Jim Lobe

In a major address on Middle East policy Monday, Sen. John McCain, the presumptive Republican candidate for president, pledged to maintain the Bush administration’s hard line against Iran and expressed strong skepticism about the ability of the current Palestinian leadership to reach a peace accord with Israel. McCain, who was speaking at the opening session … Continue reading “McCain Vows to Stay the Course in Middle East”

"Things fall apart; the center cannot hold." As the White House agenda for the Middle East continues to unravel, events over the past 24 hours seem to suggest that US allies in the region are determined to construct a new edifice based on diplomacy, with or without Washington’s help. In spite of the President George … Continue reading “As Bush Policy Crumbles, Allies Pick Up the Pieces”

In separate speeches delivered an ocean apart, the two standard bearers of the Republican Party Thursday offered rosy visions of a future designed to gladden the hearts of Israel-centered neoconservatives without offering any details about how their dreams will be achieved. In an address marking the 60th anniversary of Israel’s founding before the Knesset in … Continue reading “An Ocean Apart, Bush, McCain Play to Neocon Dreams”

Pressed by the demands of the "global war on terrorism," the United States is violating an international protocol that forbids the recruitment of children under the age of 18 for military service, according to a new report [.pdf] released Tuesday by a major civil rights group that charged that recruitment practices target children as young … Continue reading “School Recruiting Could Violate Intl. Protocol”

The basic democratic principle that "the will of the people should be the basis for the authority of government" is supported by overwhelming majorities throughout the world, according to a major new survey [.pdf] of more than 17,000 adults in 19 countries released Monday. Large majorities in most of those countries also believe that their … Continue reading “Survey: Gulf Between Democracy in Theory and Practice”

While this week’s trip by President George W. Bush to Israel, Saudi Arabia, and Egypt was never conceived as a triumphant "victory lap" around the region, the swift rout of U.S.-backed forces by Lebanon’s Hezbollah Friday has provided yet another vivid illustration of the rapid decline in Washington’s influence in the Middle East during his … Continue reading “Bush Tour Diminished by Hezbollah Show of Force”

Growing impatience in Congress over the enormous costs being racked up by the Iraq war, as well as the Pentagon’s belief that it needs more troops in Afghanistan to fight insurgents there, is putting the vaunted success of the George W. Bush administration’s "surge" strategy to the test. Although the House of Representatives appears poised … Continue reading “Pressure to Cut Costs, Troops Strains ‘Surge’”

The price of oil and other international economic issues are rapidly taking center stage among the dominant foreign policy concerns of the US public, which has also become increasingly skeptical about the effectiveness of military action to further Washington’s interests abroad, according to a major new survey released Wednesday by the influential Foreign Affairs journal. … Continue reading “Economy High in US Public’s Foreign Policy Worries”

Are the latest accusations and tough language leveled against Iran, Syria, and North Korea evidence of a resurgence by the remaining hawks in the administration of President George W. Bush hoping for a final confrontation against one or more members of the revised "axis of evil" before his term next January? That’s the big question … Continue reading “Hawks Resurgent?”

A new group of prominent U.S. Jews who believe that the so-called "Israel Lobby" has been dominated for too long by neoconservatives and other Likud-oriented hawks has launched a new organization to help fund political candidates who favor a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and a stronger U.S. role in achieving it. Almost two … Continue reading “New Lobby Seeks to Redefine ‘Pro-Israel’”