WPR Articles 08 Sep 2012 - 14 Sep 2012

The Continentalist: U.S. Cannot Afford to 'Lose' Europe

By: Ulrike Guérot | Column

Few Europeans were expecting any emphasis on Europe or the European Union as one of America’s most steadfast strategic partners in President Barack Obama’s keynote speech at the Democratic Party convention last week. Still, Obama’s only reference to Europe came as a surprise to European audiences, reducing Europe to its current difficulties, a risk comparable to the terrorist threat.

Defense, Security and Development in a Hybrid World

By: Johan Bergenas | Feature

After three decades of unprecedented global interdependence and technological innovation, the state-based global security architecture inherited in the aftermath of the Cold War has become increasingly obsolete. The current world order is increasingly hybrid. What is needed is a hybrid framework on which the next generation of political, security and economic structures can be built.

Strategic Horizons: Debating the Shape of Tomorrow's U.S. Military

By: Steven Metz | Column

Debate is currently raging about the future shape of America's armed forces. The architects of tomorrow’s military must predict what the global security environment will look like, what threats the U.S. will face and what Americans will ask of their armed forces. Everyone knows the U.S. military will be smaller and more efficient. The question is the primary skill set the military should have.

The Realist Prism: When U.S. Politics Does Not Stop at the Water's Edge

By: Nikolas Gvosdev | Column

Three incidents this week have highlighted how the growing distraction over the U.S. presidential election is undermining U.S. diplomacy. Striking a balance between the imperatives of campaigning and the demands of statecraft is always problematic. But these incidents suggest that there is no longer a bipartisan consensus on the broad parameters of U.S. interests around the world, with troubling implications.

U.S., Egypt Must Manage Strategic-Democratic Disconnect

By: Judah Grunstein | Briefing

Days after demonstrators stormed the U.S. Embassy in Cairo, Egypt, and the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya, a wave of anti-American protests has swept through the region. For now, the demonstrations remain limited, and they are likely to fade relatively quickly. Nevertheless, the protests highlight the challenges facing the U.S. as it tries to navigate the changing political landscape of the Middle East.

Mozambique Develops Innovative Partnerships to Slow Poaching

By: Joan Johnson-Freese | Briefing

In developing countries, policy creativity, often in the form of nontraditional partnerships, can mean the difference between life and death. In Mozambique, one of the poorest countries on the planet, cooperative initiatives that combine the capabilities of the government, international institutions and regional neighbors offer just such an example of how strange bedfellows can make for effective partnerships.

APEC Summit Settles for Incremental Progress

By: Catherine Cheney | Trend Lines

Pacific Rim leaders met Sunday for the last day of the annual Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum summit in Vladivostok, Russia.

The End of Optimism: Global Order in an Age of Paralysis

By: Nikolas Gvosdev | Feature

The optimism of the early 1990s vision of a "new world order" was based on the assumption that globalization would knit the nations of the world into a global community espousing common values and shared interests, backed up by a rising tide of prosperity that would eliminate the need for zero-sum perspectives in world affairs. But two decades later, such rhetoric rings hollow.

Globalization's Emerging Fault Lines

By: Daniel McDowell | Feature

The global economy is currently undergoing a quiet transformation. While most of the world’s attention remains focused on the European Union’s struggle to formulate a solution to its debt crisis, other far-reaching economic forces are shifting beneath the surface. Increasingly, it seems as if the golden era of globalization that defined the last quarter of the 20th century is in danger.

Global Insights: Russia Sets Bar High on Arms Control

By: Richard Weitz | Column

At last week’s Moscow Nonproliferation Conference, some 200 people, including a number of Russian and Western experts, gathered to discuss a wide range of nonproliferation issues. Given the statements of the Russian speakers at the conference, Moscow is laying down some tough conditions for making further progress in nuclear arms control.

Global Insider: India and Tajikistan Draw Closer

By: The Editors | Trend Lines

In an email interview, Meena Singh Roy, a research fellow at the Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses, discussed India-Tajikistan relations.

U.N. Human Rights Council Faces Proving Time

By: M. Joel Voss | Briefing

The U.N. Human Rights Council's closing session of 2012 provides a unique opportunity for the council to build on its recent successes. However, the potential still exists for “spoiler” states to stall or reverse progress. The best possibility for success is for the U.S., Europe and the rising democracies to continue to guide the council in the direction of promoting and protecting human rights.

Non-Aligned Movement Still a Force to Be Reckoned With

By: Yogesh Joshi | Briefing

The 16th summit of the Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) in Tehran last month brought the group back into the spotlight, years after the end of the Cold War called its very existence into question. The potential impact of the gathering of 120 states was underscored by the outcomes of the Tehran summit, which offered three important takeaways with huge ramifications for contemporary international relations.

Kenya Violence Underscores Government's Failure to Establish Rule of Law

By: Catherine Cheney | Trend Lines

In Kenya, clashes between rival tribal groups in the Tana Riva area continued this week, as tensions over access to land and water triggered revenge attacks between the seminomadic Orma pastoralist community and the Pokomo farming community.

Islamist Violence Highlights Potential for Radicalization in India

By: Saurav Jha | Briefing

Home to a large Muslim minority consisting of both major sects of Islam, India has recently found itself forced to deal with increasing fallout from the Middle East's ongoing Shiite-Sunni cold war. Given India’s dependence on Middle East energy exports and its history of Hindu-Muslim violence, the coming decade will be a test of India’s diplomacy and its ability to promote intercommunity dialogue.

World Citizen: Peru's Humala Confounds Critics, Disappoints Supporters

By: Frida Ghitis | Column

Before his election, Peruvian President Ollanta Humala had left advocates of free-market economic policies feeling nervous due to his past support for the policies of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez. More than a year later, Humala’s presidency could not have turned out more differently from what his foes feared and his supporters expected. But the president is still searching for his political identity.

Global Insider: New Zealand Adds Normative Backing to Japanese Foreign Policy

By: The Editors | Trend Lines

In an email interview, Yoichiro Sato, an expert in Japan’s foreign policy in the Asia-Pacific at the College of Asia Pacific Studies at Ritsumeikan Asia Pacific University, discussed Japan-New Zealand relations. 

Broadening Intelligence on the Ground Key to Embassy Security in Changing Middle East

By: Catherine Cheney | Trend Lines

With protests now spreading throughout the region, the Defense Department, State Department and White House are working to step up security at U.S. Embassies in the Middle East and around the world.