
Don't blame the war for the economy
'The war in Iraq and the poor state of the U.S. economy are often viewed as cause and effect. In fact, they are two very different messes.'

Christian Science Monitor, 18 Apr 08, by editorial staff
China bends on Taiwan, why not Tibet?
'If Beijing can talk with Taiwan about ties, it can talk with the Dalai Lama about Tibet's future.'

International Herald Tribune, 08 Apr 08, by editorial staff
Back from Iraq, again facing fire
'General David Petraeus and Ambassador Ryan Crocker, America's top two men in Iraq, are in Washington to testify before the U.S. Congress. Three military and diplomatic experts were asked to suggest the questions they would like to have asked.'

Asia Times, 09 Apr 08, by Patrick Cockburn
Muqtada rides the tiger
'Muqtada al-Sadr is the most important and surprising figure to emerge in Iraq since the US invasion. He is the Messianic leader of the religious and political movement of the impoverished Shi'ite underclass whose lives were ruined by a quarter of a century of war, repression, and sanctions.'

International Herald Tribune, 09 Apr 08, by Maureen Dowd
Toil and trouble
'The guardians of Iraq offer more of the same - a post-Surge Pause or "consolidation and evaluation," as the general generically puts it - and no answers about how we can stop our ward from aligning with our enemy.'

Asia Times, 09 Apr 08, by Sami Moubayed
War and peace, Israeli style
'Israel's massive military exercises on the Syrian border have significantly raised tension between the two countries, even as their leaders downplay the development. At first glance, it is in nobody's interest to see yet another war. Yet in their relentless pursuit of Hezbollah, the Israelis have good reason to wage a limited battle on the group's natural ally, Syria - and then seek peace on their own terms.'

International Herald Tribune, 07 Apr 08, by John Vinocur
Are NATO promises backed by anything?
'Delivered directly to the alliance leaders, Putin said: "The presence of a powerful military bloc on our borders would be seen in Russia as a direct threat to the security of our country."'

Der Spiegel, 09 Apr 08, by Erich Follath
Tibet Has Caught China by Surprise
'... in the past few, dramatic weeks, the People's Republic has entered the international spotlight under completely different circumstances than the Communist Party strategists in Beijing had planned.'

Asia Times, 10 apr 08, by Francesco Sisci
Tibet a defining issue for China
'The uprising in Lhasa and the ensuing demonstrations in areas of China populated by ethnic Tibetans created a series of issues for the future of the country. These challenges go beyond the simple scope of the protests and far beyond the pressing issue of assuring the peaceful completion of the Beijing Olympic Games in August. The issues are radical - those of history, geography and the role of China in the world.'

Family Security Matters, 10 Apr 08, by Douglas Farah
What Does Iran Want from Latin America?
'My concern is that Iran, which has little real interest in Latin America in a substantive way, is positioning its favorite quasi-state actor, Hezbollah, around the region in order to be prepared to strike the United States, should it deem such a strike necessary or desirable.'

Turkish Weekly, 25 Mar 08, by Caglar Dolek
The US Hegemony, Failed State and the War on Terrorism: Implications for Africa?
'... when it comes to especially the African continent, the notion of "failed state" has been utilized in order to explain the problems of Africa without any critical reasoning. Considering this rather complex and broad set of questions, it seems vital to critically revaluate those notions with particular focus on Africa. Within in such a critique, however, the place of the US seems to be central especially with the recently initiated project of AFRICOM.'

International Herald Tribune, 09 Apr 08, by Geoffrey Wheatcroft
Belfast's Peace: Misplaced praise for a misbegotten peace
'... All those who defend the settlement must attempt to distinguish between the IRA and other terrorists, not to say between Ulster and pretty much everywhere else, a question which has been addressed on this page. The "irony," Michael Goldfarb writes in "Peace is not about justice" (Views, Dec. 8, 2007), is that "the price of conjuring peace out of conflict is that justice is not done; most crimes go unpunished." That has surely been the case in Northern Ireland.'

