Uncategorized Archives - Page 39 of 279

Can Egypt Chart Its Own Course?

by Giorgio Cafiero | Sep 17, 2012

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi’s bold initiatives on the world stage indicate that the Muslim Brotherhood leader is attempting to pursue a more independent approach to international affairs. By visiting China and Iran before the United States, forcing several high-ranking leaders of Egypt’s U.S.-backed military to retire, and deploying forces within the Sinai, Morsi is boldly challenging the Washington-Tel Aviv-Riyadh axis of power that has defined the Middle East’s order for decades.

A Glimmer of Military Budget Sanity

by Miriam Pemberton, Gabriel I. Rossman | Sep 10, 2012

Here’s a milestone of sorts. For the first time since 1998, the House of Representatives voted in July to maintain the current military budget rather than increase Pentagon spending. It’s the first step toward bringing the budget down.

Accountability and Insurgency in Afghanistan

by Inge Fryklund | Sep 5, 2012

Although the war in Afghanistan—with its tally of U.S. combat deaths now exceeding 2,000—has largely faded from the news, it is useful to consider why the conflict is so intractable. Why has a campaign that initially seemed so hopeful resulted in a country that is politically fractured and increasingly deadly for Afghans and foreign militaries alike?

Who Will Govern Syrian Kurdistan?

by Giorgio Cafiero | Aug 31, 2012

Although the prospects for an independent state in Syrian Kurdistan remain dim, unprecedented Kurdish autonomy will likely result from the conflict. The implications extend beyond Syria’s borders as various governments and non-state actors have strong, and often conflicting, interests in the political fate of Syria’s Kurds and the territorial integrity of the Syrian state.

Peru Confronts Its Past

by W. Alex Sanchez | Aug 28, 2012

Nations trying to come to terms with violence from their recent pasts have a difficult road ahead, and the Andean country of Peru is no exception. The country is grappling with a host of issues stemming from its violent struggle against insurgent movements in the 1980s and 1990s.

Review: Bending History

by Shiran Shen | Aug 24, 2012

As a presidential candidate, Barack Obama wanted—at least rhetorically—to bend the arc of history towards justice, freedom, progress, and prosperity. A new book examines whether his foreign policy has born that vision out.

Mali’s War: The Wages of Sin

by Conn Hallinan | Aug 23, 2012

The bad dream unfolding in Mali is less the product of a radical version of Islam than a consequence of the West’s scramble for resources on this vast continent, and the wages of sin from the recent Libyan war.

Syria’s Sectarian Echoes in Turkey

by Giorgio Cafiero | Aug 22, 2012

Turkey has become one of Bashar Al-Assad’s main enemies since Erdogan turned on his old friend in response to the Syrian regime’s brutal crackdown on the opposition. But the sectarian character of Syria’s civil war has created tensions within Turkey that complicate the triangular relationship among Ankara, Damascus, and the armed Syrian opposition.

How We Can Replace Defense Jobs

by Miriam Pemberton | Aug 21, 2012

As the post-9-11 wars finally begin to end, we can shrink the Pentagon budget. Here is a three-part strategy for replacing the jobs currently dependent on military production we don’t need.

Japan’s Katrina Moment

by Derek Monroe | Aug 21, 2012

Japan has always had a reputation for organizational prowess and efficiency, which in the past earned it the nickname “Prussia of the East.” That image, along with its post-World War II prosperity, has been seriously shaken by its stinted recovery from last year’s natural and nuclear disasters.