InfoAlert

Posted 03.12.2007

Foreign Policy | Arms Control | Defense | Human Rights | Intelligence | Terrorism | United Nations

Countries/Regions: Afghanistan | Balkans |China | Iran | Iraq | Middle East | Russia | Turkey

Foreign Policy

Rethinking Foreign Policy
Jost, Kenneth
CQ Researcher, Feb 2, 2007, v17,#5, pp97-120
"President Bush has instituted several fundamental changes in U.S. foreign policy, notably opting for unilateral action instead of multilateral initiatives and espousing a doctrine of preventive or preemptive war to ward off potential threats. Many Americans applauded the fortified U.S. policies in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and in the early days of the war in Iraq. With the war now in its fourth year, however, a growing number of foreign-policy experts are saying the Bush doctrines have hurt rather than helped to advance U.S. interests around the world. They want the United States to rely more on allies and multilateral institutions, discard the preventive war doctrine and be more realistic in promoting democracy abroad. Administration supporters, however, hope the president's strategy in Iraq ultimately will bring about a military and political success that will help vindicate his policies." Associate Editor Kenneth Jost is an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center. Order Article A1/02-07

Ensuring a Legacy
Holmes, Kim R.
National Interest, Jan-Feb 2007, #87, pp21-27
The article comments on the various strategies proposed by the Bush Administration in support of the "long war" on terrorism, including the freedom agenda and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's "transformational diplomacy" after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Many in the Bush Administration thought their various strategies in support of the long war on terrorism would usher in a sea change not only in U.S. policy but in international affairs. Kim R. Holmes, Heritage Foundation. Previously, Holmes served as Assistant Secretary of State for International Organization Affairs. Fulltext A2/02-07

Mind the Gap
Drezner, Daniel W.
The National Interest, Jan-Feb 2007,#87, pp47-53
"When it comes to American foreign policy, U.S. policymakers and citizens from the rest of the world would not be expected to see eye to eye. They do, however, agree on one thing - they both mistrust how ordinary Americans think about international relations. Elite wariness of American attitudes towards foreign policy has been around since the days of Walter Lippmann. When American troops were deployed to Somalia, George Kennan lamented in The New York Times that American foreign policy was 'controlled by popular emotional impulses, and particularly ones provoked by the commercial television industry.' The rest of the world is equally wary of American public opinion. Resentment of American power has been longstanding, but in this decade it has metastasized into something worse. To understand the depth of the problem, consider that in 2005 every country in Western Europe had a more favorable opinion of the People's Republic of China than of the United States. This could be written off as hostility to the Bush Administration's foreign policy, except for one problem-the same polls also show increased hostility to the American people." Daniel W. Drezner, associate professor of international politics at the Fletcher School at Tufts University. Fulltext A3/02-07

Strategy for A Long Struggle
Bruce Berkowitz
Policy Review, Feb/Mar 2007, #141, pp33
“Today’s threats are fundamentally different from those faced in the Cold War. […] conflict is more likely, and where the Soviet Union was brittle, they are resilient and seem unlikely to disappear soon. As a result, the U.S. is witnessing the emergence of a new factor critical to designing a national security strategy: sustainability. America’s goals of ensuring peace, creating wealth, and promoting human rights and rule of law depend on maintaining our predominant position in the world. The United States must think carefully about how it paces itself while also keeping a position of advantage over its competitors. Foreign policy is no popularity contest, but if the United States succeeds in promoting democracy abroad, foreign support for U.S. military action will inevitably depend more than ever on foreign public opinion.” Bruce Berkowitz, Stanford University's Hoover Institution. Fulltext A4/02-07

The Bush Doctrine and the Rise of Islamic Democracy
Silverstein, Ken
Harper's Magazine, March 2007, v314, #1882, pp33-44
“This article presents the author's analysis of the foreign policy, specifically Middle East policy, of U.S. President George W. Bush. Bush articulated a doctrine whereby the U.S. would no longer support anti-democratic regimes. However, practical necessity has demanded concessions, thereby betraying the core principles of the doctrine.” Silverstein is the Washington Editor of Harper's Magazine. Fulltext A5/02-07