Family Security Matters, 10 Apr 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
J-Roc Insults Combat Aircrews
'So here we have a United States Senator – who sits on the Senate Veterans Affairs committee – essentially damning military pilots as combatants who, and I'm paraphrasing, "don't know what happens" when their munitions strike their targets. In his words, McCain "was [which means all combat pilots are] long gone when they [the missiles] hit."'

Washington Post, 09 Apr 08, by editorial staff
Obama's Iraq Weakness
'At some point, most foreign policy debates, especially during a war, come down to a binary determination: Is a candidate strong or weak? Voters can disagree with a nominee on many things and still find him stronger than his opponent.'

Townhall.com, 06 Apr 08, by W. Thomas Smith Jr.
Why the MSM is dumbfounded by McCain's refusal to go home
'McCain's rejection of the enemy offer seems remarkable to many journalists who have recently been covering the presidential campaign of the now 71-year-old U.S. senator from Arizona.'

Christian Science Monitor, 01 Apr 08, by editorial staff
The Battle of Basra
'Lessons from this six-day conflict may decide if Iraq is to have a strong government.'

Christian Science Monitor, 01 Apr 08, by Eugene Rumer
NATO's message to Russia
'It mustn't let Putin's challenge go unanswered.'

International Herald Tribune, 01 Apr 08, by Karl F. Inderfurth
A New Compact: Afghanistan, Pakistan and NATO
'The NATO summit meeting in Bucharest this week comes at a critical time for the 26-member alliance and its mission in Afghanistan. It also comes at a critical time for the one country that can make or break that mission: Pakistan.'

International Herald Tribune, 02 Apr 08, by Jaap de Hoop Scheffer
NATO and Afghanistan: A new phase
'The NATO summit meeting in Bucharest ... It will set out the path to a new phase in our Afghanistan engagement: What used to be a predominantly military effort will begin to shift toward a more balanced approach, with a stronger emphasis on civilian efforts and on Afghan ownership.'

Christian Science Monitor, 03 Apr 08, by Benjamin H. Friedman
Don't 'pull an Iraq' in Afghanistan
'... what US involvement in Iraq principally demonstrates is the limitation of American military power in reordering foreign societies. US troops can check violence in areas they occupy, but cannot repair the tensions that produce such violence. Those tensions stem from political problems that only Iraqis can solve, as the current unrest in the Shiite south indicates. If Iraq teaches Americans that flooding troops into other states racked by civil war and that undertaking massive state-building efforts is a good use of tax dollars, they are misguided.'

International Herald Tribune, 02 Apr 08, by Anthony H. Cordesman
Shiite on Shiite: A civil war Iraq can't win
'Even if American and Iraqi forces are able to eliminate Al Qaeda in Iraq, there are still three worrisome possibilities of new forms of fighting that could divide Iraq and deny the United States any form of "victory."'

Human Events, 03 Apr 08, by Walid Phares
The Winning Side of the Iraq Campaign
'In his latest assessment of the state of the campaign in Iraq President Bush drew strategic assertions regarding the measurement of success and the risks of failure on that battlefield, in what we can coin as the next stage in the confrontation against the forces of terror in the region.'

Asia Times, 02 Apr 08, by M K Bhadrakumar
Iran torpedoes US plans for Iraqi oil
'By all accounts, Iran played a decisive role in hammering out the peace deal among the Shi'ite factions in Iraq.

International Herald Tribune, 02 Apr 08, by editorial staff
Wasting and wanting at the Pentagon
'If ever there was an indictment of the wanton ways that the Pentagon wastes money, a new report by U.S. government auditors is it. Dozens of the Pentagon's most costly weapons programs are billions of dollars over budget and years behind schedule. ... Now, in stark terms, we see that an unseemly percentage of that money has gone to wasteful cost overruns and delays. Even when weapons systems are finally delivered, investigators say, far too many fail to deliver the capabilities promised.'

Human Events, 03 Apr 08, by W. Thomas Smith, Jr.
U.S. Ground Forces Wearing Out
'Designers, engineers, contractors, maintenance personnel, and budget planners have always had to consider everything from handguns to howitzers to tactical missiles for U.S. ground forces and every imaginable soldier’s weapon in between. Those considerations have only increased with the current pace of ground combat operations.'

