Q & A Archive

The CIA’s plan for a secret Persian Gulf base to launch drone attacks on suspected terrorists in Yemen has escalated the debate over just how far the United States can go with such attacks before violating accepted principles of international law. “The whole use of drones in Pakistan and Yemen raises the question of whether the United States is really in a war with a loosely organized terrorist organization whose members seem to pop up in diverse locations,” says Geoffrey Corn, a former military lawyer and World Politics Review contributor who teaches at South Texas College of Law. “People like […]

Protestors opposed to austerity measures imposed by the Spanish government have been camping out in Madrid for the past few weeks. In an email interview, José M. Magone, a professor at the Berlin School of Economics and Law and the author of “Contemporary Spanish Politics,” discussed the protests in Spain. WPR: What is the driving force behind the current protests in Spain? José M. Magone: The driving force behind the protests is a general feeling of outrage on the part of the younger generation, as well as other groups that are suffering under the Spanish government’s harsh austerity program. It […]

Vietnam’s live-fire naval exercises this week may signal a new stage of regional tension over disputed areas of the potentially oil- and gas-rich South China Sea. At a minimum, says Abraham Denmark, a senior adviser at the Center for Naval Analysis in Washington and a World Politics Review contributor, the exercises were designed to send a message to China, which in recent months has become more assertive in its claims of sovereignty over the sea. “It’s fairly clear that Vietnam is signaling its resolve to China that they’re not going to back down on disputed claims in the South China […]

Kenya and Ethiopia recently agreed to boost security along their shared border following deadly cross-border raids in May. In an email interview, Edmond J. Keller, chair of the Department of Political Science at the University of California, Los Angeles,* discussed Kenya-Ethiopia border security. WPR: What are the main areas of concern with regard to the Ethiopia-Kenya border? Edmond J. Keller: The border between Ethiopia and Kenya is more than 500 miles long and rests in very remote and underdeveloped parts of both countries. On the Kenya side, elements of the Turkana cattle herders are the population; on the Ethiopia side, […]

Despite Turkey’s stalled European Union accession bid and a seeming inability to influence the turmoil gripping the Middle East, Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan’s Justice and Development Party sailed to its third consecutive parliamentary election victory last weekend by touting its success in raising the country’s profile on the world stage. According to Yigal Schleifer, an independent journalist and World Politics Review contributor, the party — known by its Turkish acronym, AKP — effectively portrayed itself “as the main driver of democratization in Turkey.” “The economy has been growing steadily, and Turkey’s profile on the world stage and in the region […]

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov visited Iraq in May to discuss investments in Iraqi energy projects, among other issues. In an email interview, Marat Terterov, director and principal founder of the European Geopolitical Forum in Brussels, discussed Russia-Iraq relations. WPR: What is the recent history of Iraq-Russia relations? Marat Terterov: Russia, along with France, was one of Iraq’s closer allies during the 1990s, when Baghdad was heavily isolated and subject to U.N. sanctions. Moscow frequently lent diplomatic support to Baghdad during this period, pushing for the lifting of the oil embargo against Iraq and condemning occasional U.S. and U.K. airstrikes […]

Ukraine is moving to liberalize its land market, but, according to recent statements by the country’s agriculture minister, foreigners will be prohibited from purchasing agricultural land. In an email interview, Leo A. Krasnozhon, a visiting assistant professor of economics at the University of Texas at Arlington, discussed Ukraine’s agricultural land policies. WPR: What is the extent of Ukraine’s agricultural trade, and who are its major trading partners? Leo A. Krasnozhon: Agricultural trade plays a very important role in Ukraine’s economy. Ukraine is one of the top world exporters of grain, which generates 15 percent of the country’s exports, or $7.5 […]

With the turmoil in North Africa impacting Turkey’s primary commercial ties with the continent, Turkish exports to sub-Saharan Africa have grown sharply this year. In an email interview, Thomas Wheeler, a longtime South African diplomat and researcher at the South African Institute for International Affairs, discussed Turkey-Africa relations. WPR: What is the history of Turkey’s trade and diplomatic relations with sub-Saharan Africa? Thomas Wheeler: Turkey had few relations with sub-Saharan Africa until the 1990s. Admittedly, the Ottoman sultan appointed honorary consuls in South Africa in the 19th century, but during the Republican era from 1922, Ankara’s emphasis was on consolidating […]

The West Africa Cable System recently landed in Ghana, extending the reach of the new undersea telecommunications cable that will eventually run from South Africa to Western Europe. In an email interview, Patricia K. McCormick, an expert in developing-country telecommunications policy at Wayne State University, discussed Africa’s telecommunications infrastructure. WPR: What is the current state of Africa’s telecommunications infrastructure? Patricia K. McCormick: If the wealth and socio-economic health of a region is defined by its ability to participate in the networked economy, Africa is indeed impoverished. In an era of accelerated technological change, Africa’s technological dependency and underdevelopment impairs its […]

