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H1 FT MAGAZINE: Trouble ahead By Strobe Talbott When taking the oath of office on January 20 2009, the next president of the United States will be assuming responsibility for the most difficult, dangerous and complex set of foreign-policy challenges ever to face a newcomer to the White House.

Los Angeles Times Huckabee, Obama face new hurdles in next vote The Iowa winners' message of change might not play as well in Tuesday's New Hampshire primaries.

FT Editorial The first caucus of the revolution The Iowa results show a longing for change. The candidates must respond and articulate what kind of country they wish America to be

Joe Klein / Time: Obama's Historic Victory

Washington Post Editorial What Do They Do Next? Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama both say they can bring red and blue states together. But how?

Analysis: Iraq's '08 fate -- Basra, Kirkuk United Press International

Asia Times Time for a u-turn in US's Iran policy The United States' Iran policy has become virtually a non-policy in the last year of Bush's presidency. Efforts to isolate, curb and punish Tehran have foundered, while Iran forges closer bonds with China and Russia. The test is whether the US's containment policy can be recast along the lines of China or Russia containment and, in turn, lead to normal relations with Tehran. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi

Jim Lobe More Signs of Iran Detente …From Petraeus

CFR Washington’s Diplomatic Thaw

New York Times Editorial The Political Road Ahead Some powerful political currents were on display in Iowa, starting with a yearning for change and inspirational leadership among Democrats

Nudged by Bush, Israel Talks of Removing Illegal Outposts

Saturday Vote Tests Georgian Leader

Guardian Leader Obama's wonderful journey US election: On the Democratic side, the next presidential candidate will now be either a black man or a woman - and the chances have risen that it will be Mr Obama

The Times Leader Des Moines to Washington DC The message that Bush should take from the mood expressed in Iowa

Independent Leading article: One state down and a presidency still to play for

The Candidates on Iraq
Newsweek

Le Monde Rupture américaine

Der Spiegel Elections in Georgia: Saakashvili's Grip on Power May Tighten

IHT Paying for virtual oil By WILLIAM PFAFF What is the real price of oil, as determined by extraction, treatment and shipping?

Strategic Studies Institute Jordanian National Security and the Future of Middle East Stability W. Andrew Terrill

FT Gazprom bids to strengthen gas grip with 'mind-boggling' Nigerian reserves grab

Iranian bank shrugs off cost of US sanctions

US News & World Report: The Battlefield-Pentagon Rift Over Troop Pullouts

Stratfor Pakistan, Bhutto and the US-Jihadist Endgame

CFR Segal: China Policy for the Next Administration

WP Anti-Detection Skills Operatives use low-tech tricks to communicate, making life difficult for authorities who hope technology would give them the upper hand

The Mideast Axis of Destabilization BESA
A 6-page Israeli paper on the activities of the Iran-Syria-Hizbollah-Hamas alliance

MESH Can the Middle East sustain democracy?

The Myth of Sectarianism - The Policy is Divide to Rule

Security Sector Reform in the Arab Region: Challenges to Developing an Indigenous Agenda Arab Reform Initiative

• 'What America Must Do: Steady as She Goes' by Fouad Ajami, Foreign Policy (excerpt)

Intrepidity… And Character Development within the Army Profession. Authored by Dr. Don M. Snider.

Seven Questions: Gen. David Petraeus on Winding down the Surge

International Trade Statistics, 2007 (PDF; 8.4 MB) Source: World Trade Organization (via UN Pulse)

H2 The Growing Economic Relations between Iran and Turkey
Middle East Media Research Institute

Boston Globe Editorial Turkish fright

Paul Taylor Turkey Must Move Fast to Avoid EU Setbacks

FT MAGAZINE: A tight spot ''Bosphorus Battles'' by Thomas de Waal Istanbul’s residents seem resigned to the inevitability of a disaster as they watch thousands of heavy oil ships traverse the twists of the Bosphorus

The Duel in Islam By: Amir Taheri | New York Post For centuries, Iran and the Ottoman Empire, of which modern Turkey and Egypt were parts, fought for influence in the Muslim world. That changed when Turkish westernizers under Kemal Ataturk and their Iranian counterparts under Reza Shah Pahlavi decided that religion was the cause of their nations' decline