International Herald Tribune, 01 Apr 08, by H.D.S. Greenway
Greenway: Dith Pran: A gallant guide
'The world got to know of Dith Pran, who died of cancer Sunday, through the power of movies, specifically "The Killing Fields," in which he was played by Haing Ngor, who won an Oscar for his performance.'

PBS 'Frontline', Mar 08
Bush's War
'More than anything else the Iraq war will be the lasting legacy of this administration. Here is the epic story of how it began and how it has been fought.'

New York Times, 23 Mar 08, by Nicholas D. Kristof
Iraq, $5,000 Per Second?
'For all the disagreement, there appears to be at least a modest connection between spending in Iraq and the economic difficulties at home. So as we debate whether to bring our troops home, one central question should be whether Iraq is really the best place to invest $411 million every day in present spending alone.'

New York Times, 23 Mar 08, by Paul Berman
Why Radical Islam Just Won’t Die
'... extremist ideologies have prospered because of their own ability to adapt and survive — their strength, in a word.'

Globe and Mail, 21 Mar 08, Geoffrey York
Why Tibet is boiling over
'As protests spread beyond Lhasa, The Globe examines the environmental, economic and demographic grievances at the root of the bitter conflict.'

International Herald Tribune, 26 Mar 08, by H.D.S. Greenway
Prayer onto the wind
'Seldom has the world seen such a stark clash between soft power and hard power as the current confrontation between the Dalai Lama and the might of the People's Republic of China. In a real sense, both have failed.'

International Herald Tribune, 26 Mar 08, by Roger Cohen
Imaginary snipers, real challenges
'What's needed ... is some new, creative thinking about a changed world in which authoritarianism is enjoying a renaissance and America and its allies need to work together to spread peace, prosperity, freedom, equity, security and, yes, democracy.'

Washington Post, 13 Mar 08, by David Ignatius
A Centcom Chief Who Spoke His Mind
'The first thing that many of Adm. William Fallon's colleagues note about him is that he's a Navy officer. By that, they mean he has the stubborn self-confidence, some would say arrogance, that is part of command at sea.'

International Herald Tribune, 12 Mar 08, by editorial staff
Helping Iraqi refugees who helped America
'Federal efforts should focus on helping Iraqis who come here build new lives. One challenge for some professionals from Iraq (and other countries) is finding jobs that match their abilities.'

Stratfor, 11 Mar 08, by Rodger Baker
Asia's Security Role Goes Global
'Over the last few decades, China, Japan and South Korea have dabbled on the international stage mainly via "soft" tools such as cultural and economic exchanges. But as the global trading system has evolved – along with the East Asian trio's stature within that system – the three countries' hunger for resources and markets has grown to an all-time high. This has pushed them into increasingly bold experiments on the international stage with "harder" tools such as military and security exchanges.'

International Herald Tribune, 12 Mar 08, by editorial staff
Serbia's choice: Isolation or the EU
'Kosovo made a historic choice for independence last month. Serbia will soon have a chance to make its own historic choice - either for a better future as part of the European Union or for isolation, stagnation and decline.'

Washington Post, 11 Mar 08, by Christopher Hitchens
Iraq: Worth the Price
'A few years ago, we had armed forces that were quite able to remove a ramshackle yet horrific government in Kabul or Baghdad but were quite unprepared to tackle the much more agonizing and tenacious enemies -- a Baathist/Al Quaeda alliance, or a Pakistani Pushtun/Bin Laden coalition -- that had partly emerged under those ex-governments' shadows. Now, after infinite labor, we have armed forces who have learned in practice how to smash Islamist terrorism on the battlefield, and also how to isolate and discredit it in the slums and the villages. This is what we needed in the first place and still need, as it happens, in both Iraq and Afghanistan, and will also need in the future.'

World Affairs Council of Northern California, 05 Feb 08, with Ivan Eland and David Henderson
Iraq End Game
[video] 'A recurring question found in most public opinion polls and on the 2008 presidential campaign trail: What will be the end-game for the U.S. in Iraq? How will U.S. decisions about continued engagement affect Iraq itself, and the Middle East?'

