It seems harsh to suggest the Pentagon top brass don't know what they're doing. But those who care to read the transcript of the press conference at which the sacking of the top American general in Afghanistan was announced may find that conclusion hard to resist. "In some ways we're learning as we go here," said Admiral Mike Mullen, chairman of the joint chiefs. It was not a reassuring admission.
The public defenestration of General David McKiernan, a distinguished career officer who took command in Kabul less than one year ago, was brutal in that cold, callous way peculiar to American officialdom. More to the point, it remains largely unexplained. "We can and must do better ... We have a new policy set by our president, a new strategy, a new mission ... I believe new military leadership is also needed," said Robert Gates, the defence secretary.
FULL ARTICLE
13 May 2009
12 May 2009
Obama's Tax Threat (IRELAND)
The alarm bells should have gone off loud and clear when US president Barack Obama named Ireland as one of three countries where the activities of US multinationals and their overseas tax payment policies were being scrutinised.
The relatively sanguine reaction in Ireland is puzzling. If there is one aspect to Obama so far it is that he means what he says when he pursues a policy.
There is an element of whistling past the graveyard in my opinion in the Irish reaction to the Obama proposals, a kind of “it’ll be all right on the night” approach. That could be a major mistake.
The reality with Obama is that every major campaign promise, including this one to reform American tax policy as it affects overseas earnings has been followed up in a methodical and direct manner.
Healthcare, reform of the financial system, immigration reform are being approached in a similar way. He is a new kind of politician, one utterly devoid of sentiment as one insider characterised him to me. There will be no special pleadings or deals as far as he is concerned.
What this means for the Ireland/US relationship is important.
FULL ARTICLE
The relatively sanguine reaction in Ireland is puzzling. If there is one aspect to Obama so far it is that he means what he says when he pursues a policy.
There is an element of whistling past the graveyard in my opinion in the Irish reaction to the Obama proposals, a kind of “it’ll be all right on the night” approach. That could be a major mistake.
The reality with Obama is that every major campaign promise, including this one to reform American tax policy as it affects overseas earnings has been followed up in a methodical and direct manner.
Healthcare, reform of the financial system, immigration reform are being approached in a similar way. He is a new kind of politician, one utterly devoid of sentiment as one insider characterised him to me. There will be no special pleadings or deals as far as he is concerned.
What this means for the Ireland/US relationship is important.
FULL ARTICLE
11 May 2009
Obama Changing the Rules of Mideast Pressure (ISRAEL)
It is not hard to imagine what a tumult it would stir in Jerusalem if the United States decided to temporarily ease the pressure on Iran regarding its nuclear program. Or if President Barack Obama ordered a freeze, for the time being, on the sanctions against Syria. God help the U.S. administration if it even considers lifting the boycott on the Hamas rulers in the Gaza Strip before the Palestinian group agrees to a two-state solution within the 1967 borders. And how nice that Congress is delaying the emergency assistance package to the Palestinian Authority until a new government is formed in Ramallah, in order to ensure that it's one we like.
International pressure on neighbors has always been a welcome and even essential tool. Without pressure from the outside why would Iran give up, voluntarily, its nuclear capability? If the United States does not pressure Syria to disengage from terrorist groups, what reason does Damascus have to clash with Hamas and Hezbollah? Were it not for the pressure applied by the Reagan administration on the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Palestinian National Council would not have declared a cessation of the armed struggle against Israel and would not have adopted UN Resolution 242. Presumably Benjamin Netanyahu will not complain about pressure that the Obama administration might apply against the Palestinians; for example, to push them to recognize Israel as a state of the Jewish people.
qFULL ARTICLE
International pressure on neighbors has always been a welcome and even essential tool. Without pressure from the outside why would Iran give up, voluntarily, its nuclear capability? If the United States does not pressure Syria to disengage from terrorist groups, what reason does Damascus have to clash with Hamas and Hezbollah? Were it not for the pressure applied by the Reagan administration on the Palestine Liberation Organization, the Palestinian National Council would not have declared a cessation of the armed struggle against Israel and would not have adopted UN Resolution 242. Presumably Benjamin Netanyahu will not complain about pressure that the Obama administration might apply against the Palestinians; for example, to push them to recognize Israel as a state of the Jewish people.
qFULL ARTICLE
10 May 2009
The Secret of His Success (UAE)
No other American president in modern memory has faced a learning curve as steep as the one Barack Obama has encountered. Three years ago in April, 2006, the Dow Jones Industrial Average traded between 11,017 and 11,468.
