| August 2005
Foreign Policy | Arms Control | Defense | Diplomacy | Terrorism |United Nations | Weapons of Mass Destruction |
Countries/Regions: Africa | Afghanistan | India | Iran | Iraq | Israel | Middle East | North Korea | Palestine |Turkey |
A1 - Giving Justice Its Due
Perkovich, George
Foreign Affairs, July/Aug2005, v 8, #4, pp79-89
"According to the author much of the opposition the United States faces in the world today comes from either radical Islamists or from those who blame Washington for the unequal and destabilizing consequences of globalization. In their own ways, both groups fear that the freedom so loudly championed by the United States translates in practice into a license for the rich and the powerful to take advantage of the poor and the weak." According to the author President Bush is only half right to trumpet the spread of freedom as the main objective of U.S. foreign policy; the pursuit of justice is just as important. George Perkovich is Vice President for Studies, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Fulltext
A2 - How Americans View U.S. Foreign Policy ; Results of New National Tracking Survey from Public Agenda
Foreign Affairs, August 3, 2005, online edition
“When Americans were asked to name the most important global problems facing the United States, Iraq and terrorism were the two top concerns. Foreign nations' negative image of this country ranked number three. These and other findings, released jointly by Public Agenda and Foreign Affairs magazine, are part of the new Public Agenda Confidence in U.S. Foreign Policy Index. The survey also reveals that American thinking about U.S. relations with the Islamic world is a disquieting mix of high anxiety, growing uncertainly about current policy, and virtually no consensus about what else the country might do. To be issued by Public Agenda regularly, the Index is designed to explore the public's long-term judgments and beliefs about America's role in the world.” Fulltext
A3 -
International Atomic Energy Agency: Annual Report for 2004
International Atomic Energy Agency, released July 26, 2005, 89p
“Global nuclear developments in 2004, such as the changing outlook for nuclear power, the increasing role of nuclear applications in global sustainable development initiatives, greater international cooperation in matters of safety and security, and the increasing recognition of the need to strengthen the nuclear non-proliferation regime have created new challenges and opportunities for the Agency. This report highlights the Agency’s response to these challenges through activities carried out within the framework of the three pillars of technology, safety and verification.” Fulltext
A4 -
SIPRI Yearbook 2005. Armaments, Disarmament, and International Security
Stockholm International Peace Research Institute, August 2005,online edition
” Traditional means of assessing, and balancing, different actors’ power in the global system are out of date… Security solutions today must take account of the growing power of non-state actors: including not just terrorists, but the capacity for both good and ill of the private business sector, civil society movements, non-governmental organizations and the media. They must also tackle the challenge of a widening gap in security experience and priorities between most of the northern and most of the southern hemisphere… No single principle or method of action can, in fact, tackle the full complexity of the world’s security problems. The three main methods in current use – external intervention, t he regulatory or legislative approach to governing security-related phenomena, and creating security through integration -- each have their strengths and weaknesses.” Fulltext
A5 - Moral Hazard. How Conservatism Leaves Us Vulnerable to Nuclear Terrorism
Scoblic, J. Peter
The New Republic, August 8, 2005, v233, #4725, pp17-23
Democratization and the spread of freedom has become the Bush administration’s major response to terrorism. Scoblic is critical of this approach writing that they do not qualify to counter nuclear terrorism. “Would-be terrorists can get their hands on fissile material or a nuclear weapon from two sources: a rogue-state government or a state where nuclear materials are poorly secured and thus susceptible to theft. … Preventing terrorists from acquiring nuclear material, however, will require more than securing existing fissile stockpiles -- it will require revamping the NPT, which allows only five signatories (the United States, Russia, China, France, and Britain) to possess nuclear weapons but allows the rest to enrich uranium and reprocess plutonium for peaceful purposes, such as generating energy. This provision is the back door that Iran and North Korea have exploited to advance their nuclear programs, and a politically diverse constituency -- from Bush to Kofi Annan -- agrees that the NPT needs to be strengthened or supplemented to prevent further abuse.” In his article, the author completely questions the Bush Administration’s ideology in an openly critical manner. J. Peter Scoblic is the acting editor of The New Republic. Fulltext
A6 - Rumsfeld's Revolution at Defense
Light, Paul C.