Dünyadan teröre lanet, Türkiye'ye destek

FT Death toll from Turkey blast rises to five

LEX COLUMN: Iraqi oil dreams

Daily Kos: Sibel Edmonds Case: Benazir and The 'Islamic' Bomb

Turkey shelves accession to world criminal court

Trouble in Kirkuk Either the Kurds will control Kirkuk through a referendum they've spent five years ensuring they'll win, or they will declare war, and fight until they get the city back.

toohotfortnr: And it was in his name artillery lit the sky on fire: "

Kurdistan or Barbaristan?
Kurdish Aspect - Kamal Mirawdeli describes how America's policy in Kurdistan transformed Kurdish society into a closed totalitarian dynasty

Turkish warplanes perform lengthy surveillance over Kandil mountains

[TERRORISTS’ LAST GASP] New deadly blasts averted after Diyarbakır attack

ABD’nin dikkatini çekmek vakit alıyor

Kurdistan Regional Government On behalf of the entire Kurdistan Regional Government I want to express my shock and outrage at the brutal terrorist attack which occurred yesterday in ...

CSM Car bomb in Turkey kills five with outlawed party suspected

Attack Thursday reinforces pressure on Turkish authorities to continue bombing of positions of outlawed Kurdish Workers Party (PKK) in northern Iraq making Iraqi political reconciliation more difficult.

Turkish police detain 40 in Hizbullah raid -agency | Reuters

Turkish warplanes perform lengthy surveillance over Kandil mountains

New Year Message From Kurdish Freedom Fighters in Turkey.

Gül calls for comprehensive fight against terrorism

Turkish police detain 4 people in Diyarbakir attack

Bomb attack strengthens Turkish resolve

US reaffirms solidarity with Turkey following Diyarbakır attack

Dünya ‘çocuk katilleri’ dedi

Gül Is Heading to Which Washington? By: Cengiz Çandar | Turkish Daily News

Sunni Leader Says No Coalition in Iraq Will Succeed Without Kurds

Türkiye Doğu'ya şöyle bir baksa... FEHMİ HUVEYDİ

Google News KurdishMedia Kurdish Kurdish Aspect BBC Monitoring

Iraqi Kurds Submit Lists of Demands to Premier - Website

Iraqi Kurdistan Region Minister Denies Resignation Reports

Sunni Leader Says No Coalition in Iraq Will Succeed Without Kurds

'Diyarbakır'da karınlar aç ama gönüller daha da aç' Funda Özkan

Abdülhamit Bilici Osmanlı, Araplara nasıl öğretildi?

Irak'ta Türk konvoyuna saldırı

Süleymaniye'de makinalı tüfeklerle yapılan saldırıda Türk şöför hayatını kaybetti

Metro bombacısı elden kaçırılmış

Cumhurbaşkanı Gül: ''Tanık Koruma Kanunu''nu onayladı

Bu fidanlara nasıl kıydınız!

Aynı teröristlerin işi mi

Diyarbakır bombasında Ankara bağlantısı

Büyükanıt Diyabakır'da: Bu sadece TSK'ya değil, halka yapılmış bir saldırıdır

Sivil toplum kararlı: Terör ve şiddete geçit yok

[Bombalama Hadisesine Psikalojik Bir Bakış] Eskisi kadar kolay değil

Hain saldırıyı PKK üstlendi

KYB: Türk savaş uçakları 6 saat keşif uçuşu yaptı!

Büyükanıt: İşbirlikçilerle teröristler arasında fark yok

Neçirvan Barzani, Diyarbakır'daki saldırıyı kınadı

O gün gelmez diyorlardı...
İsmet Berkan

Mehmet Kamış Terrorist threat against Diyarbakır

Eylem hazırlığındaki terör örgütünün bombaları, güvenlik güçlerine takıldı

Dağlıca'da bir ere ağır fatura

DTP: Derin provokasyon

Bianet :: Turks and Kurds Need Peace Journalism

FT LEX COLUMN: Iraqi oil dreams

Shahristani: Ready to discuss oil contracts with Kurdistan government

South Korea to continue oil project in Kurdistan despite Baghdad ...