It wasn’t until 18 months later in October, 2007 that the Dow Jones averages peaked at 14,269 and began the downward spiral with a 55 per cent drop to 6,443 on March 6, 2009. By the time he took office, America’s financial industry was in chaos, credit markets were frozen, housing values were plummeting and the economy was in its worst contraction since the Great Depression. Add to that Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran and North Korea, and you get an extraordinary set of challenges.
And yet, by most measures, President Obama’s first 100 days have been successful. The economy remains weak, of course, but he has put forward a series of initiatives to stabilise the capital and housing markets, proposed longer-term programmes to create sustained growth, adjusted America’s military priorities in Afghanistan and Iraq, and begun a process of reaching out to the world and changing America’s image. These are only overtures, and naturally much will depend on how things turn out — in the economy, in Pakistan, in Iraq. But so far, any president would be envious of Obama’s accomplishments.
FULL ARTICLE
It wasn’t until 18 months later in October, 2007 that the Dow Jones averages peaked at 14,269 and began the downward spiral with a 55 per cent drop to 6,443 on March 6, 2009. By the time he took office, America’s financial industry was in chaos, credit markets were frozen, housing values were plummeting and the economy was in its worst contraction since the Great Depression. Add to that Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Iran and North Korea, and you get an extraordinary set of challenges.
And yet, by most measures, President Obama’s first 100 days have been successful. The economy remains weak, of course, but he has put forward a series of initiatives to stabilise the capital and housing markets, proposed longer-term programmes to create sustained growth, adjusted America’s military priorities in Afghanistan and Iraq, and begun a process of reaching out to the world and changing America’s image. These are only overtures, and naturally much will depend on how things turn out — in the economy, in Pakistan, in Iraq. But so far, any president would be envious of Obama’s accomplishments.
FULL ARTICLE
Intellectual Torturers (PAKISTAN)
If we are to understand why some Americans accepted administering torture so easily, we need not look for some ancestral hatred or fear of Muslims and Arabs. No, the cause is far worse.
The top-secret memoranda released by the Obama administration concerning torture practices in CIA prisons shed new light on a fundamental question: how is it that people acting in the name of the United States government could so easily accept the idea of torturing the detainees in their charge?
The newly published documents do not disclose the very facts of torture, which were already well known by whomever wanted to know them. But they do reveal a great deal of information about how the torture sessions unfolded and how the agents involved perceived them.
FULL ARTICLE
The top-secret memoranda released by the Obama administration concerning torture practices in CIA prisons shed new light on a fundamental question: how is it that people acting in the name of the United States government could so easily accept the idea of torturing the detainees in their charge?
The newly published documents do not disclose the very facts of torture, which were already well known by whomever wanted to know them. But they do reveal a great deal of information about how the torture sessions unfolded and how the agents involved perceived them.
FULL ARTICLE
08 May 2009
US & Pakistan: Trying to Do Better (PAKISTAN)
Differences on approach will remain between the US and Pakistan, but perhaps we can now build on the fact that America’s national interest is tied to the stability of a Pakistan that is able to satisfy the basic needs of its people
President Zardari’s visit to Washington is far from over, but we have a good idea by now of the thrust of discussions with the Obama administration and what probably lies ahead in terms of the obligations and responsibilities the participants have agreed to assume.
Much of this will be informed speculation since so far no one has provided any detailed briefing on what exactly was decided.
Clearly, political and security-related goals are the ones that will have dominated discussions, but here I intend to focus on what we can see emerging in the economic sphere. In our current situation, it would appear that security-related cooperation, which will address the shortcomings in our counter-insurgency capabilities, is the priority but there is a clear realisation, as was apparent from President Obama’s remarks about the fragility of the present government in Pakistan, that the inability of governments in both countries to address the basic needs of the people and the growing disparity between the haves and have-nots lie at the root of the discontent that fuels insurgency. This problem needs to be addressed with the same urgency as the security situation.
FULL ARTICLE
President Zardari’s visit to Washington is far from over, but we have a good idea by now of the thrust of discussions with the Obama administration and what probably lies ahead in terms of the obligations and responsibilities the participants have agreed to assume.
