The National Interest July 20, 2010 An Economist leader on the future of Europe proclaims that the Continent is “Staring Into the Abyss.” The Week has “Europe on the Brink.” Investment guru John Mauldin, too. The proximate cause of all this, naturally, is the crisis of confidence in the euro but there is also considerable […]
The National Interest July 2, 2010 As the North Atlantic Treaty Organization completes its new Strategic Concept, it should be resist expanding its guarantee of automatic response to include cyber and other unconventional attacks. Otherwise, it may fracture the alliance while, perversely, decreasing security against said actions. In a February speech to the Atlantic Council, […]
The National Interest June 17, 2010 To put it mildly, the situation in Kyrgyzstan is a mess. Ethnic Uzbeks are being slaughtered in the streets and the government, itself there by virtue of an illegal power grab in April, is begging for Russian help. The humanitarian toll has been grim, with at least 170 dead and 1,500 […]
The National Interest June 3, 2010 Israel’s attack on a Gaza aid flotilla, killing nine, has earned near-universal condemnation, with even sympathetic observers terming it the act of a bully, tone deaf, staggeringly stupid, tactically incompetent, a major tactical blunder, a moral victory for Hamas, and an unqualified disaster for Israel’s reputation. But Israel is rather accustomed to international scorn and has […]
Foreign Policy December 1, 2009 Today, two obscure figures will take to the highest posts in the new European Council: Belgian Prime Minister Herman Van Rompuy as president and EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton as high representative for foreign policy. The positions, created by the Lisbon Treaty after eight long years of wrangling within the […]
Foreign Policy November 2, 2009 (Invited symposium) Overall Grade: B- President Barack Obama inherited two unpopular wars and a global financial crisis. Despite mostly continuing President George W. Bush’s policies, he’s rebooted America’s image in the world and avoided most of the landmines. His top-level foreign policy staff — from Vice President Joe Biden to National […]
Foreign Policy October 29, 2009 U.S. President Barack Obama is so beloved in Europe that he was nominated for a Nobel Peace Prize (which he later won) just 12 days after taking office for his “extraordinary efforts to strengthen international diplomacy and co-operation between peoples.” A Pew survey this summer found that 93 percent of Germans, 91 percent of French […]
The National Interest September 10, 2009 The seemingly universal consensus that existed mere months ago that Afghanistan was a “necessary war” the West could not afford to lose has suddenly evaporated. Prominent liberals, centrists and conservatives are coming out in droves to proclaim our goals too lofty and the chances of success too low to […]
The National Interest July 22, 2009 President Obama took the oath of office six months ago. He did so after a long campaign in which he continuously promised “change” and to “restore America’s standing in the world.” Thus far, however, optics are all that keep his administration’s foreign policy from being a continuation of George […]
The New Individualist March 2008 TNI‘s Interview with Jed Babbin, by James Joyner Jed Babbin is an attorney and international affairs expert who served as a deputy undersecretary of defense during the administration of George H.W. Bush. A commentator and prolific author, he has written a new book, In the Words of Our Enemies, published by […]