William Pfaff

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US Allies in Europe Begin to Pull Back

Last Friday five NATO governments made it known that they want American nuclear weapons removed from their territory. They include the Benelux three, together with Germany and Norway. The five reportedly will ask that all the European NATO governments endorse their position before a meeting in New York in May. The Dutch foreign minister described … Continue reading “US Allies in Europe Begin to Pull Back”

Diplomacy in Afghanistan? Not Until US Identifies Why It’s There

Richard Holbrooke’s comments on reconciliation with the Taliban in Afghanistan, made during the recent Munich Security Conference, echoed earlier remarks by UN officials and American military commanders in Kabul that suggest that diplomacy might be coming alive on the Afghan front. This could be true despite, or in coordination with, a new NATO offensive in … Continue reading “Diplomacy in Afghanistan? Not Until US Identifies Why It’s There”

Need for Presidents to ‘Look Tough’ Isn’t Getting US Anywhere

President Barack Obama is said to feel he is in trouble politically because his enemies in Congress and among the Washington journalists who decide what the "mood" of Washington is on any given day say he is not tough enough. This is the kind of mind reading about what the public thinks that got him … Continue reading “Need for Presidents to ‘Look Tough’ Isn’t Getting US Anywhere”

Al-Qaeda Using US to Accomplish Goals – and US Is Playing Along

It is not widely understood that the policy objective of al-Qaeda is not to attack the Western countries, which in itself accomplishes nothing. Bringing down a Western airliner or blowing up a building in the United States or Britain is of no interest in itself, since the Islamic radical does no good by simply killing … Continue reading “Al-Qaeda Using US to Accomplish Goals – and US Is Playing Along”

New Wars for the New Year?

While the government of Iran reels under the continuing pressures of a popular uprising, whose character is inexorably changing from protest at a rigged election, contrived by the ambitious and obscurantist Revolutionary Guard, into a challenge to the Islamic government itself, the American-backed campaign for further sanctions on the economy, and inevitably the people, continues, … Continue reading “New Wars for the New Year?”