Integrating Instruments of Power and Influence in National Security: Starting the Dialogue.
National Security Research Division, RAND Corporation, January 2007, online edition, 17p
Over the past several years, the U.S. has faced a number of complex challenges requiring new forms of effective interaction; such as, political Islam and ethnic intolerance. “These interactions among U.S. military and civilian agencies, foreign allied governments, non-governmental organizations, the private sector, and multinational bodies have been most extensive at the field level, but have largely occurred without clear, precise, and comprehensive direction from the senior leadership in Washington. How this field-level cooperation occurs is valuable and informative in evaluating obstacles to, and making recommendations for, integration of U.S. instruments of power at the senior level. This report highlights those obstacles, evaluates possibilities, surveys “best practices,” and makes recommendations.” Fulltext A6/02-07

The New World Order
Drezner, Daniel
Foreign Affairs, March/April 2007, online edition
" Controversies over the war in Iraq and U.S. unilateralism have overshadowed a more pragmatic and multilateral component of the Bush administration's grand strategy: its attempt to reconfigure U.S. foreign policy and international institutions in order to account for shifts in the global distribution of power and the emergence of states such as China and India. This unheralded move is well intentioned and well advised, and Washington should redouble its efforts. Daniel W. Drezner is Associate Professor of International Politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University." Fulltext A7/02-07

Arms Control

Priority Steps to Strengthen the Nonproliferation Regime
Goldschmidt, Pierre
Carnegie Endowment, Policy Outlook, January 2007, #33, 10p
“The international community must reject the passive notion that more countries are unavoidably destined to acquire nuclear weapons, and instead must implement further measures to dissuade and deter non-nuclear weapon states from seeking such weapons.” Goldschmidt points out that "current Non-proliferation Treaty (NPT) obligations already exist to deter nuclear weapons development, yet the international community must become more demanding in their enforcement. [He] recommends the adoption of additional measures to better address circumstances of non-compliance with IAEA safeguards agreements.” Pierre Goldschmidt is a visiting scholar in the Carnegie Endowment’s Nonproliferation Program. Fulltext A8/02-07

Verifying the Chemical Weapons Ban: Missing Elements
Tucker, Jonathan B
Arms Control Today, Jan/Feb 2007, v37, #1, pp6-14
The article focuses on the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC) verification regime. CWC is the first treaty to ban an entire category of weapons of mass destruction under strict international verification. It aims to eradicate chemical weapons stockpiles and production capacities. The verification regime involves on-site inspections of commercial chemical plants to ensure that no further production of warfare agents happens in the guise of chemical manufacturing for peaceful purposes. Jonathan B. Tucker is a Fulbright senior scholar at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs in Berlin, on leave from the Monterey Institute's Center for Nonproliferation Studies. Fulltext A9/02-07

Primed and Ready
Blair, Bruce G.
Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, Jan/Feb2007, v63, #1, pp33-37,
"The article focuses on the cooperation of Russia and U.S. to prevent the theft of Russian nuclear weapons and unauthorized missile launch. Russia and U.S. have joined forces to implement the Cooperative Threat Reduction program also known as Nunn-Lugar program, in which their highest priority is to take control over their nuclear arsenals. In this program, the nations' strategic missile arsenals are kept on hair-trigger alert to automatically sent those arsenals if there are missile threat without any warning or preparation. Through this process, nuclear weapons would be locked down as well as eliminate nuclear theft and unauthorized missile launch." Bruce G. Blair, who was a nuclear missile launch officer in the early 1970s, is president of the World Security Institute in Washington, D.C. Fulltext A10/02-07

Defense

The FY2008 National Security Program: Summary of the Presidential Request
Cordesman, Anthony H
Center for Strategic and International Studies, Report Briefing, February 14, 2007, 33p
“The President’s FY2008 budget request is one of the most complex in recent years, marking a major transition from a request that largely ignored wartime costs, and focused solely on baseline expenditures, to one with a far more detailed breakout of projected expenditures. This briefing […] brings together the summary data provided by the Office of the Secretary of Defense, OMB, and the White House to summarize the overall trends in the President’s request. It also contains summary data on the overall war on terror request affecting non-defense departments and agencies, on all requested homeland defense expenditures, and on related State Department aid activities.” Cordesman holds the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at CSIS. Fulltext A11/02-07

Missile Defense From Space
Lambakis, Steven
Policy Review, February/March 2007, #141, pp47-59
The author points out that the U.S. lacks “a unified, coherent approach to expanding the use of space to improve combat effectiveness, a problem that is compounded by a politically charged debate over weapons in space.” He calls on Congress to “push the Bush Administration to begin studying the feasibility of integrating a space-based layer into the missile defense system. […] Evolving the ballistic missile defense system to incorporate a layer that will allow us to better protect ourselves is logical.” Steven Lambakis is a senior defense analyst at the National Institute for Public Policy. Fulltext A12/02-07