The National Interest, 05 Mar 08, by J. Peter Pham
Inside Track: Helping Taiwan Help Itself
'On Monday, the Pentagon released the 2008 edition of its legislatively mandated Annual Report to Congress: Military Power of the People's Republic of China. ... overall the report passed unnoticed, especially when one contrasts the attention it received with the headlines generated by some of its predecessors.'

Washington Post, 06 Mar 08, by
Homeland Security's Struggle
'Five years on, the department is very much a work in progress -- still struggling to mesh the 22 agencies that were combined to create a sprawling security establishment with about 208,000 employees. Critics say it remains more a collection of bureaucratic parts than a unitary Cabinet department.'

International Herald Tribune, 27 Feb 08, by Roger Cohen
The long haul in Afghanistan
'Hauling Afghanistan from the Middle Ages and the Taliban's vestigial clutches will involve every lever of power - economic, social, diplomatic and military. The last of these is not the least. If solidarity dissolves at the point of danger, the war's lost.'

Christian Science Monitor, 27 Feb 08, by Iason Athanasiadis
Waiting for a US-Iran handshake
'Iran's diplomatic elite believe that the time has come to lead the region.'

International Herald Tribune, 27 Feb 08, by editorial staff
Dealing pragmatically with Putin's Russia
'The next U.S. president will have to deal with a Russia that is not only nuclear-armed but increasingly wealthy and authoritarian.'

Washington Post, 28 Feb 08, by David Ignatius
The Fading Jihadists
'Politicians who talk about the terrorism threat ... should be required to read a new book by a former CIA officer named Marc Sageman: 'Leaderless Jihad'. It stands what you think you know about terrorism on its head and helps you see the topic in a different light.'

International Herald Tribune, 27 Feb 08, by Francisco Rodríguez
Venezuela's empty revolution
'Although opinions differ on whether Chávez's rule should be characterized as authoritarian or democratic, just about everyone appears to agree that, in contrast to his predecessors, Chávez has made the welfare of the Venezuelan poor his top priority.'

Washington Post, 20 Feb 08, by Anya Landau French
Our Failed, Punitive Policy
'Treating Cuba as an all-or-nothing proposition has netted the United States nothing. Our interests go unserved and our ideals unmet.'

Washington Post, 20 Feb 08, by Robert Kagan
A Card to Play for Cuba's Freedom
'To encourage the broader transition to democracy, the United States should be more than a passive spectator.'

International Herald Tribune, 19 Feb 08, by H.D.S. Greenway
Echoes of 'Nam
'... Tet showed there was no light at the end of the tunnel, and that to fight on in an endless war was not something the American public was going to stand for. Vietnam showed that we could win every battle and still lose the war.'

International Herald Tribune, 19 Feb 08, by Desmond Tutu
Taking the responsibility to protect
'The horrors of conflict in Africa continue today, but there is also a sign of how rapid response, with support from neighbors and the international community, can save lives and bring hope.'

International Herald Tribune, 19 Feb 08, by Charles Nasibu
Make the peace work
'The peace agreement signed in my homeland of the Democratic Republic of Congo on Jan. 23 has given hope to my family and compatriots for the first time in years. ... Will this agreement really bring lasting peace to DR Congo? This depends on how the details of the plan are implemented.'

Washington Post, 19 Feb 08, by Michael Gerson
Dying Silently In Zimbabwe
'One of the most reckless and cruel acts of government is the destruction of a currency. ... hyperinflation is rare in history, but we are seeing it once again, in Zimbabe. ... Mugabe manages to pay off his military leaders and political cronies with hard currency that comes from mining gold and platinum. He also sells farmland to Chinese and Libyan speculators -- land expropriated from white farmers, supposedly in the cause of Zimbabwean nationalism. Mugabe is literally putting his country on the block to maintain his power.'