N. Iraq oil exports stop, storage full

Iraq Awards Over 2M Bbl Kirkuk Oil In Last Tender -Official

Fever & Thirst: A Missionary Doctor Amid the Christian Tribes of Kurdistan

Its now only a matter of time before Turkey invades Kurdistan.

Iran: Watchdog Condemns Closure of Kurdish Newspaper, Jailing of Reporter

Four held over Turkish car blast

Butto'nun ardından
Suikasti sonrası Pakistan'a giden Mete Çubukçu'nun izlenimleri

Google News Greece Cyprus Turkish Cypriot Press ABHaber

Papadopulos: Müzakereler için baskı yapıyoruz

Papadopulos: Kalıcı bir çözüm üzerinde öneriler hazırlıyoruz

Talat Memnun ayrıldı

KKTC’s Talat sees no difference of opinion with Ankara

Gül'ün ABD ziyareti öncesi Rumlardan atak

Der Spiegel German Integration Debate: Far-Right NPD Praises Koch's Tough Talk on Immigration

Askerden 'A Tipi' karşılama

Dışişleri, Tatort için özür istedi

Nuh Gönültaş Almanya’da mahalle baskısı dayanılmayacak düzeye geldi –

Kazakistan, Kıbrıs Rum Kesimi'ne büyükelçi atadı; Ankara rahatsız

KKTC'de CTP'nin erken seçim önerisi

Turkey Financial News - Business and finance news from Turkey » The EU & Turkey in 2008: more of the same?

American Chronicle: Turkey and France – the future of a centuries old conflict

Sözleşmeli asistanlık projesi tartışılıyor

İntihar mı, cinayet mi? ASELSAN mühendisleri neden öldü?

Einstein’in İnönü’den ricası neydi?

Mehmetçik'e yeni piyade tüfeği

Şehitlere ’kelle’ dil sürçmesi sayılamaz

EurasiaNet Plight of Istanbul Roma Focuses Attention on Flawed Urban Renewal Plans BY NICHOLAS BIRCH Their clarinetists revolutionized Roma music and their flamboyant dancers once were featured in a James Bond film. Today, the inhabitants of Sulukule, one of the world’s oldest settled Roma communities, face eviction, as Istanbul spruces itself up for 2010, when the city will enjoy the designation as the European Capital of Culture. Officials insist the resettlement policy is benefiting those being displaced. But some Roma advocates suggest the government action is rooted in prejudice. Others say the debate exposes deeper problems with urban renewal efforts

Yurdu hızlı tren hattı sarıyor

Komisyon'dan Dink ailesine hukuk sözü

New era begins in Turkish social life with smoking ban - Turkish Daily News Jan 04, 2008

M. Ali BİRAND Başarının yerini hiçbirşey alamaz

Meclis de BBG evi gibi olacak

MKE, ürettiği ilk piyade tüfeği Mehmetçik-1'i tanıttı

Diyanet, spor kulübü kurdu; imamlar sahaya iniyor

H3 Davutoğlu'ndan CNN TÜRK'e özel açıklama

Ahmet Taşgetiren Amerika ile eşit ilişki –

Gül'ün önem verdiği gün Murat Yetkin

Köşk gözüyle YAŞ

Terör örgütü PKK'nın üstlendiği saldırıyı, DTP kınadı

Ali Bulaç PKK bilmecesi

Semih İDİZ PKK kendi kuyusunu kazıyor

Şahin Alpay Kuzey İrlanda dersleri

Okay Gönensin PKK’nın yeni stratejisi

Fikret BİLA Gül: Yaş kararları yargıya açık olmalı

RDX destekli 60 kilo A-4 patlattılar

Dağlıca'da kaçırılan askerler farklı suçlardan yargılanacak

Dağlıca baskınında şok iddia

Dağlıca’ya ömür boyu

İstihbarat paylaşımı dostluğu pekiştirdi

Ertuğrul Özkök 30 bin beşinci bölüm

[Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu] Kürtçe ve Türkçe ağıt yakan anaların sesleri yine birbirine karışmıştır

Enis Berberoğlu Devlet meydan okuyor

İsmail Küçükkaya ABD Büyükelçiliği hangi mesajı gönderdi?

İlter Türkmen 2008 yılı ne kadar riskli?