Much of this will be informed speculation since so far no one has provided any detailed briefing on what exactly was decided.
Clearly, political and security-related goals are the ones that will have dominated discussions, but here I intend to focus on what we can see emerging in the economic sphere. In our current situation, it would appear that security-related cooperation, which will address the shortcomings in our counter-insurgency capabilities, is the priority but there is a clear realisation, as was apparent from President Obama’s remarks about the fragility of the present government in Pakistan, that the inability of governments in both countries to address the basic needs of the people and the growing disparity between the haves and have-nots lie at the root of the discontent that fuels insurgency. This problem needs to be addressed with the same urgency as the security situation.
FULL ARTICLE
07 May 2009
Obama and Pakistan (CANADA)
Today, Pakistan's President drops in on America's. There will be forced smiles and fine gifts, but stern words must also be exchanged.
Pakistan's Asif Ali Zardari seems more interested in demonizing India than in defeating the Taliban. Barack Obama can't afford to humour such misplaced priorities. How difficult will it be for him to extract serious change out of his Pakistani peer, fair-weather ally and duly elected, deeply compromised pain in the neck? I got a taste of the odds stacked against meaningful change myself when I confronted Pakistan's former president, Pervez Musharraf, at a recent gathering.
General Musharraf, retired from both electoral politics and army service, owes no fealty to anyone. And he has never held a candle to the corruption that plagues his successor. That's precisely why our encounter proved so revealing - and so damned depressing.
FULL ARTICLE
Pakistan's Asif Ali Zardari seems more interested in demonizing India than in defeating the Taliban. Barack Obama can't afford to humour such misplaced priorities. How difficult will it be for him to extract serious change out of his Pakistani peer, fair-weather ally and duly elected, deeply compromised pain in the neck? I got a taste of the odds stacked against meaningful change myself when I confronted Pakistan's former president, Pervez Musharraf, at a recent gathering.
General Musharraf, retired from both electoral politics and army service, owes no fealty to anyone. And he has never held a candle to the corruption that plagues his successor. That's precisely why our encounter proved so revealing - and so damned depressing.
FULL ARTICLE
America Will Rule Post-Crisis World (UK)
I am just back from Washington where the green shoots of recovery have sprouted into a jungle on Wall Street, if not yet on main street or in other countries. I was addressing a meeting of US and European diplomats to survey the geopolitical horizons.
As the world economy gradually returns to something approaching normality after the catastrophe triggered by the Lehmans bankruptcy on September 15 last year, thoughts naturally turn to the longer-term effects of the crisis.
Economic models are never good at predicting turning points in cycles, but in these conditions they are completely useless. To assess the long-term political and ideological impact, it makes more sense to consider two scenarios.
In the first, which has dominated thinking throughout the crisis, the deflationary forces of the credit crunch prevail and the world sinks into a recession lasting many years, with unemployment soaring to levels last seen in the 1930s. In that case, this crisis really will mark the end of US dominance, not only as a global power, but also as an economic model and source of political inspiration. But rather than neatly shifting the mantle of global leadership to China or maybe Europe - if we take seriously the triumphalist rhetoric of President Sarkozy after the London G20 summit about the death of the Anglo-Saxon model - a prolonged recession would usher in chaos.
FULL ARTICLE
As the world economy gradually returns to something approaching normality after the catastrophe triggered by the Lehmans bankruptcy on September 15 last year, thoughts naturally turn to the longer-term effects of the crisis.
Economic models are never good at predicting turning points in cycles, but in these conditions they are completely useless. To assess the long-term political and ideological impact, it makes more sense to consider two scenarios.
In the first, which has dominated thinking throughout the crisis, the deflationary forces of the credit crunch prevail and the world sinks into a recession lasting many years, with unemployment soaring to levels last seen in the 1930s. In that case, this crisis really will mark the end of US dominance, not only as a global power, but also as an economic model and source of political inspiration. But rather than neatly shifting the mantle of global leadership to China or maybe Europe - if we take seriously the triumphalist rhetoric of President Sarkozy after the London G20 summit about the death of the Anglo-Saxon model - a prolonged recession would usher in chaos.
