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Two weeks after compromising with its traditional allies on the wording of a key UN Security Council resolution on Iraq, U.S. foreign policy under George W. Bush appears to be moving further toward the more realist policies of his father in other areas as well. Few pretend to know whether the move is tactical for … Continue reading “Bush Gives Realism a Chance”

A last minute spending spree by the U.S.-led Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) and language in the UN Security Council resolution setting the conditions for Iraqi sovereignty appear likely to limit the interim government’s ability to exercise meaningful control over the country’s oil revenues. According to documents posted on its own web site, the CPA’s little-known … Continue reading “‘Sovereign’ Iraq to Have Little Control Over Oil”

LONDON – The man known only as “G” was lucky that the deterioration of his mental health became obvious. “G,” one of the 12 men held indefinitely without trial in Britain’s top security prisons, was let out on bail in April on the basis that his indefinite detention had caused deterioration of his mental health. … Continue reading “Britain’s Guantanamo”

Peoples the world around have a history of culture and religion. In the Mideast, the religion is predominantly Muslim and the culture tribal. The Muslim religion is strong, i.e., those that don’t conform are considered infidels; those of a tribal culture look for tribal leadership, not democracy. We liberated Kuwait, but it immediately rejected democracy. … Continue reading “The US Has Lost Its Moral Authority”

Unless you own a lot of stock in Halliburton or other big defense, security, or construction companies, chances are the Iraq war has turned out to be a pretty bad investment, both in human lives and taxpayer dollars, according to a new assessment by a progressive Washington-based think tank, the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS). … Continue reading “Iraq War Analysis Paints Grim Picture”

Following the publication of a 42-page report by the Srebrenica Commission of the Bosnian Serb government, media around the world carried a variation of this headline on Friday, June 11: “Bosnian Serbs Admit Srebrenica Massacre!” Many saw this as the final and incontrovertible proof that what happened in Srebrenica in July 1995 was a planned, … Continue reading “Srebrenica Revisited”

SEOUL – Although the government announced that its decision to deploy 3,000 troops to Iraq is unlikely to be swayed by the beheading of a South Korean hostage, mounting public protests, however, could force it to cancel the deployment. In a scene similar to that of U.S. engineer Paul M. Johnson before he was beheaded … Continue reading “South Koreans Protest Troop Deployment”

LAHORE – Protests against Pakistan’s acquisition of vast tracts of land for mega military projects in its western Balochistan province are snowballing, with armed tribesmen blowing up an airport in the gas-rich region of Sui last week, and local nationalist parties threatening political action on August 1. The tribesmen battled security forces in Balochistan, which … Continue reading “Military Steals Peasants’ Land – Could Pakistan Face Another Secession?”

WASHINGTON – In what may be the first concrete example of the effects of the Abu Ghraib prison torture scandal in Iraq, lawyers and human rights groups in Egypt, a major U.S. ally in the Middle East, say that local police are increasingly resorting to new torture tactics similar to those used by U.S. soldiers … Continue reading “Egyptian Police Learn From Abu Ghraib”

The vortex of Korean politics can make even Donald Rumsfeld sound like the most radical Korean peace activist. “After the cold war,” he declared on June 3, “U.S. forces have been stationed in South Korea for too long.” The occasion was the announcement of the largest U.S. troop reductions from the Korean peninsula since the … Continue reading “Bring the Troops Home (from Korea)”