Cengiz Çandar Resmi tepkiler, gayrıresmi gerçekler

Cevdet Aşkın Diyarbakır saldırısı DTP'nin turnusol testi

Güneri CIVAOĞLU Akredite terörist PKK

Hasan CEMAL Şiddetin şiddeti beslediği kısır döngüyü kırmak!

Derya SAZAK Sivil hedefler

Genelkurmay’ın operasyon günlüğü

Mahir Kaynak Tükeniş

Gül: YAŞ kararlarıyla ilgili fikrim değişmedi

Çetelere asla müsaade etmeyeceğiz

"Afganistan'a destek sürecek"

Pamuk'la mutlaka görüşecek

Görüşme 40 dakika yemek 1 saat

İç Basında Türk Dış Politikası

Dış Basında Türkiye-AB İlişkileri Günlük Haftalık - Dış Basında Irak BBC Turkish 0700 VOA TSİ 06:30 Dış Basında Türkiye Turkish Press Review Google News Turkey Turquie Türkei TurcoPundit

Taha Kıvanç Piranha cemaati

Fehmi Koru Başbakanın elindeki anket

ALİ BAYRAMOĞLU Diyarbakır, şiddet ve siyaset…

KÜRŞAT BUMİN 'PKK şehirleri hedef seçti' mi?

Serdar Turgut Maydanoz olmak işte buna denir

AKP'nin Sırat Köprüsü M.Ali Kışlalı

Toktamış Ateş Dış politika ve kararlılık –

Serdar Turgut Anayasa yapmak

Ahmet Hakan

M Ali Birand

Cüneyt Ülsever

Oktay EkşiSiz bunlara ne diyorsunuz?

Bekir Coşkun Bu bombalar niye patlıyor?..

Yalçın Doğan O programlarda insan yok

Özdemir İnce Laikliğin güvencesi Avrupa Birliği olamaz

Searches of the opposition parties by MÜMTAZER TÜRKÖNE

MUHARREM SARIKAYA

ERDAL ŞAFAKKınamak

ERGUN BABAHAN Zirve yoluna bomba

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN

NAZLI ILICAK Karikatür ve Ata'ya 'hakaret!'

MAHMUT ÖVÜR 'Ekonomik kriz olur mu?'

YAVUZ DONATToptan ile Org. Büyükanıt ne konuştular?

Mehmet Tezkan Zehirlenmeye devam çünkü önümüzde seçim var!

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Ercan Kumcu

Sosyal güvenlikte ‘kara delik’ tartışması

OKAN MÜDERRİSOĞLU
Türkiye'de elektrik AB'den yarı yarıya ucuz

Turkey’s energy bill to exceed $40 bln in 2008

Erdal Sağlam Enflasyon yükseliyor ama Merkez faiz indirecek

2008'in ekonomi senaryoları Taner Berksoy

Deniz Gökçe Enflasyon geçen yıla göre düştü!

Elektrik ve doğalgaz zammı vergi iadesini buharlaştırdı

World trade body confident in Turkey - Turkish Daily News Jan 04, 2008

Aldi Group Is Among Bidders for Turkey's Migros, Star Reports

H4 New York Times Editorial The Political Road Ahead Some powerful political currents were on display in Iowa, starting with a yearning for change and inspirational leadership among Democrats

Nudged by Bush, Israel Talks of Removing Illegal Outposts

Saturday Vote Tests Georgian Leader

For Now, Musharraf Has Muzzled Legal Critics in Pakistan

Embracing His Moment, Obama Preaches Hope in New Hampshire

The Saturday Profile: Drawing a New Map for Journalism in the Mideast

H5 Washington Post Editorial What Do They Do Next? Mike Huckabee and Barack Obama both say they can bring red and blue states together. But how?

Anti-Detection Skills Operatives use low-tech tricks to communicate, making life difficult for authorities who hope technology would give them the upper hand

46,000 Iraqis Have Left Syria Returns Reflect Security Gains, Aid Workers Say

Dear Candidates... Sincerely, The World PostGlobal | The world's one message to America's future president.

Act II: A Change In States, Stakes Both Parties' Races Reshaped By Iowa Results

Playing Catch-Up May Be Harder This Time Short Primary Calendar Means Candidates With Momentum Could Just Keep Rolling

What Does She Do Next? By Ruth Marcus, The era of Clinton inevitability ended in school gymnasiums and community centers across Iowa Thursday night.