The defeat of Portugal’s Socialist Party in parliamentary elections last Sunday was largely reported as an indictment of the welfare state and spending policies embraced by the party and outgoing Prime Minister José Sócrates. However, Robert M. Fishman, a sociologist at the University of Notre Damewhose research focuseson the politics of Portugal and Spain, says the victorious Social Democrat Party (PSD) is unlikely to bring about the sort of significant rightward shift in policies heralded in much of the media coverage of the elections. “Historically the PSD has defended and enacted policies that are not hostile to the welfare state […]

U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates’ visit to Afghanistan this week prompted contradictory reports about both the war’s progress and the likelihood for an accelerated troop withdrawal. Some observers said President Barack Obama’s security team was now considering the option of a swift pullout. Others quoted Gates as saying it’s too early to end combat. Meanwhile, a U.S. general touted success in training Afghan forces just as Congress released a report criticizing the Afghan nation-building program. Joshua Foust, a fellow and Afghanistan specialist with the American Security Project, tells Trend Lines that the conflicting reports are best explained by a widening […]

During a recent visit to Vietnam by Russia’s deputy foreign minister, Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung called for the enhancement of trade and political ties between the two countries. In an email interview, Carlyle A. Thayer, an emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales at the Australian Defense Force Academy, discussed Russia-Vietnam relations. WPR: What is the recent history of Russia-Vietnam relations? Carlyle A. Thayer: When the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, Moscow pressed Vietnam for repayment of debts totaling $1.7 billion, and the two sides took nearly a decade to negotiate a settlement. In 1994, they […]

After the weekend’s bloody clash between Israeli security forces and Palestinian protesters in the Golan Heights, Israel claimed the violence was being fomented by Syrian President Bashar Assad in an attempt to divert attention from Syria’s own anti-government uprising and his heavy-handed attempts to crush it. While such assertions may be impossible to prove, close observers says Syria suffers no shortage of motives to try to convince Israel of the danger that could lay ahead should Assad’s government collapse. “Basically what Assad is saying to the Israelis is, ‘If I go down, you’re entering the realm of the unknown with […]

Kuwait and Iran recently reinstated their ambassadors to one another, after having recalled them amid accusations that Kuwait had uncovered an Iranian spy ring. In an email interview, W. Andrew Terrill, a research professor at the Strategic Studies Institute of the U.S. Army War College and the author of “Kuwaiti National Security and the U.S.-Kuwaiti Strategic Relationship After Saddam,” discussed Kuwait-Iran relations. WPR: What is the recent history of Iran-Kuwait relations? W. Andrew Terrill: Kuwait enthusiastically backed Iraq during the second half of the 1980-1988 Iran-Iraq War, although the Kuwaiti leadership deeply regretted this decision after Saddam Hussein invaded their […]

Uganda recently held talks with Southern Sudan about importing oil from the soon-to-be-independent state. Meanwhile, Sudan engaged in broad-ranging talks with two of its western neighbors, the Central African Republic and Chad. In an email interview, Jonathan Temin, director of the U.S. Institute of Peace’s Sudan program, discussed the regional implications of south Sudan’s secession. WPR: How do Sudan’s sub-Saharan neighbors view South Sudan’s upcoming independence? Jonathan Temin: Historically, Sudan’s sub-Saharan neighbors, especially Kenya, Uganda and Ethiopia, have been supportive of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) and its political wing, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, as well as of […]

The appointment of U.S. Army Gen. Martin E. Dempsey as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff inspired some debate this week over why President Barack Obama passed over U.S. Marine Gen. James “Hoss” Cartwright — a previous front-runner for the post. But David Johnson, executive director of the Center for Advanced Defense Studies in Washington, says the decision to go with Dempsey was something of a no-brainer, since Dempsey stands a significantly better chance of reconciling different factions within the Pentagon over the issue of looming budget cuts. “He fits in very well both with the need to harmonize […]

In May, lawmakers from the European Union and the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific group urged Madagascar to install a transitional leadership ahead of planned elections. In an email interview, Stephen Ellis, a Madagascar expert at the African Studies Center in Leiden, the Netherlands, discussed Madagascar’s ongoing political crisis. WPR: What is the background of Madagascar’s political crisis? Stephen Ellis: The immediate origin of Madagascar’s political crisis was the forced resignation of the elected president, Marc Ravalomanana, on March 17, 2009, in an effective military coup. Ravalomanana had become unpopular — not only within Madagascar’s political elite, but also among aid […]