International Herald Tribune, 13 Feb 08, by Michael R. Gordon
The case for a pause in U.S. troop reduction in Iraq
'There is an overarching reason American commanders in Iraq want a pause in American troop reductions this summer: The United States has learned through painful experience that security can rapidly deteriorate if it overestimates the capability of Iraq's forces to keep the peace.'

Christian Science Monitor, 14 Feb 08
Bush's unfinished Africa legacy
'He has done well with health and foreign aid, but his vision for a new US military role still needs defining.'

Washington Post, 14 Feb 08, by David Ignatius
Bush's Iraq Calculus
'President Bush, newly confident that his troop-surge strategy is working, is taking steps that are likely to guarantee another Iraq-driven election.'

International Herald Tribune, 14 Feb 08, by Steven Erlanger
Israel's quandary in Gaza
'As rockets continue to fall on Israeli towns, and Israeli politicians call for harsh retaliation, Israel faces an acute quandary in Gaza, with delicate political, military and moral dilemmas.'

International Herald Tribune, 13 Feb 08, by Roger Cohen
Here comes Kosovo
'Europe will get a new state, Kosovo, on Sunday and the long, bloody unraveling of Yugoslavia will be concluded 17 years after the first war of its dissolution broke out in Slovenia. That is cause for celebration.'

International Herald Tribune, 13 Feb 08, by editorial staff
Unnecessary damage to America's image
'The Bush administration's decision to put six detainees at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, on trial before military tribunals and to seek the death penalty is both a betrayal of American ideals and simply bad strategy.'

International Herald Tribune, 13 Feb 08, by editorial staff
Putin strengthens his legacy
'In less than three months, he plans to turn over the presidency to his anointed heir, Dmitri Medvedev, through elections that will be a mockery of democracy.'

America Abroad, 13 Feb 08
Communication Breakdown: Losing the War of Ideas
'Following the attacks of September 11, the US recognized the need to explain itself and its policies to the Muslim world and attempted to resuscitate its public diplomacy infrastructure. More than six years later, America continues to shoot blanks in the war of ideas, and anti-Americanism is at an all-time high.'

Human Events, 12 Feb 08, by W. Thomas Smith, Jr.
Defense Spending Crisis
'The first duty of government, as Adam Smith wrote in 1776, is defense which can only be accomplished by means of a military force. Our federal government is Constitutionally charged "to provide for the common defense." Yet that essential function is literally on the verge of collapse, descending into a proverbial black hole of debt, skyrocketing costs, poor planning, Beltway politics, and wartime wear-and-tear.'

The New Yorker, 11 Feb 08, by Seymour M. Hersh
A Strike in the Dark
'What did Israel bomb in Syria?'

Christian Science Monitor, 04 Feb 08, by editorial staff
The world can't ignore the Al Qaeda and Taliban threat in Afghanistan
'A triple alarm sounded on Afghanistan last week. Three reports by reputable, nonpartisan groups in the US concluded that it's a country verging on failure. It needs more troops and aid, the reports said. The international community must step up – and soon.'

Washington Post, 07 Feb 08, by editorial staff
Darfur's Chaos Spreads
'A rebellion in neighboring Chad benefits Sudan's dictator.'

Human Events, 05 Feb 08, by Caspar Weinberger Jr.
Leaving Iran for the Next Administration
'It's obvious by now that the Bush Administration has no intention of acting decisively on the Iranian nuclear threat. That is unfortunate because the longer we wait, the more serious the problem grows.'

Human Events, 01 Feb 08, by Walid Phares
The Candidate Who Can See the Enemy, Can Defeat It
'The post 9/11 era has changed the rules of engagement for national security experts and for those who can read the mind of the Jihadists, when it comes to US Presidential elections. While the principle was that the counter Terrorism community should let the voters chose their candidates and select their chief executive first, then offer the expert advice to the President later, unfortunately for that principle, things have changed.'

Investor's Business Daily, 29 Jan 08
The Defense Rusts
'Ronald Reagan won in 1980 in part by pledging to rebuild a military eviscerated by Jimmy Carter. Who'll challenge Hillary Clinton on the damage her co-president husband did to America's defenses?'

