National Endowment for Democracy
Andrey Baklitskiy, Moscow Times
Extending the New START is only the first and easiest step in rebuilding the U.S.-Russian arms control system from its ruins.
David Hutt, IP Quarterly
A new dialogue forum between Brussels and London on China—and by extension, the Indo-Pacific—would be in the interest of both.
Stratfor Worldview
Renewed tensions between the United Kingdom and the European Union over the implementation of customs controls in Northern Ireland underscore the underlying problems that the Brexit deal failed to solve. While a short-term compromise between London and Brussels is possible, the Northern Ireland question will continue to create disputes between the European Union and the United Kingdom, while opening the door to sporadic episodes of violence in the area. On Feb. 3, U.K.... Читать дальше...
Daniel DePetris, Washington Examiner
National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan announced on Thursday that Washington would terminate its offensive military support to the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen. The choice to intervene in Yemen's civil war occurred on President Barack Obama's watch after
Elizabeth Chen, Jamestown
On January 28, members of an international team led by the World Health Organization (WHO) concluded fourteen days of quarantine and began field work in Wuhan, China for a mission aimed at investigating the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic. As of the time of writing, the team had made visits to the Hubei Center for Disease Control and Prevention; the Wuhan Institute of Virology (WIV) and the Huanan Seafood Wholesale Market. State media also reported that the WHO... Читать дальше...
Simeon Tegel, WPR
The nightmarish scenes last spring from Guayaquil, Ecuador's largest city and economic capital, exposed what has arguably been the Western Hemisphere's worst COVID-19 outbreak. Many of the Pacific port city's affluent residents had been visiting Europe during a school break last January and February; a few weeks later, its hospitals and morgues were quickly overwhelmed. Dantean images of the dead abandoned on sidewalks by grieving family members, who feared they would also lose their lives to this alien new disease... Читать дальше...
Erik Khzmalyan, Providence
Ever since President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) in 2017, Washington has been engulfed in a contentious debate whether leaving the treaty was a geo-economic blunder or a necessary step to protect the American economy. Notwithstanding the benefits and pitfalls, TPP offered a viable alternative to China's signature Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). While the US has taken bold measures to counter Beijing militarily... Читать дальше...
Rym Momtaz, Politico EU
PARIS — The EU shouldn't gang up on China with the U.S. even if it stands closer to Washington by virtue of shared values, according to French President Emmanuel Macron.
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Fehim Tastekin, Al Monitor
The fragile ties between Damascus and the Kurdish-led autonomous administration in northern Syria have seen a dangerous escalation amid widespread anticipation that US support for the Syrian Kurds will grow after the change of guard at the White House. The two sides have sought to besiege one another in several areas in recent weeks, fueling deadly tensions and allegations of collusion between Damascus and Ankara.
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Daniel Larison, American Conservative
An anonymous former government official has written a conventionally hawkish paper on China. The Atlantic Council and Politico have both published versions of the piece,...
Luv Puri, Japan Times
Nearly nine years ago, the National League for Democracy (NLD) leader Aung San Suu Kyi reluctantly decided to participate in the by-elections to the parliament on April 1, 2012, after two-decades of military repression. She was denied a 1991 election verdict to rule, and in the interregnum survived an assassination attempt in 2003. After promulgating the 2008 constitution, the military decided to hold general elections in 2010, as part of a military-designed seven-step roadmap to democracy. Читать дальше...
New York Post
Secretary of State Antony Blinken's recent rebukes of China give hope that the Biden administration recognizes the truth about this vicious regime.
William Astore, TomDispatch
As retired Army Major Danny Sjursen recently pointed out at TomDispatch, when it comes to foreign policy, President Joe Biden's new cabinet and advisers are well stocked with retired generals,
Katie Bo Williams, Defense One
AL UDEID AIR FORCE BASE, Qatar — Even as the Biden administration has sought to talk tough on Saudi Arabia over its human rights abuses, it has quietly continued the workaday relations needed to preserve the strategic relationship with a Gulf ally that military planners see as critical to the U.S. ability to defend against Iran in the region.
Douglas Murray, Spectator
You may have missed Ursula von der Leyen's big speech at Davos last week. Most people did. Perhaps because Davos was a more low-key affair than normal this year.
War on the Rocks
Chris, Melanie, and Zack debate whether the United States should pursue primacy. They discuss the Donald Trump administration's "Strategic Framework for the Indo-Pacific," and compare some of its recommendations with Stephen Wertheim's recent article on "Delusions of Dominance." They agree that the United States needs to have a national debate to match American resources and objectives, but disagree on how to adjust both elements. Chris both complements and questions the... Читать дальше...
Vidya Krishnan, The Atlantic
A crackdown on the country's press is the latest in a pattern of intimidation against news outlets.
