http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress Tue, 06 Jan 2009 19:40:04 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The first Monday of the new year began in Baghdad with a unique debut: the ribbon-cutting for the world’s largest and most opulent American Embassy, and at the very moment the administration that made it most necessary (and least affordable) is headed for the exits. We are indeed, as the Chinese ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2009/01/06/david-a-andelman-a-new-year-a-fresh-start/ These past weeks it has been hard to decide which politician is more completely out of touch with reality: Governor Rod Blagojevich of Illinois, who apparently sought to sell Barack Obama’s Senate seat to the highest bidder, or Robert Mugabe of Zimbabwe, who seems uninterested that thousands of his people ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2009/01/05/jodi-liss-down-and-out-in-zimbabwe/ Michael Soussan's Backstabbing for Beginners: My Crash Course in International Diplomacy (Nation Books, 2008) is a compelling, fascinating, and humorous account of his years working with the UN's Oil for Food program. This by no means a definitive account of the program, but rather a personal and highly impressionist view ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/26/ian-williams-untangling-the-oil-for-food-knot/ However tense the relationship between India and Pakistan becomes, the government of Manmohan Singh is highly unlikely to initiate or participate in a nuclear war with Pakistan. That would go against the deeply held moral beliefs of the prime minister. Both he and the Congress Party chairman, Sonia Gandhi, have ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/22/jonathan-power-nuclear-matchsticks-on-the-indian-sub-continent/ Since the publication of my retrospective article on Israel in the fall 25th anniversary issue of World Policy Journal, a few colleagues have wondered if I considered revising my somewhat “pessimistic outlook” (the way one of my correspondents put it) about the chances of resolving the Israeli-Palestinian with Barack Obama ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/18/leon-hadar-obama-the-mideast-peace-maker/ Since Barack Obama’s victory on November 4, I’ve been musing about the parallels between this amazing moment and another world-altering event I was privileged to witness in November almost two decades ago—the demise of the Berlin Wall. Then, too, a barrier that had seemed insurmountable fell. Then, too, the desire ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/16/belinda-cooper-barack-obama-the-berlin-wall-and-the-elusive-quest-for-unity/ One of the many reasons Beijing was awarded the 2008 Olympic Games was that, it was hoped, a massive influx of international visitors—journalists in tow—would help push the central government to lessen restrictions on China’s own domestic media. One dramatic outcome would have been a lasting breach in the Great ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/15/shaun-randol-the-rise-of-china%e2%80%99s-human-flesh-search-engine/ When Barack Obama announced his Foreign Policy and National Security team, the best news was that journalists like Robert Dreyfuss, Leslie Savan, and Robert Kuttner weren’t impressed. Hoping for leftists in moderate’s clothing, they are now faced with a global affairs team that makes the President-elect look more like ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/12/jens-f-laurson-and-george-a-pieler-continuity-we-can-believe-in/ “Those whom the gods destroy they first make mad.” - Euripides There is a madness about the triangular relationship between India, Pakistan, and Afghanistan. They all have resented and often hated each other; made alliances against each other; worked together when it was opportune; supported or, at least, turned too much of ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/04/jonathan-power-the-triangle-of-madness/ Security officials and cleanup crews are now combing through the carnage in Mumbai, following last week’s terrorist attacks in the city. As the citizens of this vast metropolis seek to restore some semblance of normalcy to their lives, it is important to probe the sources of the violence in Mumbai, ... http://worldpolicy.org/wordpress/2008/12/03/sumit-ganguly-and-paul-kapur-mumbais-perilous-implications/