Diplomacy and Strategy Articles
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Column
By
Nikolas Gvosdev
20 Nov 2009
World Politics Review
During his trip to Asia, President Barack Obama laid out a grand vision for a U.S.-China partnership, working together to solve the world's most pressing issues. It sounds very dramatic, almost like a form of co-dominion, with two global powers sharing the burdens of maintaining the international
order. There's just one small problem: That is not what the United States is offering.
By Frida Ghitis
19 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Middle Eastern diplomacy has intensified enormously in recent months, but don't expect to see peace break out any time soon as a result of that new burst of activity. That's because the latest wave of diplomacy has surfaced in a most unlikely place: South America, which is fast becoming a proxy for the not-so-cold war between Iran and Israel.
By Andrew MacDowall
19 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
After years as a sidelined figure on the European political stage, Serbia is now attracting growing attention from both West and East. While continuing to line up its bid for European Union membership, Serbia is also the focus of Russia's renewed interest in the Balkans. For the time being, Serbia's canny government is strengthening its own position through what amounts to a balancing act.
By James Locher
19 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
An increasing number of U.S. national security missions now require interagency approaches. But because of the excessively rigid structures and processes of the current national security system, the White House is compelled to take charge of most strategy development and planning. The result is over-centralization of decision-making, and insufficient coordination for effective policy implementation.
By Greg Lowe
18 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
BANGKOK -- Cambodian Prime Minister Hun Sen's recent appointment of Thailand's former premier, Thaksin Shinawatra, as an economic adviser was the diplomatic equivalent of precision bombing, whose shockwaves have sent relations between the neighboring Southeast Asian nations into a tailspin.
By David Axe
18 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan -- The Afghan helicopter, a brand-new Russian-made Mi-17,
wasn't clearly his, but U.S. Air Force Maj. Darren Brumfield was still
determined to keep it. His unit, the 438th Air Expeditionary Training
Group, needs four transport helicopters to perform its mentoring mission to an Afghan air wing, and in
early November, the group had just three.
By Luke Hunt
18 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Gripped by simmering cross-border tensions, a dysfunctional democracy and collective unease over the health of the monarchy, Thailand has seen its status as a major power in Southeast Asia and its influence in the wider region cast under a harsh light recently.
By James Locher
18 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
The current Department of State was not designed to manage the increasingly diverse responsibilities of the U.S. government in a globalized world. To remedy this situation, the United States needs a Next-Generation State Department that can apply an integrated approach to the management of global civilian affairs.
By Richard Weitz
17 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
BEIJING -- Although nuclear arms control is not likely to be a major
agenda item during President Barack Obama's visit to China, it should
be. One of the obstacles facing the president as he seeks to realize
his ambitious arms control goals is the
need to transform the primarily bilateral strategic arms control
relationship inherited from the Cold War into a multilateral framework.
By Masoud Shafaee
16 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
It remains uncertain whether Iran will ultimately accept the agreement that negotiators in Geneva drafted late last month to send Iran's stockpiled enriched uranium abroad for further enrichment. But the deliberations in Tehran have made one thing clear: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is under enormous domestic pressure from all sides to reject the P5+1 deal.
By Patrick Burns
13 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
HAVANA -- The current U.S.-Cuba relationship is a fragile, quid pro quo arrangement with enormous expectations building on both sides. The Obama administration's recent pragmatic measures somehow won support in both Miami and Havana. Still, despite the diplomatic dance taking place, normalization will take time, as the two countries remain deeply divided on core issues.
By Risto Karajkov
12 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Last month, two rounds of high-level meetings on the future of Bosnia took place at a military base on the outskirts of Sarajevo, in an effort to revise the country's constitutional foundations. The talks have already been called "Dayton 2," in reference to the accords that ended Bosnia's civil war in 1995. For now, though, they are unlikely to repeat the success of the original.
By Frida Ghitis
12 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
President Barack Obama has managed to improve the popular standing of the United States in many countries previously hostile to it. Ironically, though, relations between Obama and the leaders of U.S. allies have turned rather frosty, particularly in Europe. If Obama's first foreign policy chapter was marked by engagement with America's foes, the next chapter may well require improving ties with its friends.
By Nicolas Nagle
11 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
BRUSSELS, Belgium -- With the last obstacles out of the way for the Lisbon Treaty's ratification, a race in Brussels has begun between the European Commission and the European Council to secure influence over the new European diplomatic corps. The integration of elements from the Commission and the Council is causing tensions over who will control the future service.
By Jing-dong Yuan
10 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
China's fifth generation of leaders is coming of age at a critical juncture in the history of the People's Republic of China. Slated to assume power in 2012-2013, they make for a diverse group in terms of class backgrounds, personal experiences, educational credentials, and career paths. Whether they will be able to achieve consensus will determine how well they face the challenges ahead.
By John Lee
10 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Major
economic and social problems stand in the way of
China's continued rise. But while many analysts recognize that these
problems exist, most ignore the ways in which China's problems are
structural, and why solving them without the
prospect of enormous turmoil will be difficult and even unlikely.
By Seth McLaughlin
10 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
China figures into virtually every major U.S. foreign policy objective -- from North Korea and Iran to economic recovery and climate change -- and plays the role of U.S. rival, competitor and partner all at the same time. Managing this complex relationship is a major policy priority for the Obama administration.
By Prashanth Parameswaran
10 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
In announcing his 37-member cabinet last month, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono lauded his new team as "credible and accountable," and expressed confidence in its abilities. However, many experts did not join in Yudhoyono's glowing encomium, and with good reason: Most of the cabinet-level appointments seem to be based on
considerations of political loyalty more than competence.
By Richard Weitz
10 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
BEIJING -- One of the issues President Barack Obama will discuss when he visits China next week is the deadlocked Six-Party
Talks to resolve the North Korean nuclear crisis. Over time, the Chinese government has developed a stake in the talks'
successful outcome as well as in maintaining a smooth negotiating
process. But significant differences remain in the two parties' approach to the talks.
By Saurav Jha
09 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Saudi Arabia's possible purchase of at least $2 billion of Russian military equipment has the potential to be the most significant Russian arms deal in the Middle East since the Soviet Union transferred SA-2s to Nasser's Egypt. The deal may also be part of a larger process that leads to a significant realignment in the external relations of both parties.
By Andrew Bast
06 Nov 2009 |
World Politics Review
Contrary to the realists who believe that international politics is a
zero-sum game, the world is more complicated than, "If I win, you
lose." If U.S. power is waning, it remains damn strong. And that it is
waning is far less a function of choice, than the
result of a global order outside the comprehensive grasp of any single
state -- or empire, for that matter.
