Emphasis, as always, added.
Emphasis Added: The Foreign Policy Week in Pieces (4/18)
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Europe & Central Asia
Bands Like Laibach a Powerful Amplifier of Former Yugoslav Social Discontent
Rock music substituted for the absence of political and social criticism.
A Legacy of Rogues in Afghanistan
Faced with an impending withdrawal deadline and ineffectual Afghan security units, U.S. planners have pitched the Afghan Local Police (ALP) program as an affordable short-term fix to fill the country’s security vacuum. Yet despite some success in achieving security gains, ALP units have been accused of committing serious human rights abuses against local populations with apparent impunity.
Emphasis Added: The Foreign Policy Week in Pieces (4/12)
From WWII to Afghanistan, and the Iron Lady.
Bulgaria’s Podkrepa Made the Same Mistake as Solidarity
Workers in Bulgaria have more freedom, but with a price.
Emphasis Added: The Foreign Policy Week in Pieces (4/8)
From a Department of Homeland Security armed to the teeth to a dubious Nobel Peace Prize.
The Secret History of Yugoslavia
Numerous accounts of the fall of Yugoslavia have attempted to shine a light on the machinations of the Milosevics. But now, thanks to human rights campaigner Sonja Biserko, we have a Serbian Secret History. Her new book, The Implosion of Yugoslavia, is a devastating indictment of not only Slobodan Milosevic and his circle of supporters but the entire culture of extreme nationalism that enveloped Serbia in those years like a fever dream.
Bulgaria’s Labor Perpetually in Crisis
The Confederation of Independent Trade Unions in Bulgaria has seen its membership drop from 2.5 million to 300,000 in recent years.
The Great Afghan Corruption Scam
Washington has vociferously denounced Afghan corruption as a major obstacle to the U.S. mission in Afghanistan. This has been widely reported. Only one crucial element is missing from this routine censure: a credible explanation of why American nation-building failed there. No wonder. To do so, the U.S. would have to denounce itself.
Syria: Chess Match Turned Free-for-All
Israel’s apology to Turkey over the 2010 Mavi Marmara killings might lay the groundwork for direct intervention in Syria by NATO and Israel.