Romney and McCain Wage a Make-or-Break Battle

AFTER THE LOSS Clinton's Supporters Question Her Strategy

William Arkin McCain: Right on National Security, Wrong on Terrorism

A Sudden Concern About the Economy Job Woes Deepen Economic Anxiety Losses Extend Past Housing Industry

A Darker Shade Of Green Zone In Baghdad, Low Expectations Have Supplanted High Ideals

My Family's Legacy, My Nation's Duty

By Asif Ali Zardari, Benazir Bhutto sacrificed her life for a democratic Pakistan. Now, it's up to us to make it a reality.

U.N. Probe Unlikely In Bhutto Slaying No Push From Security Council

Mexican Drug Cartels Threaten Elections Groups try to influence outcomes of major elections by kidnapping and threatening candidates, Mexican attorney general says.

H6 Guardian Leader Obama's wonderful journey US election: On the Democratic side, the next presidential candidate will now be either a black man or a woman - and the chances have risen that it will be Mr Obama

Obama reshapes US presidential race

The day when Americans might have a black president is closer than they thought, writes Gary Younge

Focus switches to war and taxes in New Hampshire

Guns and feuds: how Pakistan votes

One small cotton-farming town provides a snapshot of an electorate riven by tribal infighting

Hillary is the candidate of retribution, not of hope Martin Kettle: Young voters want to end not only the Iraq war, but the US culture wars. They aim to move beyond Bush - and the Clintons

Cold comfort farm Agriculture: 'The destiny of nations,' the French gastronome Brillat-Savarin wrote about 200 years ago, 'depends on the manner in which they feed themselves'

The Democrats' new geometry

Eric Alterman US elections 2008: Barack Obama has quietted the cynics by turning Hillary Clinton's strategy of triangulation on its head

Don't hold your breath

Stephen Holmes US elections 2008: The victories of Obama and Huckabee suggest a rejection of the status quo - except when it comes to repairing American-European relations

Republican kingmakers

George Neumayr US elections 2008: Mike Huckabee's win in Iowa is a repudiation of those who say that a candidate's religion shouldn't matter

Media glare Melissa McEwan US elections 2008: Cable television pundits are shocked - shocked - that white Americans in the midwest would vote for a black man

Job worries fuel fears of US recession

Upbeat White House tries to talk up economy as oil price falls back from record highs

H7 Daily Star America and Iran have a chance to help themselves - and the region

What, me worry that Bush is coming? By Rami G. Khouri

Briefing by National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley on the President's Upcoming Trip to the Middle East

Al Hayat And The Arab Eats His Own Heart Ghassan Charbel - The world goes to the next year. It is preoccupied with budget numbers, unemployment rates, and development. It is busy with scientific research, new conquests of the mind, and with global warming. And we are preparing coffins for the victims of suicide bombs and sectarian wars. The world goes forward to the future, and the Arab is consumed by envy.

We watch and worry Al-Ahram Weekly A senior official and an informed report cast doubt over the prospects of Arab security and cooperation in 2008

Conflicting statements
Al-Ahram Weekly Things are going well or not so well, depending on who you listen to

Asia Times Rice and Gates divided over Iran
Divergent views on Iran's role in Iraq add another layer of contradictions to the George W Bush administration's increasingly murky policy on the issue. Just as the State Department is softening its approach, the military command is insisting that "Shi'ite extremists and rogue elements" are "Iranian-backed". As for Iran's so-called destabilizing role, Defense Secretary Robert Gates says "the jury is out". - Gareth Porter

Al-Qaeda to the rescue for Bush's legacy For the George W Bush administration, the best it can hope for in the wake of Benazir Bhutto's assassination is to pin blame for it on al-Qaeda and get on with old business. The dynamics of the region have changed, though. Overnight, Pakistan has replaced Iran on the US's radar screen. Moscow's cooperation in the "war on terror" could be conditional on Washington rolling back its containment policy toward Russia. And the US's ability to retain its trans-Atlantic leadership role is itself in the firing line. - M K Bhadrakumar

Back to business in Pakistan
President Pervez Musharraf's government was quick to blame al-Qaeda for the murder of Benazir Bhutto. Musharraf, however, is the chief beneficiary now that a political opposition vacuum has been created. Washington, too, can press its claims for a US military presence inside Pakistan. - F William Engdahl

Global 'War' Waged in Vain By: David Howell | The Japan Times
Benazir Bhutto almost certainly became doomed the moment it became apparent that Washington favored her candidacy in the Pakistani election.