Brookings Institution Policy Brief #142, July 2005
“…Rumsfeld may be remembered as one of the boldest bureaucratic reformers of his generation.” This 8-page policy brief analyzes the Secretary of Defense’s concept of a streamlined Department of Defense. It rests on four pillars: alertness, agility, adaptability and alignment. The fragile nature of congressional support for Rumsfeld’s plans is discussed as well as his implementation of management systems with a strict focus on administrative details. Paul C. Light is a Senior Fellow at the Brookings Institution and the Paulette Goddard Professor of Public Service at New York University.Fulltext
A7 - War Policy, Public Support, and the Media
Darley, William M.
Parameters, Summer 2005, v35, #2, pp121-134
Despite large misperceptions within the general public, researchers have found virtually no evidence to support a causal relationship between editorial tone and bias in media with a decline of public support for war. Others found a decline in support for war among the general public, yet concluded that television's impact was not significant enough to reduce support for the war below levels attained by the Korean War. The author believes that the ‘rally around the flag’ phenomenon during wartime contradicts the notion of media domination of policy formulation, noting the high public opinion polls for both presidents during Desert Storm and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Darley cites the military strategist Clausewitz, who noted that public support for wars is more like a collective emotional reaction toward an enemy attack. Colonel William M. Darley, director of strategic communications at the U.S. Army Combined Arms Center at Fort Leavenworth and Editor in Chief of the Military Review. He served as the Combined Joint Task Force-7 Public Affairs Officer in Iraq from August 2003 to March 2004. Fulltext
A8 - Interview with Major Isaiah Wilson III on Pentagon Reform
Council on Foreign Relations, August 9, 2005, online edition
The interviewee explains that in the new Pentagon reform plans there will be a Northern Command "…which is the first step in recognizing the homeland as a potential theater of war for the possibility of a war on the home front. The Northern Command will be "…bridging the Department of Defense and DHS.” [Department of Homeland Security]. Major Wilson is confident that “the military has the expertise” to deal with that challenge. Interviewer is Eben Kaplan of the Council on Foreign Relations. Major Isaiah ("Ike") Wilson III is an international affairs fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and professor of strategic studies at West Point. Fulltext
A9 - In the Wake of War: Improving U.S. Post-Conflict Capabilities
Council on Foreign Relations, Task Force Report, July 27, 2005, online edition
” Nation-building is not just a humanitarian concern, but a critical national security priority that should be on par with war-fighting… The report argues that the United States must acknowledge that ‘War-fighting has two important dimensions: winning the war and winning the peace.’” Co-chairs of the Task Force are former national security advisors Samuel R. Berger and Brent Scowcroft.
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A10 - Strengthening U.S. Public Diplomacy Requires Organization, Coordination, and Strategy
Johnson, Stephen; Helle C. Dale, and Patrick Cronin
Heritage Foundation, August 5, 2005, Backgrounder #1875
"The final report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States said that America’s biggest failure leading to the events of September 11, 2001, was a lack of imagination. After the collapse of the Soviet Union, terrorist dangers were hardly mentioned as priorities in America’s policy debates. Likewise, leaders in both the legislative and executive branches considered public diplomacy (PD) a Cold-War relic in the absence of a powerful adversary." Stephen Johnson is Senior Policy Analyst for Latin America in the Douglas and Sarah Allison Center for Foreign Policy Studies, a division of the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies, at The Heritage Foundation, and Helle C. Dale is Director of the Allison Center. Patrick Cronin is the Senior Vice President and Director of Studies and Executive Director of the Hills Governance Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies.
