Tea with Madam Secretary, Part I
My most recent interview was with Madeleine Albright, the US foreign policy practitioner and policy-maker, the women’s rights implementer in foreign policy during her time as a US Ambassador to the UN and as Secretary of State, the daughter of a Czechoslovak dissident who was a recipient of US support during WWII and the Cold War, and finally as the academic examining foreign policy.
THE FORMULA FOR AMERICAN ISOLATIONISM
I prefer to call it Restraint, but let’s be clear, by whatever label America is pulling back. The oceans are big and protect America from much of the world’s turmoil. Being on American side of them is cheaper than being on the other side and wiser too. America is coming home thanks to the government’s budget deficit.
Harsh Realities, Alliances, and Strategic Ambiguity: US Policy Choices in East Asia
Recent developments in the South China Sea and China’s emphasis on the modernization of its military raise important issues for the future of U.S. strategic manoeuvring in the region. What can be done to sustain future U.S. presence in Asia while tactfully maintaining a favourable position for its interests and the stability in the region?
Review – The Role of Energy in Russian Foreign Policy towards Kazakhstan
This in-depth study into the complex and multi-faceted aspect of the role of oil and gas in Russian foreign policy goes beyond the headlines, taking the reader through the hydrocarbon fields, and into the backroom of energy contract negotiations between the Russian Federation and Kazakhstan since 1991. It is recommended reading for all regional or country-experts and interested readers alike.
Turkey in the Unpredictable Middle East
Mastery of style and charismatic personalities are constants of Turkey’s celebrated leaders and incumbent Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is no exception. But what counts for an effective foreign policy is not noise but outcomes. With the right ingredients, Turkey will be in an enviable position to fully utilise its strategic geography, NATO membership and web of relations to advance Turkish interests in the region.
The World’s Most Warring Nation
The history of US foreign policy is a violent and bloody one, although this is not necessarily the dominant perception of most Americans. It is in fact, the most warring nation in modern history. It is in this historical context that we have to try and understand its current military involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, the Horn of Africa and Libya.
The Obama Administration Must Help Strengthen and Support Turkish Influence in the Middle East
Is Obama disregarding the United States’ moral values by shying away from closer involvement in the Arab Spring and subsequent negotiations between Egypt, Syria and Turkey? Or is he simply giving the Middle East a chance to sort out its own problems?
The Obama Doctrine: Intervention after the War on Terror
The shooting of Osama Bin Laden, President Obama’s latest foreign policy speech, and the looming drawdown of American forces in Afghanistan all point towards a welcome possibility: the sun may soon set on the War on Terror. And as Obama is acutely aware, America’s tomorrow is still to be written.
Celebrating the Death of Evil
The death of Osama bin Laden is far more important for the United States than it is for Islamic terrorism. While the shooting of Al Qaeda’s leader will certainly damage the morale of would-be jihadists around the world, the most significant impact will be at home.
Precautionary intervention?
There is an understandable desire in international relations, as in so many other areas of life, to be able to see into the future, to know what it is that is coming down the track towards us and whether the light at the end of the tunnel is indeed the sunlight of a better future or just an indication that the tunnel is on fire. In recent weeks, in Ivory Coast and Libya, the tunnel has been well and truly alight. This troubled engagement between humanitarian action and the precautionary principle has been discernable since the practice leapt to prominence.
