Andres Velasco, Project Syndicate
Even if Rousseff is impeached, it is far from clear that her successor would have the political will and support to make the necessary economic changes. Investors like to fantasize of economic reforms carried out by a post-Rousseff government headed by current Vice President Michel Temer and supported by Temer’s PMDB and parts of the opposition Brazilian Social Democracy Party of former president Fernando Henrique Cardoso. Such a government would be an improvement over the current one... Читать дальше...
Alan Philps, The National
Mr Obama considers his handling of the Egyptian revolution as a success in avoiding a bloodbath among the thousands gathered in Tahrir Square chanting for the president to leave. For his critics, however, it is the defining moment where idealism triumphed over realpolitik in the Obama White House.
Thomas Renard, Politico EU
Yes, Belgium’s ability to anticipate and prevent the Brussels attacks was severely limited. But this should not completely overshadow what has been achieved so far. In the aftermath of the attacks against Charlie Hebdo in January 2015, special forces dismantled a terrorist cell in Verviers, in the eastern part of Belgium. Surveillance materials and a thorough investigation showed that its members had been planning an imminent attack. Last year, two major trials against... Читать дальше...
Bruce Riedel, Brookings
The current Saudi campaign dates to last summer when the Crown Prince's spies captured the mastermind of the Khobar Tower attack. Ahmed Ibrahim al-Mughassil is a Saudi Shiite who masterminded the June 25, 1996, attack on an American military barracks in Khobar, Saudi Arabia. Mughassil was detained by the Saudis last August as he was exiting a flight from Tehran to Beirut and was transferred from Lebanon immediately to the kingdom. Nineteen U.S. Air Force personnel were... Читать дальше...
Lawrence Martin, Globe and Mail
While the father who lived only in Central Canada loathed the politics of door-knocking, the son who lived on the West Coast for a period revelled in it, developing a closer relationship with and understanding of regular people. The father moved through life into his forties as a boulevardier, generally doing as he pleased, experiencing little in the way of hardship. While benefiting from the security that parental wealth brings, Justin Trudeau has had experiences far more trying.
Ambrose Evans-Pritchard, Tele.
Britain's special relationship with China is becoming more expensive by the day. It now threatens to destroy the British steel industry, a foundation pillar of our manufacturing economy.
Victoria Bateman, Bloomberg View
Since the financial crisis, the British government has been hoping to see some of Britain's output move from finance to manufacturing, from the prosperous south of the country to the ailing industrial north, from consumption to investment and from imports to exports. Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne noted back in 2014 that “the recovery is not yet secure and our economy is still too unbalanced." Britain, he argued, was not investing enough and not exporting enough. Читать дальше...
Norbert Rottgen, NY Times
After the horror in Brussels, Europe is mourning once more. Rightly, the states of the European Union are also focused on bringing the perpetrators to justice and preventing a follow-up attack. Cooperating more effectively on counterterrorism while tightening security at airports and train stations would be a start.
Nawaf Obaid, National Interest
There are three elements one must understand about the Salman Doctrine: it has not spontaneously appeared, it is based on a solid assessment of history and it is bringing about significant real world changes.
Moore, NW
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu called for the establishment of official diplomatic relations with Indonesia on Monday, as the world’s largest Muslim country continues to look eastwards to boost diplomatic and economic ties.
Michael Knights, Foreign Policy
But who’s going to lead the fight to take Iraq’s second city back from the Islamic State?
N. Tebbitt, Telegraph
That holds true even if it happens after or during the General Election of 2020. It is an election that Mr Corbyn can only win if Mr Cameron gifts it to him by wrecking the Conservative Party. Mr Cameron is in charge. These matters are his responsibility. He cannot duck that responsibility by blaming everyone else.
Rafael Behr, Guardian
It is hard to measure paranoia but there is a lot of it about and – perhaps I am being paranoid here – it seems to be acquiring a more assertive character. Suspicion of politicians is not new. But I see more joining the dots of suspicion into elaborate constellations.
Tony Abbott, Quadrant
As prime minister, I was determined to advance our interests, protect our citizens and uphold our values around the world. That meant putting aside the moral posturing of the Rudd years to be a country that said what it meant and did what it said.
Daniel Larison, American Conservative
The funny thing is that Poland was arguably very subservient to Washington under the last Law and Justice government during the Bush years.
Rathnam & Orwin, G&M
Enter Plato and his acerbic account of the passions roiling democratic publics. He wasn’t a foe of democracy – he was persuaded that Athens could do no better than to persist in it – but neither did he ignore its vices. His Socrates observes that in their zeal for freedom, democracies stigmatize all restraint as slavish.
Arthur Herman & Lewis Libby, National Review
Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, arriving in Washington this week for President Obama’s nuclear-security summit, is America’s strongest ally in Asia — a region crucial to America’s future. Since taking office, Abe has pursued politically risky policies that have steadily bolstered not just Japan’s, but also America’s position in Asia. So he must be puzzled to find himself at the center of a U.S. political dispute.
Lauren Collins, New Yorker
For several years now, my favorite microtouristic destination has been the Salon International de l’Agriculture, the enormous show that each spring brings the farmers of France together under the eight roofs of the Porte de Versailles convention center, accompanied by nearly four thousand of their bovine, ovine, caprine, porcine, equine, asinine, and canine companions. (The weight of the manure generated, almost three hundred tons, is equivalent to that of the steamship... Читать дальше...
Soner Cagaptay, CNN
Recently, though, Turkish-EU ties have taken on new life. In December 2015, Ankara and Brussels opened a new chapter in accession talks covering monetary policy, and earlier this month the two reached a deal on a plan for handling refugees.
Navid Hassibi, TNI
Not only is the JCPOA within the spirit of the summit, but by recognizing Iran’s nuclear program, its safety and security will be elevated through international nuclear cooperation, directly touching on the twin goals of this year’s summit: advancing tangible improvements in nuclear security behavior, and strengthening the global nuclear security architecture.
K Malik, NY Times
Those sowing terror in Europe are not foreign jihadists but European citizens, most born and brought up on the Continent, in places like the Brussels neighborhood of Molenbeek. The apprehension spreads beyond Europe; authorities in the United States, too, are increasingly concerned about homegrown attackers.
Economist
THE thorny task of comparing crime rates across the world is tricky because legal interpretations vary. Sweden's definition of rape is not the same as America’s, for example.
Z Mider, Bloomberg
Page’s career path, too, seems to mesh with Trump’s philosophy. A billionaire developer and entertainer with no government experience, Trump isn’t hiring the typical Washington policy wonks as he pursues the Republican presidential nomination. Instead, he favors advisers with what one of his staffers described to the New York Times as “real world” experience.
Barack Obama, Wash. Post
Of all the threats to global security and peace, the most dangerous is the proliferation and potential use of nuclear weapons. That’s why, seven years ago in Prague, I committed the United States to stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and to seeking a world without them. This vision builds on the policies of presidents before me, Democrat and Republican, including Ronald Reagan, who said “we seek the total elimination one day of nuclear weapons from the face of the... Читать дальше...