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A11 - The "War on Terror" in Historical Perspective
Robert, Adams
Survival, Summer 2005, v47, #2, pp101-130
"Despite its strengths and electoral appeal, the U.S. doctrine on the ‘War on Terror’ takes too little account of the history of the subject. The struggle should be presented, not just as a fight against evil or as a defence of freedom, but also as a fight against tragically erroneous ideas. An important aim must be the relegation of terrorists to a status of near-irrelevance as longstanding grievances are addressed and peoples can see that a grim terrorist war of attrition is achieving little and damaging their own societies." Adam Roberts is Montague Burton Professor of International Relations at Oxford University and a Fellow of Balliol College. Order Article
A12 - Watching al-Jazeera
Lynch, Marc
The Wilson Quarterly, Summer 2005, v29, #3, pp36-46
"The Arab satellite television station al-Jazeera is the enemy, or so Americans are told: ‘jihad TV,’ ‘killers with cameras,’ ‘the most powerful ally of terror in the world.’ This consensus is all the more remarkable given how few of the critics speak Arabic or have ever actually watched al-Jazeera. But the truth is, in its urgent desire to promote democracy and other reforms in the Arab world, al-Jazeera shares important aspirations with America." The author argues that al-Jazeera, though no friend of U.S. foreign policy, is perhaps the single most powerful ally America can have in pursuit of the broad goal of democratic change in the Middle East. Marc Lynch is an associate professor of political science at Williams College. Fulltext
A13 - Islamic Extremism: Common Concern for Muslim and Western Public Support for Terror Wanes Among Muslim Publics
Pew Global Attitudes Project, July 14, 2005
"Concerns over Islamic extremism, extensive in the West even before this month's terrorist attacks in London, are shared to a considerable degree by the publics in several predominantly Muslim nations surveyed... Nonetheless, the polling also finds that while Muslim and non-Muslim publics share some common concerns, they have very different attitudes regarding the impact of Islam on their countries. Muslim publics worry about Islamic extremism, but the balance of opinion in predominantly Muslim countries is that Islam is playing a greater role in politics – and most welcome that development... In non-Muslim countries, fears of Islamic extremism are closely associated with worries about Muslim minorities. Western publics believe that Muslims in their countries want to remain distinct from society, rather than adopt their nation's customs and way of life." Fulltext
A14 - What's in a Name? "War on Terror" Out, "Struggle Against Extremism" In
Holmes, Kim R.
Heritage Foundation, WebMemo #805, July 26, 2005
"Recently, top officials of the Bush Administration have changed the way that they are talking about terrorism. They have stopped talking about a “war on terrorism.” Thinking it too narrowly defined, Administration officials now speak of a “struggle against global extremism.” Secretary of Defense Rumsfeld describes America’s policies as a “global struggle against the enemies of freedom, the enemies of civilization.” Although all this may seem to be merely playing with words, this change is in reality something much more important: It is a clear-headed change of definition of America’s long-range strategic aims. It may not alter U.S. tactics or goals in the short run but could, over time, have a profound effect on the way Americans think about the current conflict against radical Islamic terrorist groups." Kim R. Holmes, Vice President, Foreign and Defense Policy Studies, and Director, Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies. Fulltext
A15 - The UN’s Unnecessary Crisis
Berdal, Mats
Survival, Autumn 2005, v47, #3, pp7-32
“As heads of state and government prepare to mark the 60th anniversary of the UN with a meeting in New York in September 2005, the sense of crisis and uncertainty, that has surrounded the world body since the start of the war in Iraq ,is still very much present. The enduring nature of the crisis has contributed to the widely held impression – both mistaken and profoundly unhelpful – that a truly critical moment in the history of the organization has been reached. And that ‘make’ or ‘break’ decisions must be made this year.” Mats Berdal is professor of security and development in the Department of War Studies at King’s College, London. Order Article
A16 - Israel and UN Reform
Suzanne Nossel
Dissent, Summer 2005, v52, #3, p23+
The isolation of Israel at the UN has strained the US-UN relationship and undercut the legitimacy of the global body in the eyes of many Americans. Here, Nossel discusses how UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan is seeking to restore the UN's credibility after an era of scandal and paralysis. Suzanne Nossel was Deputy to the Ambassador for UN Management and Reform at the U.S. Mission to the United Nations from 1999 to 2001 and is currently an executive at a media company in New York. Fulltext
A17 - The Atomic Bomb and the End of World War II: A Collection of Primary Sources
Burr, William, ed.
