Los Angeles Times – Robert Kaplan writes that just as the demise of Slobodan Milosevic in Yugoslavia closed the lid on national communist parties in Eastern Europe, the demise of Saddam Hussein in Iraq appears likely to do the same for secular Arab nationalism across the Middle East.
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Foreign Affairs – The smooth transfer of power from Fidel Castro to his successors is exposing the willful ignorance and wishful thinking of U.S. policy toward Cuba. The post-Fidel transition is already well under way, and change in Cuba will come only gradually from here on out. With or without Fidel, renewed U.S. efforts to topple the revolutionary regime in Havana can do no good — and have the potential to do considerable harm.
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Foreign Affairs – The war on terrorism is not just about security or military tactics. It is a battle of values, and one that can only be won by the triumph of tolerance and liberty. Afghanistan and Iraq have been the necessary starting points of this battle. Success there, however, must be coupled with a bolder, more consistent, and more thorough application of global values, with Washington leading the way.
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Foreign Affairs – The massive growth of hedge funds has sparked warnings of instability and demands that the industry be regulated. But the fear of hedge funds is overblown, based on a misunderstanding of their role in the international financial system. In reality, hedge funds do not increase risk; they manage it — and policymakers, rather than clamping down, should make sure hedge funds have the tools to perform this function well.
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Foreign Affairs – The age of U.S. dominance in the Middle East has ended and a new era in the modern history of the region has begun. It will be shaped by new actors and new forces competing for influence, and to master it, Washington will have to rely more on diplomacy than on military might.
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Foreign Affairs – The United States is far less divided on immigration than the current debate would suggest. An overwhelming majority of Americans want a combination of tougher enforcement and earned citizenship for the 12 million illegal immigrants in the country. Washington’s challenge is to translate this consensus into sound legislation that will start to repair the nation’s broken immigration system.
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Weekly Standard – Ralph Peters on tribalism vs. globalization.
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Foreign Affairs – In The Best Intentions, James Traub provides an inside view of the UN secretary-general during one of the organization’s most tumultuous eras. Annan emerges as a flawed but principled statesman, with a stature his successors are unlikely to achieve.
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Washignton Post – Robert Kaplan comments on the future of US intervention abroad.
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Foreign Affairs – Reports that U.S. troops may have killed 24 civilians in Haditha, Iraq, last November have renewed fears that the U.S. military routinely violates the laws of war. But is the Haditha incident the exception or the rule? In fact, U.S. compliance with noncombatant immunity in Iraq has been relatively high by historical standards, and it has been improving since the beginning of the war.
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Foreign Affairs – After dispelling myths about Tehran — that the regime is unitary, evil, and about to collapse — Ray Takeyh’s skillful book on U.S.-Iranian relations offers pragmatic prescriptions to Washington: against regime change and for more engagement.
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Daily Telegraph – John Keegan on why Israel will attack Hezbollah again, soon.
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Naval War College Review – Uniformed officers have an obligation to stand up to civilian leaders if they think a policy is flawed. But once a policy decision is made, soldiers are obligated to carry it out. The idea that a general or admiral should publicly attack government policy and its civilian authors in time of war is dangerous.
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Defense and the National Interest – Martin van Creveld addresses how European countries should accommodate or otherwise deal with their Muslim minorities. Five hundred years ago, Spain faced exactly the same issue.
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Daily Telegraph – Niall Ferguson on why the US should follow the Geneva Conventions.
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Foreign Affairs – Religion has always been a major force in U.S. politics, but the recent surge in the number and the power of evangelicals is recasting the country’s political scene — with dramatic implications for foreign policy. This should not be cause for panic: evangelicals are passionately devoted to justice and improving the world, and eager to reach out across sectarian lines.
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New York Times Magazine – Beijingís ambassador to the United Nations has begun to act as if he represents a very, very powerful country.
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Foreign Affairs – 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. Perhaps. But India could in time become a valuable security partner. So despite the deal’s flaws and the uncertainties surrounding its implementation, Washington should move forward with it.
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Foreign Affairs – Can anything — international mediation, regional collaboration, decentralization, or constitutional negotiations — save Iraq from a full-fledged civil war and the Bush administration from a foreign policy fiasco?
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Washington Post – John Keegan puts the conflict in Lebanon in perspective.
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Foreign Affairs – 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. But for that growth to continue, the state must start modernizing along with Indian society.
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Foreign Affairs – This distillation of the Pentagon’s secret study of Saddam Hussein’s regime, based on analysis of captured documents and prisoner interviews, has already rewritten the history of the war. See for yourself what made Saddam tick, why he was shocked by the American invasion, and what he was actually doing with WMD.

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Armed Forces Journal – Ralph Peters proposes redrawing the borders of the Middle East based upon ethnic and religious identity.
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Foreign Affairs – Israel occupied and settled the West Bank, Gaza, and Golan Heights because of a combination of nationalism and religious agitation. Ariel Sharon’s dismantling of the Gaza settlements last year broke a political taboo, and could herald a return to “Zionist realism.”

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US Naval War College Review – The Proliferation Security Initiative (PSI), launched in 2003, is an international effort to limit the spread of weapons of mass destruction to rogue states and terrorists. With sixteen core member states and some sixty cooperating nations, it enjoys today many advantages of law and organization in coastal waters, but it lacks useful authority to interdict WMD on the high seas. PSI itself, however, represents an opportunity to alter international law and fill that critical gap.

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