Stability Operations in Strategic Perspective: A Skeptical View
Gray, Colin S.
Parameters, Summer 2006, v36, #2, pp4-14
The author examines the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review Report (QDR) and analyzes the strategy behind the involvement of US forces in stability operations. There will be little policy demand for stability operations in Afghanistan and Iraq, given the dampened domestic enthusiasm for the "long war". The reconstruction operations that will be put in place inevitably reflect US culture and are unlikely to be successful in American terms. Though the QDR suggests that Iraq should serve "as a model of freedom in the Middle East", this may not be possible in reality. Dr. Colin S. Gray is Professor of International Politics and Strategic Studies, and Director of the Center for Strategic Studies, at the University of Reading, England. Fulltext A13/02-07

Human Rights

Rehabilitation and Community Integration of Trafficking Survivors in the United States
Shigekane, Rachel
Human Rights Quarterly, February 2007, v29, #1, pp112-138
“Little has been reported on how survivors of trafficking integrate into new communities and what types of rehabilitation services and programs they may need to live independently and self-sufficiently. This article explores the needs of survivors of trafficking, the variety of services and advocacy programs that are developing to assist them, and the complex reactions of immigrant communities to incidents of trafficking.” Rachel Shigekane, University of California, Berkeley. Fulltext A14/02-07

Rights and Place: Using Geography in Human Rights Work
Carmalt, Jean Connolly
Human Rights Quarterly, February 2007, v29, #1, pp68-88
The author argues in favor of a “geographic perspective” for human rights, meaning a focus on “physical access, available personnel, and other components of implementation at a local level.” He points out that “[t]aking a geographical perspective to human rights violations [will create] more effective implementation techniques and new causes of action. These are illustrated through a general overview of the field of human geography and through application to two human rights: the right to housing and the right to free political speech.” Jean Connolly Carmalt is the Associate Director of Legal Policy and Analysis at Uplift International. Fulltext A15/02-07

Intelligence

Annual Threat Assessment of the Director of National Intelligence
Testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee by Vice Admiral John M. McConnell, USN (Ret.) Director, National Intelligence, February 27, 2007, 23p
"We know that the nation requires more from our Intelligence Community than ever before because America confronts a greater diversity of threats and challenges than ever before. Globalization, the defining characteristic of our age, mandates global intelligence coverage...Globalization also exposes the United States to mounting counterintelligence challenges. Our comparative advantage in some areas of technical intelligence, where we have been dominant in the past, is being eroded. Several nonstate actors, including international terrorist groups, conduct intelligence activities as effectively as capable state intelligence services... Terrorist threats to the Homeland, to our national security interests, and to our allies remain the pre-eminent challenge to the Intelligence Community, operationally and analytically." Fulltext A16/02-07

Current and Projected National Security Threats to the United States
Testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee by Lieutenant General Michael D. Maples, U.S. Army Director, Defense Intelligence Agency, February 27, 2007, 30p
This report review the variety of complex national and transnational threats and challenges facing the United States. The author's testimony outlines the state of the insurgencies in Iraq and Afghanistan, the current threat from global terrorism and proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and discusses defense related developments in states and regions of concern and other transnational issues. Fulltext A17/02-07

Terrorism

Religious Basis for Islamic Terrorism: The Quran and Its Interpretations
Venkatraman, Amritha
Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, March 2007, v30, #3, pp229-248
"The aim of this article is to show the manner in which religion can cause the emergence of Islamic violence as it is known today. The discourse on Islamic violence and counterterrorism needs to be urgently studied given the numerous instances of violent Jihad in contemporary times. Many writings on Islamic violence and statements released after an act of Islamic violence allude to the impact of religion on violent Jihad, but they rarely explore it or present a premise for its existence.” Amritha Venkatraman, Delhi Policy Group, India. Order Article A18/02-07

Countering Female Terrrorism
Cunningham. Karla J.
Studies in Conflict and Terrorism, February 2007, v30, #2, pp113-129
"This analysis examines female terrorist activity in three cases (the United States, Israel, and Russia) and identifies six counterterrorism deficiencies (exploitation, organizational, technological, denial and deception, tactical, and cultural/ideological) that help to explain why observers failed to anticipate the emergence and scope of female militancy. Drawing from these lessons, two potential scenarios for significant and/or surprising female terrorism are examined with respect to left-wing terrorism in the United States and global Islamism." Karla J. Cunningham is a Political Scientist, Rand Corporation. Order Article A19/02-07