The National Security Archive, National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 162, posted August 5, 2005
”This book contains 77 declassified US government documents on the atomic bomb and the end of the war in the Pacific theater of operations. As the site notes, ‘Interested readers can see for themselves the crucial source material that scholars have used to shape narrative accounts of the historical developments and to frame their arguments about the questions that have provoked controversy over the years.’ As with previous electronic briefing books, each document is complemented by a brief statement of its importance and general relevance to this overall theme. Additionally, there are notes that contain detailed bibliographic information of external sources used to expand on the details for each document.” Dr. William Burr is Senior Analyst at the National Security Archive, he also directs the Archive's nuclear history documentation project. Thomas Donnelly is resident fellow in defense and national security studies at the American Enterprise Institute and former editor of Army Times. Fulltext
A18 - Bearing the Burden
Donnelly, Thomas
The Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, July/August 2005, v61, #4,
pp50-63
” The use of atomic weapons did not bring a world without war, but it did bring to an end the most lethal conflict in human history, during which two fascist regimes employed a variety of ingenious methods to systematically and barbarically destroy tens of millions of their fellow men. Thank God, again, for the atomic bomb--and for Harry Truman's willingness to bear the burden of using it. And if I had been in Truman's place? I hope I would have made the same decision to shorten the agony that was World War II in the Pacific. Having found the bomb, I would have used it.”
"With each passing decade, the anniversary of the atomic bombings provokes a debate over whether the United States made the right choice. A far more difficult task is to assume personal responsibility. The Bulletin sought out noteworthy thinkers with backgrounds in history, theology, physics, and politics and posed a single, provocative question: If the decision had been yours alone to make, would you have dropped the bomb?" Thomas Donnelly is resident fellow in defense and national security studies at the American Enterprise Institute and former editor of Army Times. This essay is part of a Bulletin roundtable that includes responses from: Martin E. Marty, Pervez Hoodbhoy, Thomas Donnelly, Robert L. Gallucci, Gar Alperovitz, Richard B. Frank, Mary Palevsky, and Hiroshima Mayor Tadatoshi Akiba. Fulltext
A19 - All Weapons of Mass Destruction Are Not Equal
Macfarlane, Allison
Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MIT Center for International Studies, The Audit of Conventional Wisdom, July 2005, 6p.
”In the United States, weapons of mass destruction have become the bête noir of the 21st century. They are now the justification for pre-emptive war, for an expansion of the cold war nuclear arsenal, and for the spending of billions of dollars on offensive and defensive measures. Since significant portions of U.S. foreign and domestic policy are based on this categorization, it is high time to reflect on whether these weapons pose such a lethal threat. The United States has based recent nuclear weapons targeting policy on the concept of a broadly conceived WMD threat, equating nuclear weapons with biological and chemical ones. Moreover, the United States is still involved in a war in Iraq that it waged in large part because of the WMD threat. The United States spends $7 billion on biodefense but less than $2 billion preventing a nuclear attack. These developments beg the question: are biological and chemical weapons really as threatening to the United States as nuclear weapons?” Allison Macfarlane is a Research Associate with the Security Studies Program at MIT and an expert on nuclear weapons proliferation and nuclear waste management and disposal. Fulltext
Countries/Regions:
A20 - Corruption and Foreign Aid in Africa
Werlin, Herbert H.
