Economics & Business Archive

BEIJING — The sinking of the South Korean corvette Cheonan has lent further weight to the argument that Washington’s current North Korea strategy is having little success in controlling the errant communist state. President Barack Obama’s recent National Security Strategy was surprisingly vague on the issue, and the predictable U.S.-South Korean displays of naval strength in the aftermath of the sinking suggest no imminent policy reorientation from the White House. This continued faith in a strategy that has shown no tangible results — described by one analyst as the “definition of insanity” — has been further challenged by recent indications […]

The new Iran sanctions resolution cleared the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday by a vote of 12-2, with all five permanent members voting in favor. Does its passage represent a “diplomatic victory” for the Obama administration, as some have claimed? Or have the measures been so “watered down,” as others argue, that they are not likely to be effective in changing Iran’s course of action? And how significant is Russia’s apparent change of heart, ultimately supporting a fourth round of sanctions that it initially opposed? To answer those questions, the vote at Turtle Bay needs to be put into a […]

It is not surprising that discussions with government officials from member states of the Gulf Cooperation Council often dwell heavily on security threats. Terrorism remains a persistent concern of theirs even if some of the urgency they feel has passed. A conventionally armed Iran is a constant source of worry. And the prospect of a nuclear-armed Iran is an unending nightmare. Yet, among the most-senior leadership, there is also some perspective. The terrorism threat no longer feels existential, as a combination of effective security initiatives, internal cooptation and international cooperation have made their mark. On Iran, there is a sense […]

Now that the G-20 multilateral format has taken the lead in managing the world economy, many commentators are eager to do away with its predecessor in that role, the Group of Eight (G-8). Such a focus, however, neglects the G-8’s important security functions. Since the 1980s, the group has given birth to major initiatives promoting global peace and security. The G-20 lacks the unique assets that have made the G-8 so effective in this area. The G-8 now includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Russia, the European Union, the United Kingdom and the United States. The absence of some of the […]

The recent diplomatic crisis between Turkey and Israel is only the latest episode illustrating broader shifts in Turkey’s foreign policy and international relations. A good deal of attention has been paid to renewed Turkish aspirations in Central Asia as well as efforts to engage its neighbors — Syria, Iraq and Iran. But less-noticed has been the new, enhanced role that Turkey is playing in the Gulf region, and in particular, its growing ties with the Gulf Cooperation Council. Turkish involvement in this area has represented one of the key features of its renewed attention to the Middle East. For many […]

Despite my reputation as a fierce defender of globalization’s many benefits, I have always been of two minds on the human desire for connectivity in all its recently emergent possibilities. After all, my narrative on globalization began as the “Pentagon’s New Map” — not Google’s or Goldman’s. Even there, I was never under the impression that connectivity was an instant fix regarding human conflict — quite the reverse. And I knew instinctively that the primary motive for increased connectivity throughout history has been individual greed for resources, opportunities, influence and — most importantly — an improved standard of living. I’ve […]

The development of Asian regionalism has been slow, particularly in responding to regional conflicts and the development of a free-trade area. But that should not obscure key advances in regional cooperation. In an article published in the Winter 1993-94 issue of International Security, Aaron Friedberg, a professor at Princeton University, contrasted Europe's "thick alphabet soup" of institutions with Asia's "thin gruel." Some two decades later, no one would now describe Asia's institutional landscape as a thin gruel. It, too, is an alphabet soup of sorts, with names like ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations), APEC (Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation), APT […]

East Asia in a ‘World of Regions’ East Asia has achieved one of the most profound economic transformations in recorded history. In 1960, the region accounted for only 4 percent of world gross domestic product, but by the 1990s, it had become one of three core economic regions — along with Europe and North America — that together dominated the global economy. East Asia has become the new workshop of the world, the location of fast-emerging markets, and a new financial power in the making. The region now accounts for slightly more than a quarter of world trade, production, new […]

In the 20 years since the end of the Cold War, discussions of Asia’s future regional politics have primarily focused on the prospects for greater political integration. Particular attention has been paid to whether Asia will or should develop stronger regional multilateral institutions and, if so, what form they might take. The reasons for this focus are clear. For some time, countries throughout Asia have enjoyed both remarkable economic growth and substantial political evolution at the national level, and there has been equally impressive progress toward regional integration in the economic sphere. But progress towards regional political integration has lagged […]