H8 IraqSlogger Google News Iraq Iran Syria Mideastwire.com - NPR Iraq stratfor

Iraqi Al-Sadr Trend Official Warns Against Signing Agreement With US Forces

Sunni Leader Says No Coalition in Iraq Will Succeed Without Kurds

Local power in Iraq Aljazeera.com -Charles Tripp

BBC Football healing
US marine sets up a children's football league in Falluja

BBC Hezbollah sets resolution terms Hezbollah in Lebanon says it will not allow a president to be elected unless it gets a third of the cabinet seats

Iran's Al-Quds Corps Plan to Target Iraq Awakening Councils - TV

The Myth of Sectarianism - The Policy is Divide to Rule

Security Sector Reform in the Arab Region: Challenges to Developing an Indigenous Agenda
Arab Reform Initiative

Jordan: The Possibility of Transition from Electoral Rut to a "Constitutional Democratic Monarchy"

Define what the new US mission in Africa is all about By David Ignatius

McClatchy Kenya turmoil hurts African showcase, U.S. interests

As the rest of East Africa endured political and ethnic upheaval over the past decade, Kenya opened its doors to tens of thousands of refugees and built its economy into the powerhouse. Now a week of ethnically driven clashes after a disputed election has raised questions about how stable Kenya really was

H9 Ha’aretz – Amos Harel: Israel is not the only one exercising restraint

Ramon: Crackdown on outposts likely to start after Bush visit

Editorial: The IDF is an army that has ceased to function as an army

Is there room for both McCain and Giuliani? Both candidates have based their campaigns on strong leadership, personal valor, and fighting terror

New poll: Obama, Huckabee, who's better for Israel?

When Ehud Meets George By: Daniel Levy | Haaretz It would require a little hubris, but next week Ehud Olmert could help shape Middle East policy for George W. Bush's last year.

Rosner's Guest: How to raise Jewish children

Jerusalem PostIsrael: Rocket Attack on Ashkelon a "Strategic Threat" –

Hamas rejects European offer for indirect talks with Israel

Study: Israel's Image Hurt Since Gaza Pullout - Etgar Lefkovits (Jerusalem Post)

Yedioth Ahronoth National Security Council: Rocket Threat Could Worsen - Roni Sofer

Jordan seeks nuclear energy
French President Nicolas Sarkozy, King Abdullah meet in Aqaba, discuss Middle East peace process, political crisis in Lebanon, economic projects. France agrees to help Jordan develop nuclear energy program for peaceful use

'Hamas still going strong'

Hamas chief says group rejected European offer to mediate a ceasefire with Israel

Time for deal running out More Palestinians abandon two-state vision in favor of desire for bi-national state

BBC Fierce loyalty
Ariel Sharon's legacy remains strong after two years in a coma

Palestinians killed in Gaza raid Two Palestinian militants are killed in an Israeli raid in Gaza, bringing the total killed in the last 24 hours to 11.

Fayyad condemns Nablus incursion Palestinian PM Salam Fayyad criticises Israel for a large military incursion in the centre of Nablus in the West Bank.

A Fragile Peace Process in the Middle East CSS A 3-page Swiss commentary on the Middle East Conference in Annapolis

Daily Alert.org – Middle East Progress - EJC Israeli Press Review – Google News Israel - Palestine

White House Downplays Bush Mideast Trip -

H10 Christian Science Monitor

ASIA

CFR Segal: China Policy for the Next Administration

Le Monde Analyse Que ferions-nous sans la Chine ?, par Alain Faujas

In China We Trust? Lowering U.S. Controls on Militarily Useful Exports to China (PDF; 123 KB)
Source: Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control

Asia Society Video Interview on Afghanistan and Pakistan: Ahmed Rashid and Barnett R. Rubin

From Foreign Policy, when Pervez Musharraf falls, too, will American leaders finally wake up and see Pakistan for what it is, not for what they wish it to be?