Orbis, Summer 2005, v49, #3, pp517-527
"A 2004 World Bank report on corruption noted that bribery has become a trillion-dollar industry, causing far more wealth to flow from poor countries to rich countries than these poor countries receive in foreign aid." Herbert Werlin depicts the extent of corruption in Africa and offers proposals for its correction. Until this social disease is contained, all the current projects to increase foreign aid to Africa will come to naught. Herbert H. Werlin is an independent consultant in College Park, Maryland Order Article
A21 - How to Nation-Build: Ten Lessons from Afghanistan
Khalilzad, Zahmay
The National Interest, Summer 2005, #80, pp19 -28
For three and a half years, the US has been engaged with the Afghan people in an ambitious program of state building. Here, Khalilzad relates that, as the president's special envoy and as ambassador to Afghanistan during the past 17 months, he saw that a nation wracked by a quarter century of occupation and internal conflict can lay the foundation upon which democratic society can be constructed. Here, he presents the lessons and the factors that contributed to the country's success. Zalmay Khalilzad is special presidential envoy and U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan. Fulltext
A22 - India and a Two-Track Policy to Combat Nuclear Proliferation: Guidelines for Congress To Balance Regional Security with Nonproliferation
Spring, Baker
The Heritage Foundation, July 29, 2005, WebMemo #810
The recently announced partnership between the United States and India implies “a significant change in U.S. nuclear nonproliferation policy because India is not a signatory to the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty (NPT) and openly admits to possessing a nuclear weapons capability. By so engaging India, the U.S. establishes a second track towards nuclear cooperation. It will be up to Congress to ensure that this new policy carefully balances the need for nuclear stability in regions that contain de facto nuclear powers with the preference for global nonproliferation. … At this point, Congress’s best option is to establish broader guidelines for how it will respond to the Bush Administration’s forthcoming requests for modifications of existing law.” Baker outlines seven guidelines in his article. Baker Spring is F. M. Kirby Research Fellow in National Security Policy in the Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for International Studies at The Heritage Foundation. Fulltext
A23 - U.S. Foreign Policy and the Future of Democracy in Iran
Milani, Abbas
Washington Quarterly, Summer 2005, v28, #3, p41-, 16p
"U.S. policy toward Iran has reached a crucial crossroads. Since the early 1970s, Washington has developed policies that lasted only until the next crisis, forcing the United States into a reactive mode, at the mercy of events and their subsequent tactical responses. The key to solving Iran's nuclear problem is the fate of the country's democratic movement. To assist this movement, a successful US strategy must include these seven pillars and have patience for the Tehran regime to collapse under its own inconsistencies.” Abbas Milani is director of Iranian studies at Stanford University and co-director of the Hoover Institution’s Iran Democracy. Order article
A24 - Iranian Fission. Time to Take Down the Terror Masters in Tehran
Michael A. Ledeen
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, August 1, 2005
"...One grows tired of learned disquisitions about the inner workings of various Muslim subgroups, as one tires of the false generalizations –‘Islam is a religion of peace’ or ‘Islam is a religion of war.’ (Both are true) -- rather than seeing the region plain. The (Shiite) Iranians, in league with the (Sunni) Saudis and Syrians employ thousands of terrorists, suicide and other, from all over the Middle East, of various religious "conviction." It all has a religious/ideological overlay -- as did fascism and Communism -- but this is an old-fashioned war (spare me from "struggles against extremism"). The terror masters and their foot soldiers are trying to kill us and our allies, in order to remove us from the region, thereby extending the lifespan of their tyrannical regimes." Michael Leeden is a former consultant to the NSC and to the U.S. State and Defense Departments. Fulltext
Iraq
A25 - Iraq: Drafting the Constitution
Lombardi, Clark B. (Interviewed by Bernard Gwertzman)
