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By
Kirk Sowell
16 Mar 2010
World Politics Review
Most coverage of the outcome of Iraq's March 7 elections has portrayed
Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's re-election as seriously in doubt, with
former Prime Minister Iyad Allawi, a secular Shiite, contending for the
position. However, a close reading of available region-by-region vote counts suggests that not only is another term for Maliki likely, his only
real obstacle is securing Kurdish support.
By Sean Goforth
15 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
The United States is entering negotiations this week to join the
Trans-Pacific Partnership, a relatively unknown trade agreement that
includes Brunei, Chile, New Zealand, and Singapore. The pact is humble in its origins and
the group's share of global GDP is minute. But the TPP has quietly gained
momentum over recent years and represents a promising point of entry for the U.S. into Asia's gathering integration.
By Craig Guthrie
15 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
BANGKOK -- It was billed by local media as the last
stand of former Premier Thaksin Shinawatra's red-shirted rural
supporters against a bureaucratic elite that they claim rules Thailand
as an "Orwellian state." But despite heightened fears of a "final
battle," Sunday's mass protest has so far only set the stage for more political
instability in the coming days and weeks.
By David Dudenhoefer
12 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
SANTIAGO, Chile -- As conservative billionaire Sebastian Piñera was
sworn in as Chile's 38th president on March 11, the Chilean congressional building swayed due to aftershocks from the
earthquake that struck two
weeks ago. The tremors were a reminder that Piñera's success as
president will depend on his
ability to lead an efficient recovery from the country's worst natural
disaster in 50 years.
By Henry Kippin
12 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
The outcome of the U.K.'s upcoming general election is no longer a
foregone conclusion, with the opposition Conservative Party's steady
lead in opinion polls recently narrowing. All the same, given Prime Minister Gordon Brown's
political difficulties, a Conservative win is certainly plausible. So what would
be the implications of a Conservative victory on foreign and development
policy?
By Eliot Brockner
11 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
In announcing on March 8 that Venezuela is interested in restoring
diplomatic ties with Colombia, Venezuelan Foreign Minister Nicolas
Maduro noted that any improvement will not take place while current
Colombian President Álvaro Uribe remains in office. The jab was just one
of many traded over the past eight years, but the conciliatory rhetoric suggests that the two
countries may be turning a corner in bilateral relations.
By Daniel McDowell
10 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
As current president of the G-20, South Korea has been busy promoting an apparently
novel solution
to the global trade imbalances that helped pave the way for the recent international financial crisis: an international currency swap regime. But how
would such an arrangement work, and could it actually help correct
current imbalances? As important, is there any chance this idea will
get off the ground?
By Lauren Gelfand
09 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
On the surface, Ethiopia is a stable, prospering nation, cultivating
strong relationships with the international donors who have for more
than a generation funded food, health and infrastructure projects for
the country's 85 million people. But according to some groups, beneath the surface is a regime that wields power with
impunity, repressing dissent, opposition and difference of opinion.
By Prashanth Parameswaran
08 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
China has designated 2010 "The Year of China-Indonesia Friendship" to
mark the 60th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations with the
world's fourth-largest country. But while both countries are poised to
reap major benefits from their improved bilateral ties, Beijing and
Jakarta must manage their asymmetric relationship skillfully to
mitigate potential tensions in the future.
By Kirk Sowell
05 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
Iraq's parliamentary elections this Sunday, March 7, will close
the first full chapter in the country's transformation to a
democratically elected, majority-rule system of government. The nation's
corruption, fragile peace and lack of national reconciliation have left
many -- including American officials -- looking for change, in either Iraq's leadership or its government. They will likely be disappointed.
By Nicolas Nagle
04 Mar 2010 |
World Politics Review
Public opposition to an EU bailout of debt-strapped Greece is mounting, particularly in Germany, where Chancellor Angela Merkel is already politically vulnerable. As a result, despite the dangers a Greek meltdown would pose to the eurozone, Germany has adopted a hard-line position on how the EU should respond to the crisis, causing relations between the two countries to become increasingly strained.
By Jon B. Alterman
26 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
As much as a military effort, the war against al-Qaida has been a battle
for the hearts and minds of the Muslim world. Immediately after
the events of Sept. 11, 2001, it was not always clear how that battle
for Muslim hearts and minds would end up. But with the passage
of time, we now have a good idea. Al-Qaida has lost. And as a result, in
an important way, al-Qaida itself has been defeated.
By Katie Drummond
25 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
With the United States currently fighting two wars abroad and
facing a health care crisis and an economy on life-support at home,
Pentagon officials are hoping to meet a looming threat to America's
future global dominance -- not to mention national security -- by
boosting capacity in elementary school classrooms across the nation.
By Richard Weitz
24 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen is playing a crucial role
in sustaining the alliance's Afghan mission, encouraging allied
governments and publics alike to
appreciate their partners' perspectives, as well as the value of
NATO as an institution. He was in Washington this week, in part to remind Americans of other NATO allies'
contributions to the Afghanistan War.
By Eliot Brockner
24 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
Drilling got underway this week off the still-disputed Falkland Islands, as an oil
platform belonging to a British company began operations on Feb. 22. The drilling marks the culmination of weeks of intense
sparring between Argentina and Britain over oil rights
and shipping lanes in the South Atlantic, and reignited historic tensions over the islands.
By Michael Wahid Hanna
23 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
In many ways, Turkey's rise as a major diplomatic player on the Iraqi
stage serves as a counterpoint to Iran's magnified role, with both
pro-actively promoting their interests by attempting to reintegrate Iraq
into the region on their own terms. That stands in stark contrast to
Iraq's Arab neighbors, who have utterly
failed to
seriously prepare for the United States' impending
withdrawal.
By Lauren Gelfand
23 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
Following a trend that has become depressingly familiar in West Africa
over the past 18 months, army officers seized power in Niger on Feb. 18,
removing President Mamadou Tandja from office. The coup ends a
political crisis that began last year, when Tandja used a popular
referendum to try to indefinitely prolong his term beyond its December
2009 limit.
By Lauren Gelfand
19 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
KAMPALA, Uganda -- Kampala is arguably one of the more beautiful capitals in
Africa. But the city's beauty not only belies the numbing poverty in
which most of Uganda's residents find themselves, it also masks the
country's ugly politics. Case in point: The outcome of Uganda's 2011 presidential
election is a foregone conclusion, and no one is likely to do anything
about it.
By Daniel McDowell
18 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
Greece's massive debt has shaken
market confidence in the euro and led to a volatile month in
the common currency's exchange rate. Feeling increasing pressure to intervene, European
policymakers have been forced to weigh what is best for the euro against
what public opinion will tolerate. For now, none of the choices are
appealing, which leaves both sides playing a game of financial "chicken."
By Neeta Lal
17 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
NEW DELHI -- After a freeze on bilateral dialogue of more than a year,
New Delhi's proposed talks with Islamabad have invited diverse reactions.
India's previous refusal to engage with its neighbor in the aftermath of
the Mumbai terror attack was meant to pressure
Islamabad to crack down on terrorism. But India has softened it stance in recognition of the policy's diminishing returns.
By Yigal Schleifer
16 Feb 2010 |
World Politics Review
The term "zero
problems with neighbors" has
become closely associated with Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet
Davutoglu's ambitious
and proactive new foreign policy. But there's another term that has frequently been attached to Ankara's
newfound diplomatic activism, one that Turkish policymakers are much
less fond of: "neo-Ottomanism."
