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By
Soeren Kern
02 Jul 2009
World Politics Review
Spanish judges have gained a reputation for activism in recent years by
using the principle of universal jurisdiction to pursue cases against
suspected human rights violators overseas, most famously the former
Chilean dictator, Gen. Augusto Pinochet. But a number of recent developments, including legislative efforst to limit the legal concept, mark a significant setback for its Spanish advocates.
By Michael Wahid Hanna
01 Jul 2009 |
World Politics Review
Yesterday's redeployment of U.S. combat troops out of Iraqi population centers has focused attention on Iraq's current security situation. However, looking at Iraq solely through the prism of short-term
security trends clouds thinking about how the United States can best
prepare for its exit from the country, and obscures the enduring
disputes that undermine long-term prospects for
stability.
By Colby Pacheco
01 Jul 2009 |
World Politics Review
For critics of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Burma has long served as proof of the organization's ineffectuality. ASEAN members have previously been reluctant to apply economic
sanctions to Burma because of a founding agreement not to intervene in
the affairs of fellow members. But the current trial of Aung San Suu Kyi presents ASEAN once again with a critical test in its quest for legitimacy.
By Kelly Hearn
30 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
QUILLABAMBA, Peru -- On June 5, in the dense Amazonian slopes of Peru's southern Andes, a group of rainforest natives from the sleepy Machiguenga Indian village of Andioshiari dug up a natural gas pipeline and threatened to explode it. The "social action" was part of an effort to force Peru's Congress to roll back a set of land reforms, instituted through executive order by Peruvian President Alan Garcia.
By Jon B. Alterman
29 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
It is easy to be swept up by all of the images coming out of Iran and
think that the days of dictatorship -- in Iran and the rest of the
world -- are numbered. But the fact is that governments in the electronic age retain awesome
advantages over their nongovernmental opponents, and technology gives
them far more tools for managing restive populations than was the case
a generation ago.
By Simon Roughneen
29 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
For the Asian Tiger Economies, exports account for a majority of economic activity. Given that level of openness to global economic conditions, the muting of the Tigers' roar is not that much of a shock. More surprising, however, was a recent assessment suggesting the Tigers could be overtaken, for now at least, by economies that have long been regarded as stagnant basket cases.
By Peter Kiernan
26 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
With events still unfolding inside Iran, it is not yet clear how things will pan out for the Islamic Republic, which now faces its greatest challenge since the regime's early revolutionary days. But the reverberations of Iran's internal tumult are potentially far-reaching: the entire world is now observing developments closely to see how the Middle East power's internal ructions might impact their own strategic interests.
By Roque Planas
26 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
BOGOTÁ, Colombia -- Colombian President Álvaro Uribe has once again demonstrated his skill at gaining access in
Washington. But recent events will compromise his ability to advance his
agenda in his meeting next week with President Obama. Colombia's continued human rights violations and an increasingly
complicated constitutional bid for re-election promise to undermine
Uribe's credibility.
By Myles Estey
25 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
MONROVIA, Liberia -- A final conference of Liberia's Truth and Reconciliation Commission met last week to discuss findings from the thousands of hearings conducted so far, and to determine the path ahead. That, many agree, will not be an easy task. Not everyone believes the TRC has brought Liberia closer to the truth, with critics arguing that some used the forum to justify their actions, or blame others.
By Yigal Schleifer
24 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
ISTANBUL -- Allegations that elements of the Turkish military may have been hatching a plot to discredit or even topple the government of the liberal Islamic Justice and Development Party are threatening to raise military-civilian tensions in Turkey and further widen the country's deep political divide. The affair is another reminder of how deeply polarized Turkish politics and society are right now.
By Raza Khan
23 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- The leaders of Pakistan and India recently agreed to restart the stalled "peace" process between the two countries. The talks were suspended after the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November 2008, which India blamed on Pakistan-based militant outfits. India, however, insists that upcoming talks be focused on the single issue of cross-border terrorism, thereby limiting the chance of success.
By Siddarth Srivastava
23 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
NEW DELHI -- Most of the attention given to India's big defense modernization program, valued at more than $50 billion, has focused onthe $11-billion fighter jet contract that New Delhi is looking to sign.However, concerned by the threat from the seas, especially in the wake of the Mumbai terror attacks in November, India has been looking tobuild its naval strength as well.
By Babak Yektafar
22 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
Critics of the Iranian regime often dismiss Iranian elections as a manipulative sham used by a malevolent regime to flaunt its supposed legitimacy to the outside world. Obviously, elections alone in the Islamic Republic of Iran do not make the country an ideal democracy. They do, however,provide for two unintended, yet noteworthy, outcomes that are rarely reflected upon in the West.
By Soeren Kern
19 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
France and Germany have decided to wait another six months before determining the fate of the troubled A400M military transport plane, a €20 billion collaborative defense project that is now three years behind schedule and nearly €6 billion over budget. The exploding costs of projects like the A400M,
coupled with rising expenditures on military missions, are tearing many European defense budgets apart at the seams.
By George McLeod
19 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
TEHRAN, Iran -- Tehran has been the site of massive street protests on a scale unseen
since the Islamic Revolution in 1979. Tens, and sometimes hundreds, of
thousands have defied government bans, live gunfire, tear gas and mass
arrests to protest against the election results and the government itself. A WPR photo feature on the opposition demonstrations in the aftermath of the contested
election.
By George McLeod
18 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
TEHRAN, Iran -- Iranian authorities have ratcheted up their campaign
against anti-government demonstrators by calling in the hard-line
militia, the Basij, to enforce order with brute force. But with numbers swelling, the demonstrations are
quickly changing from a protest against the elections to a movement questioning the Islamic Republic itself.
By Daniel McDowell
17 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
When leaders of the BRIC countries met on Tuesday for the group's first full-format summit, many observers expected them to use the meeting to question the dollar's continued role as the leading international reserve currency. Instead, the group
only managed a weak statement on the global currency system, revealing
a potential gap between Moscow and Beijing's positions.
By Siddarth Srivastava
16 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
NEW DELHI -- U.S.-India relations have experienced a period of strain
under the presidency of Barack Obama, with India increasingly
unhappy about how the new administration is shaping its policy in the
South Asian region. Of concern for New Delhi is the gathering impression
that some of the closeness in relations
enjoyed under the Bush administration is dissipating under Obama.
By Petra Marquardt-Bigman
15 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a much-anticipated foreign policy speech on Sunday evening, billed as a response to U.S. President Barack Obama's address at Cairo University 10 days earlier. But in the first hours after the speech, it became clear that neither Israel's far right nor its fringe left liked what they heard, while the Palestinians were quick to express "outrage and shock."
By Peter Kiernan
15 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
A second four-year term for Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is a setback for the Obama administration, presenting difficulties for any U.S. attempt to diplomatically engage Tehran. Although a reformist victory would not have guaranteed a thaw in U.S.-Iranian relations, it would have made engaging Iran an easier political sell, both in Washington as well as among European and Arab allies.
By Luke Hunt
12 Jun 2009 |
World Politics Review
TAWAU, Malaysia -- A series of deadly raids has given the Philippine military the upper hand over militants fighting for an independent Islamic homeland in the country's south. Given the geography, no one expects the military to achieve a definitive victory over the insurgents. But the offensive will restore some lost prestige to Philippine
President Gloria Arroyo as she completes her last year of office.
