Scowcroft Center Commentary, Analysis, & Reports

New NATO Concept a Chance for Europe to Recommit to Alliance

By Jan Techau

Yesterday, NATO officially kicked off the process of drafting a new strategic concept for history’s most enduring military alliance. Officials, soldiers, think tankers, and strategists from all 28 member states convened in Brussels to ponder ideas on how to make the Atlantic Alliance fit for its seventh decade in business.

NATO: Relic or Revitalized?

By Harlan Ullman

Yesterday in Brussels, NATO kicked off a yearlong process to draft a new strategic concept. The last strategic concept was adopted a decade ago at the Washington Summit marking the alliance’s 50th anniversary, when NATO was at war in what turned out to be a 78-day bombing campaign to stop Serbia and its autocratic leader […]

Honduras Coup and America’s Democracy Policy

By Bernard Finel

Latin America watchers have been transfixed over the past week with developments in Honduras.  At first glance, the issue is simple: a group of armed thugs overthrew a democratic regime.  This sort of military coup — which echoes the regimes of cliched colonels in sunglasses — was thought to have been relegated to the Latin […]

Time to Shoot Down Missile Defense

By Don Snow

President Obama is in Moscow meeting with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, with the shadow Vladimir Putin not far from their sight. The highlight of the talks, which are aimed at improving relations with Russia typically soured by the Bush administration, center on nuclear arms agreements, which were at the heart of Cold War negotiations and […]

Russia and the West: Mindset, not Reset

By Jeffrey Lightfoot

When President Obama arrives in Moscow today for his much-anticipated summit with President Medvedev, he should temper his expectations. A dramatic improvement in the West’s relationship with Russia is unlikely to take place unless the “reset” moment is accompanied by a change in mindset from both parties.

Open Letter to President Obama on Russia

By Damon Wilson

Dear Mr. President:   You have stated your intention to forge a positive relationship between the United States and Russia. We write on the eve of your summit meeting with President Dmitry Medvedev to express our belief that such a relationship requires a commitment by both countries to democracy and human rights and to urge […]

Admiral Timothy Keating Event Transcript

  FRED KEMPE:  This is terrific.  There are more stars and bars in this room than we usually have.  Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the Atlantic Council, I’m Fred Kempe, president and CEO.  And welcome to this evening’s commander series with the commander of the United States Pacific Command, Admiral Timothy Keating. I know many […]

Manas Air Base to Stay Open After All

By James Joyner

Until yesterday, it seemed a fait accompli that the vital NATO supply base in Krygyzstan was closing, owing to a combination of geopolitics and a strong bid by Russia.  Well into the eleventh hour, however, access to Manus Air Base was saved.

China-India Relations: An Unresolved Border and 60,000 Troops Deployed

By Damien Tomkins

When two countries have gone to war over an unresolved border and one of these announces the deployment of 50,000-60,000 troops and nuclear-capable combat planes along this border, the reader would likely expect the second country to sit up and take notice.  This is exactly what happened over the last month between India and China.

New Afghanistan Commander Limits Predators

By James Joyner

The new commander of forces in Afghanistan has announced he will be much more cautious than his predecessors in using Predators in situations that put civilian life at risk.

Pakistan’s Summer of Chaos

By Shuja Nawaz

As the summer solstice draws near, it seems as if all the evil spirits are coming out to haunt the body politic of Pakistan. The country faces an escalation in hostilities on many fronts. And unlike in the past, when sweet deals and concessions could woo militants and protesters into silence, this time no amount […]

Knowing When to Act

By Harlan Ullman

If you are president of the United States, how do you know when things are going wrong, and what to do about it, especially when the evidence is hidden in clear sight? These may be the toughest questions and conditions any president will face. Given the extraordinary pace with which the Obama administration has attacked […]

A Constructivist Take on the Strait

By Max Tsung-chi Yu

In the 2007 article “Why We Fight over Foreign Policy” in the Hoover Institution journal Policy Review, Henry Nau writes: “Why do we disagree so stridently about foreign policy? An easy answer is because leaders lie about events aboard.”

The Americanization of Afghanistan Continues

By James Joyner

NATO Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer and senior American officials have sought for months to allay European fears about an “Americanization” of the mission in Afghanistan.  Today, however, it became all but a fait accompli.

Challenges for U.S.-India Relations

By Habeeb Noor

India’s recent elections demonstrated the resiliency of its democratic system, bringing to power a stable and strong government for the first time in over a decade.  Manmohan Singh was given a decisive mandate to continue as prime minister, while the Communists and various regional parties that had previously stalled reforms were rendered insignificant.

French NATO Return: Beginning of a Beautiful Friendship?

By Steven Kramer

To what extent does French return to full NATO membership reflect a paradigm shift of French grand strategy?  After all, Charles de Gaulle’s withdrawal of French forces from NATO’s integrated military command (and his eviction of NATO headquarters from France) was the culmination of a fundamental policy reorientation begun in 1958 and a critical factor […]

Time for Peace in Kashmir

By Mansoor Ijaz

India’s recent elections have ushered in a historic opportunity to address the issue of Kashmir. Over 417 million voters turned out to give the world’s most populous democracy its most stable government ever. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the affable economist-turned-politician, should now turn Congress’s election mandate into an impetus for making unprecedented decisions on national […]