Washington Times, 28 Jan 08, by Tom Harb
Hezbollah's dark hand
'Like all international terrorist groups, Lebanon-based Hezbollah has always relied on the classic methodology of terror: horrifying, grisly attacks and detonations that produce mass casualties in order to garner as much press as possible. In short, its goal is to terrorize the public as a means of manipulating the same.'

TownHall.com, 28 Jan 08, by W. Thomas Smith, Jr
Hezbollah's bags of cash
'For years it's been reported that Hezbollah ... has been receiving money from Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) ... The money factor is simply too big; and it seems as if the U.S. and our allies in the global war on terror are fighting a losing battle – at least temporarily – as we try to shut down this dangerous cash flow to Hezbollah.'

International Herald Tribune, 30 Jan 08, by Paul Kennedy
Who's hiding under our umbrella?
'... the complex relationships between the "provider" of the strategic umbrella and the countries that shelter underneath it.'

PBS 'Frontline', 29 Jan 08
Return of the Taliban
'A nightmare scenario has come true: a resurgence of jihadist forces in an area far out of America's reach.'

Asia Times, 31 Jan 08, by Alan G Jamieson
Towards a new 'Suez crisis'
'The economic problems in the United States have drawn attention away from the continuing efforts of certain members of the George W Bush administration to provoke a military confrontation with Iran. Yet these two themes, economic vulnerability and warlike intent, may be woven together in the near future in a way that parallels an earlier crisis in the Middle East.'

International Herald Tribune, 29 Jan 08, by Daniel Barenboim
Israeli and Palestinian
'In the Israeli-Palestinian conflict there was and still is an inability to admit the interdependence of their two voices. The creation of the state of Israel was the result of a Jewish-European idea, which, if it is to extend its leitmotif into the future, must accept the Palestinian identity as an equally valid leitmotif.'

International Herald Tribune, 29 Jan 08, by Celestine Bohlen, Bloomberg News
Kosovo's independence won't end its struggle
'With 16,000 North Atlantic Treaty Organization troops keeping a tenuous peace between Albanian and Serbian residents, Kosovo enters the world of nations with major handicaps.'

International Herald Tribune, 28 Jan 08, by John Vinocur
West dithers as Iran goes it merry way
'Outplayed for years by Moscow and Tehran, Washington has become even more ineffective since its National Intelligence Estimate said Iran stopped work on the weapons segment of its nuclear program in 2003. ... Regardless of how little taste there is for a conflict, the threat of American military action was the allies' best and perhaps most essential card in rattling Iran out of its intransigence.'

Christian Science Monitor, 30 Jan 08, by Eric Reeves
Genocide prevention: 60 years of abject failure
'Darfur reinforces the impotence of this UN mandate.'

Cato Institute, 24 Jan 08, by Stanley Kober, Washington Times
NATO Must Succeed in Afghanistan
'That future is now staring NATO in the face. If NATO fails in Afghanistan, it is questionable whether the alliance will survive.'

Asia Times, 24 Jan 08, by Greg Mills and Chris Thompson
China: Partner or predator in Africa?
'The conventional wisdom is that China presents Africa with major threats and opportunities, and that there is growing tension between the United States and China over the latter's evolving African interests. On paper, at least, the nascent interest of China in Africa looks to the latter's advantage.'

Cambridge Forum, 29 Oct 07, broadcast Jan 08
The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy
'John Mearsheimer and Stephen Walt address as they discuss their controversial book The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy.'

Washington Post, 24 Jan 08, by editorial staff
Breach in Gaza
'As thousands stream across the border to Egypt, Hamas blockades the peace process.'

Washington Post, 24 Jan 08, by David Albright and Jacqueline Shire
Slowly, but Surely, Pyongyang Is Moving
'There is no indication that North Korea is backing away from its commitments to disable key nuclear facilities and every reason to expect this process to unfold slowly, with North Korea taking small, incremental steps in return for corresponding steps from the United States and others in the six-party discussions.'