Council of Foreign Relations, August 18, 2005
Iraq is finishing the draft of its constitution and about to hold elections in December. The 71-member committee in charge of writing the constitution says most of the document has already been drafted, but several disputes among Iraq's Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish communities remain unresolved. Among them are issues of regional autonomy, the role of Islam, women's rights, and the distribution of Iraq's oil wealth. But even with a Constitution, Islamic Law expert Clark B. Lombardi, predicts that Iraq will still be facing major crises. Fulltext
A26 - Iraq's Constitutional Conundrum
Brown, Nathan
Carnegie Endowment, August 31, 2005, 5p
The Iraqi Parliament was presented with a draft of the country’s permanent constitution on August 28, almost two weeks after the original August 15 deadline. In his latest commentary on Iraq’s constitutional process, Nathan Brown analyzes the legal shortcomings of the process, the failure to achieve consensus, and the impact of the draft on the prospects for peaceful political reconstruction in Iraq. Fulltext
A27 - Prosecuting Saddam Hussein
Bassiouni, M. Cherif
Foreign Policy, July/August 2005, online edition
Saddam Hussein may be tried for his crimes as soon as September. In a special Web Exclusive, FP looks at the work Iraqis must do between now and then: How can the Iraqis avoid a show trial? Will the trial heal or reopen the wounds of the Saddam era? And how can Iraqi judges fight the public perception that they are no more than puppets of the United States? To find answers to these questions, FP turned to M. Cherif Bassiouni, a leading legal scholar who has advised the Iraqi tribunal and helped train its judges. Fulltext
A28 - Public Opinion on the War with Iraq
Bowman, Karlyn H.
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research, August 19, 2005
"This study is a compilation of public opinion polls on, among other things, the build-up to and beginning of the war in Iraq, the proper use of force, achieving stability in the region and the prospect of peace, and what should be done from here on out. The study includes all of the latest polling data as well as important historical trends for comparative purposes." Fulltext
A29 - The United States Should be More Involved in Follow-Up to Israeli Withdrawl from Gaza -
Dennis, Ross
Council of Foreign Affairs, August 18, 2005, Online edition
"With the Israelis finishing their pullout from Gaza, Dennis Ross, the top U.S. diplomat in Israeli-Palestinian affairs in the George H.W. Bush and Bill Clinton administrations and currently Ziegler distinguished fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, says it is time for the United States to become deeply involved again to ensure the withdrawal does not take place in a vacuum.” Fulltext
A30 - U.S. Financial Aid To Israel: Figures, Facts, and Impact
Zunes, Stephan et al,
Washington Report on the Middle East, July 2005, Special Report, online edition
"The U.S. aid relationship with Israel is unlike any other in the world," said Stephen Zunes during a January 26 CPAP presentation. "In sheer volume, the amount is the most generous foreign aid program ever between any two countries," added Zunes, associate professor of Politics and chair of the Peace and Justice Studies Program at the University of San Francisco. This series or articles will help exploring the strategic reasoning behind the aid. Fulltext
A31 - The Key to Arab Reform: Moderate Islamists
Hamzawy, Amr
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, August 2005
"Before any significant political reform can take place in the Arab world, the United States and Europe need to begin engaging moderate Islamists, an action less thorny than it might seem
because Islamists have embraced democratic procedures and have shown a strong commitment to the rule of law. " Amr Hamzawy is a Senior Associate at Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. Fulltext
A32 - The Arab-Israeli Conflict: Toward An Equitable and Durable Solution
Miller, Aaron David
National Defense University, Institute for National Strategic Studies, Strategic Forum 215, July 2005
The author focuses on the cross-cutting pressures that Palestinian and Israeli leaders currently face in choosing their next steps, as well as the role United States can play in conducting an effective diplomacy that avoids past tendencies towards over-engagement or disengagement.