Jigsaw Jihadism
Rosenthal, Justine A.
The National Interest, January/February 2007, #87, pp61-67
"The article comments on the need for the U.S. to counter Islamic terrorists who seek the ascendance of an Islamic caliphate and the concomitant destruction of the West. Groups like Jemaah Islamiya and Al-Qaeda are looking to rearrange the global order, instigate the now-infamous clash of civilizations and create a Muslim caliphate that spans continents, all the while bringing the West to its knees. But this is not a battle against all terrorists in which the Islamic religion plays a role." Justine A. Rosenthal is director of the Atlantic Monthly Foundation, home to the Council on Global Terrorism, and a visiting scholar at Brown University's Watson Institute for International Studies. Fulltext A20/02-07

United Nations

Time for a New United Nations Peacekeeping Organization
Schaefer, Brett D.
Heritage Foundation Backgrounder, February 13, 2007, #2006
Schaefer displays a highly critical view of UN peacekeeping, stating that “unless circumstances change dramatically, the Security Council will continue to place volatile situations under the responsibility of U.N. peace­keepers. It is imperative […] that U.N. capabilities be overhauled to improve the effectiveness, accountability, and operational preparedness of peace operations. A new peacekeeping organization would provide an opportunity for the member states of the U.N. to accomplish these goals speedily and without the bureaucratic infighting that has so greatly impeded other U.N. reform efforts.” Brett D. Schaefer is Jay Kingham Fellow in International Regulatory Affairs in the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation. Fulltext A21/02-07

Countries/Regions:

Afghanistan

Poppies for Peace: Reforming Afghanistan's Opium Industry
van Ham, Peter; Kamminga, Jorrit
Washington Quarerly, Winter2006/2007, v30, # 1, pp69-81
The article focuses on Afghanistan's opium industry and how the economic growth of Afghanistan depends on this illegal growth of opium poppy. The parliamentary elections of September 2005 has made significant changes in Afghanistan's political scenario. However the drug-based economy generating 2.8 billion dollars annually makes three million Afghans dependent on poppy cultivation. Reforming the poppy industry can help Afghan economy in stepping towards stability and democracy. Peter van Ham is director of the global governance research program at the Clingendael Institute in The Hague and a professor at the College of Europe in Bruges, Belgium. Order article A22/02-07

Breaking Point: Measuring Progress in Afghanistan
Patel, Seema Patel and Steven Ross
CSIS, Post Conflict Construction Project, February 23, 2007, online edition
The report offers a general assessment of the five key pillars: Security, Governance and Participation, Justice and Accountability, Economic Conditions, Social Services and Infrastructure. “Three of the report’s main findings are: Afghans are losing trust in their government because of an escalation in violence; public expectations are neither being met nor managed; conditions in Afghanistan have deteriorated in all key areas targeted for development, except for the economy and women’s rights.” Seema Patel is lead project consultant to the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at CSIS. Steve Ross is a consultant to the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at CSIS. Fulltext A23/02-07

Balkans

The End of Balkan History
Tarifa, Fatos, Lucas, Peter
Policy Review, February/March 2007, #141, pp59-70
“The solid "yes" vote for independence has restored Montenegro's statehood, which was abolished by Serbian annexation and the great powers at the end of World War I. Many governments, including the United States, the European Union, Russia, and China, immediately recognized Montenegro's independence and warmly welcomed the newest Adriatic republic into the family of sovereign nations. Fatos Tarifa is a former Albanian ambassador to the U.S. and currently a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at Eastern Michigan University. Peter Lucas is a veteran political reporter who worked for the Boston Herald and the Boston Globe. Fulltext A24/02-07

Reclaiming Democracy: Civil Society and Electoral Change in Central and Eastern Europe
Demeš, Pavol Forbrig, Joerg, Shepherd, Robin
The German Marshall Fund, February 14, 2007, online edition
"This new GMF book analyzes the remarkable wave of democracy that has swept through Central and Eastern Europe in recent years. Variously labeled "color revolutions," "transitions from postcommunism," or "electoral breakthroughs," these changes have fundamentally altered the prospects for democracy in Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia, Georgia, and Ukraine." This book is a joint project of the German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) and Erste Foundation of Austria, and it was edited by GMF's Joerg Forbrig, Program Officer, and Pavol Demeš, Director for Central and Eastern Europe Fulltext A25/02-07.

