Terrorism Archives - Page 33 of 138 - Foreign Policy In Focus

Afghanistan: Killing Peace

by Conn Hallinan | Jan 12, 2011

In spite of a White House report that “progress” is being made in Afghanistan, by virtually any measure the war has significantly deteriorated since the Obama administration surged troops into Kandahar and Helmand provinces. This past year has been the deadliest on record for U.S. and coalition troops. According to the International Committee of the Red Cross, security has worsened throughout the country. Civilian casualties are on the rise. U.S. allies are falling away, and the central government in Kabul has never been so isolated. Polls in Afghanistan, the United States, and Europe reflect growing opposition to the nine-year conflict.

Thanks to New START, You Too Can “Ride Out” a Nuclear Attack

by Russ Wellen | Jan 10, 2011

U.S. nuclear-war policy has always been poised between deterrence — riding out a nuclear attack before responding — and launch on warning — an itchy trigger finger.

Apostate Politics: How Some Recanted Muslims Have Bolstered Militarist US Policies

by Samer Araabi | Jan 10, 2011

Recently, there has emerged a cadre of high-profile individuals from the Greater Middle East who, unlike Chalabi, have turned against Islam and embraced their lives in the West. In doing so, they have adopted views strikingly similar to some of the more hawkish factions in U.S. politics.

Will U.S. Use Punjab Governor’s Death as Pretext for More Drone Attacks?

by Hannah Gurman | Jan 5, 2011

While the assassination of Punjab’s governor might be seen as an excuse for more drone attacks in Pakistan, it’s more likely an effect.

Resilience, Thy Name Is Al Qaeda

by Russ Wellen | Jan 1, 2011

Its rejuvenation necessitates neither more American troops overseas nor increased domestic surveillance.

WikiLeaks XXV: Security Firms in Iraq Making a Killing (Figuratively in This Case)

by Michael Busch | Dec 29, 2010

Halliburton made no effort to hide its displeasure at being fleeced by private security companies — beaten at its own game, in other words.

Review: Cultures of War

by Greg Chaffin | Dec 27, 2010

The last 70 years of modern warfare have been filled with atrocities, from the first bomb that exploded the tranquility of Pearl Harbor on the morning of December 7, 1941 to the advent of large-scale saturation bombing of civilian centers culminating in the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, from the terror attacks of 9/11 to the ill-advised invasion of Iraq and subsequent quagmire. In his ambitious and comprehensive comparative study Cultures of War, historian John Dower exposes many striking similarities between the thoughts, actions, and attitudes of Imperial Japan, the United States, and radical Islamists.

Islamists Bite the Ballot

by Saif Shahin | Dec 23, 2010

Recent elections in Bahrain and Egypt are being criticized for all the usual reasons. Authoritarian regimes — one a monarchy, the other a quasi-military dictatorship — cracked down on the media and the small opposition forces that challenged them in the run-up to the polls, eventually holding ballots with little or no monitoring.

It’s True: Sweden Was Too Good to Be True

by Rob Prince | Dec 17, 2010

Even in the best of times, corporate fraud, Nazi connections, hate groups and Eastern European drug rings were lurking beneath Sweden’s surface.

The China-Philippines-U.S. Triangle

by Richard Javad Heydarian | Dec 16, 2010

The United States is, by far, the Philippines’ most important strategic security partner. China’s ascent as a regional Asia Pacific powerhouse, coupled with the relative decline of the United States, has threatened to reconfigure this equation. Yet China’s growing assertiveness over territorial claims from Northeast Asia to the South China Sea might also unravel two decades of its relatively successful charm offensive, which calmed the nerves of many anxious Southeast Asian nations. Any display of aggression by China in the South China Sea could compromise its relations with the Philippines.