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Sadanand Dhume, The Australian | July 30, 2010 The documents posted by Wiki Leaks show that Pakistan continues to double deal the West. ++ While accepting aid money, Islamabad persists in “using militant Islamists to further its ideological and strategic goals.” ++ The United States needs to increase pressure on the Pakistani military to sever its ties to the Taliban. ++ In the long term, ...More

Editorial, The Washington Post | July 29, 2010 Clearing insurgents is only the first step in ridding Afghanistan and Pakistan of terrorism. ++ If economic opportunities are not made available, local populations will continue to turn to the Taliban and al-Qaeda. ++ The current congressional bill on Reconstruction Opportunity Zones, which would reduce the U.S. tariff on textile exports from the two countries, ...More

Jean-Jacques Mevel, Le Figaro (in French) | July 28, 2010 With new sanctions in place, the European Union is attempting to get Iran back to the table for talks on its nuclear program. ++ "A new diplomatic window of opportunity" is opening at the end of Ramadan, as EU High Representative Catherine Ashton plans to meet with the Iranians in Istanbul. ++ Up to now, Iranian proposals have constituted no more than a smoke ...More

Owen Matthews, Newsweek | July 27, 2010 Western opinion holds that Turkey is turning East, but Ankara is actually pursuing a policy centered on its economic and geographic power. ++ Europe remains a key goal, but Turkey has diversified its alliances and no longer depends on the will of its American and European partners. ++ It has isolated the PKK by cultivating relationships with its neighbors, and ...More

Editorial, The New York Times | July 26, 2010 The International Monetary Fund needs to increase its available resources and adjust its policies to new economic realities. ++ Flexible and precautionary credit lines that guarantee some measure of protection against the aftershocks of a global financial crisis are a step in the right direction. ++ The Fund’s credibility would be enhanced in the ...More

Vladimir Muchin, Nezavisimay Gazeta (in Russian) | July 26, 2010 Following the New START Treaty with the United States, the "Shkval" torpedo is more important than ever to Russian naval defense. ++ Key components are manufactured in Kyrgyzstan, where control over the factory has become an important bargaining chip of interim President Otunbayeva's dealings with Moscow. ++ Yet the Kyrgyz are dragging their feet. ++ This may ...More

Editorial, Times of India | July 23, 2010 Even though the Afghanistan Conference resolved to withdraw troops by 2014, the Kabul government has little incentive to take on the responsibility "as long as NATO remains the guarantor of Kabul's security." ++ However, the handover should not be put off indefinitely. ++ India and Pakistan should promote the peace process by cooperating more on the Afghan ...More

Sam Nunn, Igor Ivanov & Wolfgang Ischinger| July 22, 2010 North America, Europe, and Russia should work together to create a Euro-Atlantic security system based on trilateral missile-defense cooperation. ++ Political rather than technical obstacles have been the main stumbling blocks. ++ The design and implementation of the new security architecture must be based on a joint assessment of threats and shared equally by ...More

Taras Kuzio, Georgian Daily | July 21, 2010 The fact that Georgia has had a more successful democratic transition than the Ukraine may be a generational matter. ++ Members of Saakashvili's administration are on average ten years younger than most Ukrainian politicians. ++ To emulate the Georgian successes, members of the Ukrainian opposition need a crash course in English and economics. ++ It would also ...More

Jackie Ashley, The Guardian | July 20, 2010 David Cameron’s first visit to the White House will be accompanied by the usual pomp and circumstance, but the special relationship between the UK and the US is devoid of any real substance. ++ Obama and Cameron do not share common ground on domestic or economic issues, and the UK has lost its significance in trade to the EU. ++ With the legacies of 9/11 ...More