FULL ARTICLE
06 May 2009
Jack Kemp vs. Anti-Semitism (ISRAEL)
Jack Kemp, who passed away on May 1, will be widely remembered as a prominent voice of conservatism who shaped the tax-cut policies of the Reagan administration. But he also deserves to be remembered for his willingness to cross party lines to challenge a Republican administration on the issue of anti-Semitism.
Throughout his life, Kemp defied the old stereotype of conservatives who were indifferent to the concerns of racial or religious minorities.
As an American Football League star in 1965, he pressured the league to move its all-star game out of New Orleans because African-American players were excluded from the city's nightclubs. As secretary of housing and urban development from 1988 to 1992, he promoted projects to help disadvantaged inner-city residents. And in 2004, he played a leading role in a crucial fight against the rising tide of global anti-Semitism.
FULL ARTICLE
Throughout his life, Kemp defied the old stereotype of conservatives who were indifferent to the concerns of racial or religious minorities.
As an American Football League star in 1965, he pressured the league to move its all-star game out of New Orleans because African-American players were excluded from the city's nightclubs. As secretary of housing and urban development from 1988 to 1992, he promoted projects to help disadvantaged inner-city residents. And in 2004, he played a leading role in a crucial fight against the rising tide of global anti-Semitism.
FULL ARTICLE
What Obama Could Learn From Karzai (HONG KONG)
In retrospect, United States President Barack Obama did a great favor to Afghan President Hamid Karzai by excluding him from his charmed circle of movers and shakers who would wield clout with the new administration in Washington. Obama was uncharacteristically rude to Karzai by not even conversing with him by telephone for weeks after he was sworn in, even though Afghanistan was the number one foreign policy priority of his presidency.
Vice President Joseph Biden traveled to Kabul to let it be known to Karzai that he was a fallen angel and unless Karzai mended his ways and did that soon enough, the US would rather be rid of him once and for all. Biden made it brutally plain that as a surrogate the US had installed in power, it could as easily banish him from grace.
FULL ARTICLE
Vice President Joseph Biden traveled to Kabul to let it be known to Karzai that he was a fallen angel and unless Karzai mended his ways and did that soon enough, the US would rather be rid of him once and for all. Biden made it brutally plain that as a surrogate the US had installed in power, it could as easily banish him from grace.
FULL ARTICLE
04 May 2009
The Burden of US-Iran Engagement (LEBANON)
President Barack Obama has made outreach to the Islamic Republic of Iran a foreign policy centerpiece of his administration. At his inauguration, he promised that if adversaries of the United States would unclench their fists then Washington would extend a hand. Then, in his first major television interview, he told Al-Arabiya satellite television, "It is important for us to be willing to talk to Iran, to express very clearly where our differences are, but [also] where there are potential avenues for progress. And we will over the next several months be laying out our general framework and approach."
FULL ARTICLE
FULL ARTICLE
02 May 2009
A Case for the Three Amigos (CANADA)
A crisis often presents governments with an opportunity that can be either seized or missed. One lost chance came shortly after 9/11, when Mexico asked Canada to jointly negotiate a smart border agreement with the United States, as a way of ensuring that our respective land borders be kept as open as possible under Homeland Security concerns to trade in goods and services. Canada rejected the idea of working together in favour of a separate bilateral negotiation with Washington, mainly because it felt its own relationship with the United States was so special that including Mexico would only contaminate the process with issues extraneous to Ottawa's agenda. The result: two nearly identical agreements, signed six months apart, that could have been one of the first trilateral successes of the post-NAFTA era but that, instead, emphasized our differences.
Today, we face another such opportunity. We can only hope that, this time, Canada seizes the moment rather than following the misguided idea that excluding Mexico from the common North American agenda is in its best interest. The swine flu pandemic is an ideal issue on which we should be working together, not only to halt the spread of the virus within our own region and to third countries but to ensure that solidarity among us avoids the adoption of damaging defensive measures by others that will negatively affect trade, tourism and communications to and from all of North America.
FULL ARTICLE
Today, we face another such opportunity. We can only hope that, this time, Canada seizes the moment rather than following the misguided idea that excluding Mexico from the common North American agenda is in its best interest. The swine flu pandemic is an ideal issue on which we should be working together, not only to halt the spread of the virus within our own region and to third countries but to ensure that solidarity among us avoids the adoption of damaging defensive measures by others that will negatively affect trade, tourism and communications to and from all of North America.
FULL ARTICLE
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