Background on the News - 2006-07-12

In this special web-only feature, Christopher Hitchens, Fred Kaplan, Kevin Drum, and Marc Lynch respond to What to Do in Iraq: A Roundtable, from the July/August issue of Foreign Affairs.

Their first round of posts can be found at the link below; their second round — in which they reply to each other — will go live on the Foreign Affairs website on Monday, July 17.

• What to Do in Iraq: A Roundtable  (Stephen Biddle, Larry Diamond, James Dobbins, Leslie Gelb, and Chaim Kaufmann). (July/August 2006)
• Four Responses to "What to Do in Iraq: A Roundtable"  (Christopher Hitchens, Fred Kaplan, Kevin Drum, Mark Lynch). (July 12, 2006)

In the Current Issue of Foreign Affairs

Once proudly socialist and nonaligned, India is being remade as a roaring capitalist success story and emerging strategic partner of the United States. Economic reforms have raised per capita GDP and lowered poverty rates, while New Delhi's growing self-confidence may help it become the swing state in the global balance of power. In the July/August issue of Foreign Affairs, a special lead package has brought together four top experts to analyze the sources and implications of India's rise — and the policies necessary for it to continue.

Also in this issue: top experts on Iraq bring their expertise and experience to bear on the problem of U.S. policy in Iraq in an in-depth, must-read roundtable. Authors include former Coalition Provisional Authority adviser Larry Diamond, RAND scholar James Dobbins, Lehigh University professor Chaim Kaufmann, former Council on Foreign Relations President Leslie H. Gelb, and Senior Council Fellow for Defense Policy Stephen Biddle.

The India Model

Gurcharan Das

After being shackled by the government for decades, India's economy has become one of the world's strongest. The country's unique development model — relying on domestic consumption and high-tech services — has brought a quarter century of record growth despite an incompetent and heavy-handed state.FULL TEXT

India and the Balance of Power

C. Raja Mohan

Washington has recognized the potential of a U.S.-Indian alliance, but translating that potential into reality will require engaging India on its own terms. 500-WORD PREVIEW

America's New Strategic Partner?

Ashton B. Carter

Over the last year, the U.S. and Indian governments struck a deal that recognizes India as a nuclear weapons power. Critics say Washington gave up too much too soon and at a great cost to nonproliferation efforts. FULL TEXT

Will Kashmir Stop India's Rise?

Sumit Ganguly

India's growing economic and diplomatic prominence is unlikely to be derailed by its territorial dispute with Pakistan over Kashmir. But given the risk that the Kashmir issue could spark a nuclear war, it is in India's best interest that it be resolved. 500-WORD PREVIEW

When the Shiites Rise

by Vali Nasr

By toppling Saddam Hussein, the Bush administration has liberated and empowered Iraq's Shiite majority and has helped launch a broad Shiite revival that will upset the sectarian balance in Iraq and the Middle East for years to come.

Present at the Stagnation

by Andrew J. Nathan

In China's Trapped Transition, Minxin Pei attempts to solve the puzzle of China's present — and figure out its future.

Previously in Background on the News

Back to the Future
June 28, 2006
Whomever Mexicans vote for in Sunday's presidential election, the man they choose could become either a statesman who consolidates the country's democracy or a demagogue who returns the country to an era of crises. . . . Read more

Persian Powers
June 7, 2006
Given Tehran's defiant pursuit of its nuclear program and its influence among Shiites in Iraq, how to manage relations with Iran has become a critical — and vexing — issue for Washington. To succeed, negotiations require knowing one's interlocutor, and distinguishing the posturing from the policy and the ideologues from the pragmatists in Iran is far from easy. . . . Read more

This Land is My Land
May 17, 2006
On Monday, President George W. Bush announced that in an effort to address illegal immigration into the United States he has proposed deploying thousands of National Guard troops along the Mexican border while initiating a guest worker program and a path toward legalization for some undocumented workers already in the country. The White House's plan could pit the Bush administration against Mexico and is also divisive at home, where activists on both extremes criticize its attempt to chart a middle course. . . . Read more

• Newsletter Archive

Stay on Top of International Affairs with "The World This Week" Email Newsletter From the Council on Foreign Relations

To sign up for the newsletter, visit http://www.cfr.org/media and input your email address into "The World This Week" box.

Visit cfr.org.