China

The Rise of China: A Brief Review of the Implications on the Transatlantic Partnership
Quinlan, Joseph
GMF Paper Series, February 7, 2007, online edition
An isolated, introverted backwater less than 30 years ago, China is now one of the most robust and open economies in the world. This paper examines the reemergence of China and the Middle Kingdom's rising sway in the global economy. Joseph Quinlan is a non-resident Transatlantic Fellow with GMF since 2003. Fulltext A26/02-07

China's Stubborn Anti-Democracy
Ma, Ying
Policy Review, February/March 2007, #144, pp4-17
“International peace and security in the twenty-first century will depend in no small part on the future of China and its relations with the world. Given the tremendous stakes involved, the United States should reconsider the many misplaced assumptions underpinning its China policy. It should recognize the tenacity and resilience of Chinese authoritarianism and relinquish the hope that such authoritarianism will simply and inevitably wilt in the face of U.S. wishes. It should better understand how such authoritarianism adapts to, co-opts, and compartmentalizes market forces and their various accompanying liberal attributes and find better solutions for countering it.” Ying Ma completed this article as an NRI Fellow at the American Enterprise Institute, where she co-directed a seminar series on democratization in China. Fulltext A27/02-07

Iran

Iran: “Weakling” or “Hegemon”?
Cordesman, Anthony H.
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), February 20, 2007
“Iran is a state that must be assessed largely in terms of its capabilities, not its intentions. Its political structure is too unstable to predict, and its choice of defensive or offensive options is more likely to be determined by its perceptions of future opportunities and risks than its current policies and strategy. Seen from this perspective, Iran is not a “weakling,” but neither is it capable of major aggression or becoming a regional “hegemon” if it meets effective resistance from its neighbors and the US.” Anthony Cordesman holds the Arleigh A. Burke Chair in Strategy at CSIS. Fulltext A28/02-07

A Win-Win U.S.Strategy for Dealing with Iran
Milani, Abbas; Diamond, Larry
Washington Quarterly, Winter 2007, v30, #1, pp121-138
The article focuses on the need of a new American policy to deal with Iran regarding its efforts to become a nuclear power. While the Iranian strategy is not to accept any preconditions for nuclear negotiations, their so-called flexibility to participate in dialogue makes it difficult for the United Nations to take any action. The strategies used so far have not been very effective in dealing with the issue. A bold new approach by U.S. diplomats could stop Iran from posing a nuclear threat. Larry Diamond, Michael McFaul, and Abbas Milani are fellows and coordinators of the Iran Democracy Project at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. McFaul is a member of The Washington Quarterly’s editorial board. Order article A29/02-07

Understanding Iran's New Authoritarianism
Hen-Tow, Elliot
Washington Quarterly, Winter 2007, v30, #1, pp163-179
Mahmoud Ahmadinejad’s victory in the June 2005 Iranian presidential elections "constitutes the beginning of a marked shift from the existing clerical theocracy toward a more conventional authoritarian regime.” As the evolving regime concentrates power among a small number of key decision-making centers, “the role of the military-security apparatus will be enhanced, as will the regime’s dependence on tools of patronage or repression to assert full control… Structural problems in Iran’s economy will prevent the leadership from implementing the China model—authoritarianism with high economic growth—but Iran’s oil-based economy nevertheless provides the regime with sufficient resources to satisfy its supporter base and discourage opposition. If anything, the potential but unlikely international isolation of Iran if Tehran mishandles its apparent quest for nuclear weapons represents a greater threat to regime stability than Iran’s economic condition.” Elliot Hen-Tov is a doctoral candidate specializing in contemporary Iranian and Turkish affairs in the Department of Near Eastern Studies at Princeton University. Order article A30/02-07

Iraq

Escaping the Trap: Why the United States Must Leave Iraq
Carpenter, Ted Galen
CATO Institute, February 14, 2007, Policy Analysis #588
Carpenter claims that “staying in Iraq is a fatally flawed policy.” While arguing in favor of withdrawal, he points to the costs of a possible withdrawal of U.S. troops. “Radical Islamic factions will portray a withdrawal as a victory over the American superpower. We can minimize that damage by refocusing our efforts on al-Qaeda in Afghanistan and elsewhere, but there is no way to eliminate the damage.” Ted Galen Carpenter is vice president for defense and foreign policy studies at the Cato Institute. Fulltext A31/02-07

