Topics
Economics
Snapshot,
February 2, 2010
Beijing's ongoing efforts to promote growth are infringing on people's economic and political rights. In order to survive, the Chinese government will have to start allowing ordinary citizens to take part in the political process.
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Snapshot,
January 5, 2010
Just as China promoted domestic growth by combining state intervention with private investment, it is now applying this same policy strategy to countries across Africa. The results have been impressive, and the United States and others would do well to start paying attention.
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Comment,
Jan/Feb
2010
Soon, travelers worldwide will have a chance to contribute to the global fight against HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis whenever they purchase airline tickets. This initiative is part of a new development strategy called innovative financing, which hopes to redistribute some of globalization's gains to sick people in poor countries.
ReadEnvironment
Comment,
Jan/Feb
2010
The "green revolution" dramatically boosted crop yields throughout the world, but it also bred overconfidence and complacency. Now, global food stocks are too low, and food prices are too high. Malthus is back.
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Essay,
Jan/Feb
2010
Growing demand for energy in developing countries and calls for greener energy worldwide are putting unprecedented pressure on the global energy system. Existing energy institutions are struggling to remain relevant. A new mechanism for cooperation is needed.
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Author Interview,
December 15, 2009
This week, Michael Levi answers reader questions about the Copenhagen conference and what comes next for international climate negotiations.
ReadSecurity
Letter From,
January 29, 2010
That talks between the Philippine government and the secessionist group Moro Islamic Liberation Front have restarted is a good sign, but the hope of some officials that an accord can be reached soon seems overly optimistic.
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Snapshot,
January 27, 2010
The recent ban of more than 500 candidates from Iraq's upcoming elections is designed to cement the power of the country's Shiite Islamists aligned with Iran. Will this latest sectarian rupture sink any hopes for a stable Iraq?
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Author Interview,
January 12, 2010
This week, Kim Barker answers reader questions about the conflict in Afghanistan and the Obama administration's plans to send more U.S. troops to the region.
ReadLaw & Institutions
Essay,
Jan/Feb
2010
Some threats to international security are so potentially damaging that preventing them in advance is preferable to remedying their effects. In such cases, states should judge preventive actions by a standard of legitimacy, not strict legality.
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Essay,
Jan/Feb
2010
A series of looming demographic trends will greatly affect international security in the twenty-first century. How policymakers adjust to these changes now will determine the course of global political and economic stability for years to come.
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As the Zambian economist Dambisa Moyo argues, the concept of foreign aid is flawed -- not just because corrupt dictators divert aid for nefarious or selfish purposes but also because even in reasonably democratic countries, aid creates perverse incentives and unintended consequences.
ReadPolitics & Society
Postscript,
February 8, 2010
Since winning elections in 2006, Hamas has demonstrated that it cannot be part of an Israeli-Palestinian peace process, nor part of a Palestinian body politic based on democracy and free elections. But can policymakers deny the group the ability to play the spoiler?
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Snapshot,
February 4, 2010
Unlike in 2004, Ukraine's upcoming presidential election will not determine the country's geopolitical orientation. But it will test whether the young democracy can stabilize its economy, cut down on corruption, and navigate its relations with Russia and the West.
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Snapshot,
February 2, 2010
Beijing's ongoing efforts to promote growth are infringing on people's economic and political rights. In order to survive, the Chinese government will have to start allowing ordinary citizens to take part in the political process.
ReadU.S. Policy
Snapshot,
January 25, 2010
The recent financial crisis has battered the credibility of technocrats. It is no longer clear that, left to their own devices, they will produce the one thing that justifies giving them authority: better decisions.
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Snapshot,
January 13, 2010
The Obama administration has pursued a Latin America policy based on the idea of partnership. But a number of recent crises in the region have shown that what the hemisphere needs from the United States is, in fact, more forceful leadership.
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Essay,
Jan/Feb
2010
If the Obama administration has any hope of reducing the world’s nuclear arsenals, the U.S. government will have to assuage the fears of nonnuclear states, diminish the prestige of nuclear weapons, and address the risk of proliferation posed by civilian nuclear energy programs.
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