United States and Canada

Interventionism Run Amok

By Celeste Ward Gventer, Foreign Policy

From Celeste Ward Gventer, Foreign Policy:  Obama has just declared preventing mass atrocities to be a "core national security interest" of the United States. Americans, watch your wallets.

Under NATO’s Flag: An Interim Assessment of the Mission In Libya (Part Two)

By Vladimir Socor, the New Atlanticist

From Vladimir Socor, the New Atlanticist:  Among European allies, many welcomed the chance to restore NATO’s credibility in Libya, after a long drawn-out failure in Afghanistan.

Moscow warns NATO against extending missile shield

By AFP

National Security in an Age of Austerity

By Kurt Volker, the New Atlanticist

From Kurt Volker, the New Atlanticist:  We need a realistic strategy for what to do — how to advance our national security within our means. Not simply to retrench, not simply to keep pouring on the gas. Take Afghanistan: As U.S. ambassador to NATO, I argued strongly for more troops and more Allied contributions in […]

How U.S. sanctions can promote human rights in Russia

By the Editors of the Washington Post

From the Editors of the Washington Post:  Last month the Obama administration disclosed it had taken a significant step toward balancing its policy toward Russia, which has focused heavily on striking deals with the authoritarian regime of Vladi­mir Putin and Dmitry Medvedev while mostly ignoring issues of corruption and human rights.

Russian Reset a Cold War Restart

By Ariel Cohen, the National Interest

From Ariel Cohen, the National Interest:  [Russia’ Ambassador to NATO Dmitry] Rogozin also raised the issue of legally binding “reliable assurances” that a NATO system does not pose a threat to Russia’s Strategic Rocket Forces.

Why the Arab Spring still needs America’s help

By Jim Hoagland, the Washington Post

From Jim Hoagland, the Washington Post:  Grinding civil war in Libya, a state-organized bloodbath in Syria and troubling stumbles in Egypt’s march to democracy dim the luster of Arab revolts that began the year in glory. This Arab summer is a political season of reaction and reversal.