Saddam Hussein: Stalin on the Tigris
Sicherman, Harvey
Foreign Policy Research Institute, E-Notes, February 2007
“The hanging of Saddam Hussein on December 30, 2006, ended the life of a tyrant extreme even by Middle Eastern standards. Shaping himself consciously after Stalin, he ran Iraq for twenty-four years, earning the hatred of most of his people for his murderous methods. Saddam also spent half that time waging war against Iran and then Kuwait. He put Iraq into the front rank of states sponsoring terrorism. Yet, he enjoyed popular pan-Arab support and his execution occasioned indignation and protest. Therein lies a tale richly illustrative of both Middle Eastern political pathologies and the perplexed efforts of outsiders to deal with them." Harvey Sicherman, Ph.D., is President of the Foreign Policy Research Institute and a former aide to three U.S. secretaries of state. Fulltext A32/02-07

Iraq's Civil War
Fearon, James D.
Foreign Affairs, March/April 2007, online edition (Mar/Apr2007, v86, #2, pp2-15)
The White House still avoids the label, but by any reasonable historical standard, the Iraqi civil war has begun. The record of past such wars suggests that Washington cannot stop this one -- and that Iraqis will be able to reach a power-sharing deal only after much more fighting, if then. The United States can help bring about a settlement eventually by balancing Iraqi factions from afar, but there is little it can do to avert bloodshed now. James D. Fearon is Geballe Professor in the School of Humanities and Sciences and Professor of Political Science at Stanford University. Fulltext A33/02-07

MIddle East

The Syrian Opposition
Landis, Joshua
Washington Quarterly, Winter 2007, v30, #1, pp45-68
"For decades, U.S. policy toward Syria has been single-mindedly
focused on Syria’s president, Hafiz al-Asad, from 1970 to 2000, followed by
his son Bashar. Because they perceived the Syrian opposition to be too weak and anti-American, U.S. officials preferred to work with the Asad regime. Washington thus had no relations with the Syrian opposition until its invasion of Iraq in 2003. Even then, the Bush administration reached out only to Washington-based opponents of the Syrian regime." Although the Syrian opposition is still no match for the government in Damascus, it has made a number of advances over the last two years. Where did the opposition come from? What should Washington do now? Joshua Landis is codirector of the Center of Peace Studies and an assistant professor at the University of Oklahoma. He served as a senior Fulbright researcher in Damascus during 2005. Joe Pace currently works with Human Rights Watch in Cairo. He spent 10 months in Syria as a Samuels Family Research Fellow of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University. Order article A34/02-07

Russia

Current Russia-North Korea Relations: Challenges and Achievements
Vorontsov, Alexander
Brookings Institution, Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies (CNAPS) Working Paper Series, February 2007, online edition
Alexander Vorontsov argues that “Moscow's policies toward the Korean peninsula are determined by Russia's serious and legitimate strategic interests in Korea. The fundamental goal of the preservation of peace and stability on the Korean peninsula defines Russia's policy toward Korea, and by extension its position on any settlement of the North Korean nuclear crisis. Russia stands firmly behind a peaceful resolution of the crisis,achieved through diplomacy and negotiation.” Vorontsov was a Visiting Fellow in 2005-2006 at Brookings’s Center for Northeast Asian Policy Studies. Fulltext A37/02-07

Do Russians Dislike Democracy?
Carnaghan, Ellen
PS, Political Science & Politics, Jan 2007, v40, #1, pp61-67
Carnaghan points out that “in many local elections and in elections to the State Duma throughout the 1990s, significant numbers of Russians chose Communists, near-fascist nationalists, or others of questionable democratic credentials to represent them.” In this article, Carnaghan suggests “an explanation for Russians' tolerance for leaders who, to outside observers, seem to be inching the country toward autocracy, and their apparent disdain for leaders who appear to advocate deepening democracy: citizens do not perceive the same threats to democracy that some experts do.” Ellen Carnaghan is associate professor of political science at Saint Louis University. Her work on Russian mass political attitudes has been published in Comparative Politics, Slavic Review, and Post-Soviet Affairs." Fulltext A38/02-07

Turkey

Turkey Faces West
Ozel, Soli
Wilson Quarterly, Winter 2007, v31,#1, pp18-25
The author discusses the political and socio-economic situation in Turkey after the European Union (EU) broke off negotiations regarding their membership. He insists that Turkey is continuing along its path of modernization and globalization. The country still has issues that the author calls, "growing pains." The rise of industrialization has given a boost to a growing middle class and a correlating rise in consumerism. Soli Özel, a Southeast Europe Project policy scholar at the Wilson Center in 2006, is a professor of international relations at Istanbul Bilgi University and a columnist for the newspaper Sabah. Order article A39/02-07