Dr. Aaron David Miller is the President of Seeds of Peace. Fulltext
A33 - Our Dangerous Muddle in North Korea
Kennelly, Daniel; Gordon Cucullu, Victor Davis Hanson, Nicholas Eberstadt, James Lilley
The American Enterprise, Jul/Aug 2005, v16, #5, pp36-46
"Last October, the Pentagon announced plans to withdraw about a third of our troops from South Korea, and reposition the rest far away from the border that divides communist North from democratic South. In the heat of eleventh-hour Presidential politics, John Kerry lambasted George W. Bush for sending a message of weakness to North Korea. In fact, it was exactly the opposite. Repositioning and trimming our troops in South Korea is a signal that we are preparing seriously to deal with the danger posed by North Korean tyrant Kim Jong Il." Averting a nightmare in North Korea." Kennelly and colleagues discuss several issues with regards to North Korea's relationship with other countries. They also suggest that South Korea, China , and the US need more toughness to avoid the possible calamity initiated by North Korean president Kim Jong Il.
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A34 - Seven Questions: Dealing With North Korea
Foreign Policy, posted July 2005, web-exclusive
“A new round of six-party talks on North Korea’s nuclear program began [recently], with many optimistic readings of diplomatic tea leaves and dissecting of statements. Don’t believe the hype, says Joel Wit, a former State Department official who negotiated with Pyongyang” in an interview with Foreign Policy. Drawing on his years of experience, he says “I’m cautiously pessimistic. I don’t expect much progress at all.” when asked for his expectations. Joel Wit is senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies and served for 15 years in the State Department in positions related to Northeast Asia and nuclear arms control. Fulltext
A35 - Learning to Live with Uncertainty: The Strategic Implications of North Korea's Nuclear Weapons Capability
O'Neil, Andrew
Contemporary Security Policy, August 2005, v26, #2, pp317-334
”This article challenges the popular assumption that North Korea's nuclear weapons capability poses a dire threat to international security. It argues that the adverse impact of North Korea's acquisition of nuclear weapons has been exaggerated and that pessimistic accounts of the strategic implications of this capability have overlooked the strong status quo bias inherent in North Korea's worldview. These accounts have also glossed over the primarily defensive motives underpinning Pyongyang's quest for nuclear weapons. There are dangers attached to North Korea's nuclear capability, especially the possible transfer of fissile material to terrorist groups or rogue states, and the effect it may have in spurring regional neighbours to reassess their non-nuclear status. Contrary to common assumptions, however, the idea that a nuclear-armed North Korea is determined to foment regional instability and challenge the strategic status quo in East Asia is not supported by a close reading of Pyongyang's motives and worldview. The behaviour and statements of the regime suggest that the DPRK is predisposed to accept the logic of deterrence in its relationship with the U.S.. As long as Washington maintains an active and robust posture of extended strategic deterrence on the Korean peninsula, the regime in Pyongyang will continue to be dissuaded from initiating the use of nuclear weapons against other regional states.” Order article
A36 - In a Ruined Country: How Arafat destroyed Palestine
Samuels, David
Atlantic Monthly, September 2005, v296, #2, pp60-83
“The war for Jerusalem that began after Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Barak's failed peace offer at Camp David in the summer of 2000 has become the subject of legends and fables, each one of which is colored in the distinctive shades of the political spectrum from which it emerged: Yasir Arafat tried to control the violence. Arafat was behind the violence. Arafat was the target of the violence, which he deflected onto the Israelis. Depending on which day of the week it was, any combination of these statements might have been true. In his patchwork uniform, which combined a military tunic with a traditional kaffiya, the Old Man, as those who had known Yasir Arafat the longest called him, was a strange and defiantly contradictory person…” This detailed article by David Samuels is based not simply on documentary records but also on a series of interviews with Arafat companions following his death. Fulltext
A37 - State, Law, Civil Society and Islam in Contemporary Turkey
Yilmaz, Ihsan
The Muslim World, Jul 2005, v95, #3, pp385-412
"There are different Islams in Turkey from a sociological perspective and that these different official and unofficial Islams in the country coexist. Here, the author discusses the secularization of Turkey and argues that despite the rhetoric, there has always been an official version of Islam in Turkey called Lausannian Islam. He focuses on the 2 versions of the unofficial Islam: the political Islam of the Milli Gorus movement and the Anatolian Islam of the faith-based Fethullah Gulen movement. Ihsan Yilmaz, University of London. Fulltext
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