Washington Post, 24 Jan 08, by David Ignatius
A Pro for the Pakistani Army?
'Ashfaq Kiyani May Do What Pervez Musharraf Couldn't'

Washington Post/Cato Institute, 23 Jan 08, by Malou Innocent
The Shah of Pakistan?
'America's most vulnerable ally in the war on terror is Pakistan. But our alliance with the nuclear-armed Islamic state may be exacerbating that country's instability.'

International Herald Tribune, 23 Jan 08, by editorial staff
Once again, Sudan shows its scorn for the world
'In its latest show of disdain for world opinion, the regime in Sudan has named Musa Hilal, the leader of the dreaded Arab militias known as Janjaweed, as special adviser to Sudan's Ministry of Federal Affairs.'

Financial Times, 23 Jan 08, by Roula Khalaf
Middle East: Region would prefer jaw, jaw to war, war
'In the Middle East, and in Europe, officials say Mr Bush's search for a Middle East breakthrough, even at this late stage, should be encouraged, however slim the chances of a successful outcome and whatever the motives.'

International Herald Tribune, 22 Jan 08, by H.D.S. Greenway
A Mideast lesson for Bush
'The biggest lesson that Bush might have learned from Israel's example is that overdependence on brute force to solve complicated problems does not always provide a solution, and usually makes things worse as Lebanon and the occupied territories have so amply demonstrated.'

Stratfor Geopolitical Intelligence Report, 22 Jan 08, by Peter Zeihan
The Unraveling of Russia's Europe Policy

Christian Science Monitor, 18 Jan 08, by A. Wess Mitchell
A tale of two allies
'The Polish lesson: America must give something in return for support.'

Washington Post, 17 Jan 08, by Hussein Agha and Robert Malley
Middle East Triangle
'The Israeli-Palestinian conflict has gone from a violent, intractable, clear-cut duel to a violent, intractable, three-way chess match. Today, Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Hamas each fears that the other two will reach a deal at its expense. And each is determined to prevent that outcome.'

Washington Post, 17 Jan 08, by editorial staff
Fight in Afghanistan
'It's becoming clear that the war must be won by U.S. troops, and not by NATO.'

Christian Science Monitor, 14 Jan 08, by Jacqueline M. Klopp
The real reason for Kenya's violence
'Contrary to popular belief, it isn't simply "tribal" or "spontaneous."'

International Herald Tribune, 16 Jan 08, by Pervez Hoodbhoy
A state of denial
'As suicide bombings escalate, criticism of religious extremists remains taboo.'

Christian Science Monitor, 09 Jan 08, by George Moffett
In the Middle East, no time to spare
'Bush must push hard for a two-state solution.'

Asia Times, 10 Jan 08, by Erik Leaver
Iraq faces up to life beyond the 'surge'
'January 10 marked the one-year anniversary of President George W Bush's "surge" strategy. Many analysts are now claiming the "surge" is a success, but with no end in sight to the war, the year of the "surge" really is a tale of two Iraqs.'

International Herald Tribune, 09 Jan 08, by Charles J. Dunlap Jr.
We still need the big guns
'The relative calm that America's armed forces have imposed on Iraq is certainly grounds for cautious optimism. But it also raises some obvious questions: how was it achieved and what does it mean for future defense planning?'

International Herald Tribune, 09 Jan 08, by Roger Stern
We can beat Iran - but not by fighting
'For the last century, technological change has relentlessly degraded the value of capital ships. Too often, naval high commands deny that this process is happening.'

Asia Times, 10 Jan 08, by Robert D Blackwill
The three Rs: Rivalry, Russia and 'Ran
'We are witnessing a systemic decline in Russia's relations with the West. There is a long list of complaints from the industrial democracies regarding Moscow's behavior, many of them justified. But the US-Russia relationship (and that of Europe and Russia) does not occur in a strategic vacuum.'

Christian Science Monitor, 04 Jan 08, by Marc Lynch
Why U.S. strategy on Iran is crumbling
'Gulf states no longer want to isolate Iran.'

International Herald Tribune, 04 Jan 08, by William Dalrymple
Bhutto's deadly legacy
'The obituaries painting Benazir Bhutto as dying to save democracy distort history.'

2007 Commentary archive