From New English Review, Theodore Dalrymple on the pleasures of assassination.

Bhutto and the candidates: David Remnick on the American election and the paradox of Pakistan.

From Asia Times, an interview with Hassan Abbas on Pakistan's political future

The Pakistan-Afghanistan abyss , Paul Rogers

All Nuclear Efforts Disclosed, N. Korea Says

U.S. Calls Pyongyang's Declaration Incomplete but Says Negotiations Will Continue

H11 IHT Paying for virtual oil By WILLIAM PFAFF What is the real price of oil, as determined by extraction, treatment and shipping?

EUROPE European press review

Profiling Normative Foreign Policy: The European Union and its Global Partners
CEPS

Combating International Crime in an Enlarging European Union
Cicero Foundation

EU Must Choose Between Serbia and Kosovo, Belgrade Says By: Renata Goldirova | EU Observer
Serbia is stepping up its resistance towards the idea of Kosovo becoming independent, with the country's prime minister Vojislav Kostunica sending a clear warning to the European Union - either it backs Belgrade or Pristina.

Cracks Emerge in Slovenia's Model Facade By: Marion Kraske | Der Spiegel
Slovenia, a small country bordering the southern edge of the Alps, assumed the rotating presidency of the European Union on Jan. 1. But rampant inflation and journalists' concerns about government censorship are causing problems for Europe's model pupil.

Sarkozy issues 'report cards' to ministers

Jailed for no crime

David Cronin The EU is working on plans to detain asylum-seekers for up to 18 months - before sending them back to their home country

Der Spiegel German Integration Debate: Far-Right NPD Praises Koch's Tough Talk on Immigration

H12 RFE/RL

Daily Star Georgia's election and the lack of EU democratic commitment
By Ghia Nodia

OpenDemocracy Georgia's political race , Robert Parsons

Independent Georgia's darling of the West faces rough ride in re-election bid

FT Georgia election process labelled as ‘rigged’ On the eve of a hard-fought presidential election, opposition leaders in the former Soviet republic of Georgia have denounced the process as unfair

BBC Georgians vote in key elections Georgians vote in a snap presidential election, seen as a democracy test for the former Soviet republic.

Cross channel
Georgian TV dispute reflects bitter election battle

SPIEGEL Interview With Irakli Okruashvili: 'Saakashvili Must Resign His Position'

Saakashvili Ends Campaign with a Call to Focus on Future In a scene at times reminiscent of a televised evangelical revival, Mikehil Saakashvili ended his campaign on January 4 in a packed Tbilisi sports arena with an appeal to voters to put aside pessimism about Georgia’s troubled past and focus on a "strong Georgia" of the future.

The Putin Government's Responses to Increased Xenophobia

Google News Azerbaijan

Saakashvili, Opposition Clash Over Limits of Power in Georgia By: Sebastian Alison and Helena Bedwell | Bloomberg News
Georgia, the homeland of Soviet dictator Josef Stalin, votes tomorrow in an election whose key issue is how much power its leader should be allowed to wield

Ukraine Irks Russia With Push to Mark Stalin Famine as Genocide By: Daryna Krasnolutska and Halia Pavliva | Boomberg News
The yearlong famine, which killed at least 7 million people, is now the focus of books, exhibitions and documentaries marking the 75th anniversary. Ukraine's government is asking the United Nations to recognize the disaster as an act of genocide, worsening already frosty relations with Russia, which says the famine resulted from drought.

The Role of Digital Networked Technologies in the Ukrainian Orange Revolution
Source: Berkman Center for Internet & Society (via SSRN)

H13 The Times Leader Des Moines to Washington DC

The message that Bush should take from the mood expressed in Iowa

Where’s the meat? Iowans chose two men who have less than four years’ experience in the federal government

Michael Barone

Iowa does not always pick the winner What these voters in Iowa shared was a hunger for change, that Barack Obama is starting to feed

Gerard Baker

Wall Street Journal

H14 Financial Times Gazprom plans Africa gas grab Gazprom, Russia’s state-owned energy group, is seeking to win access to vast energy reserves in Nigeria in a move that will heighten concerns among western governments over its increasingly powerful grip on gas supplies to Europe

Editorial The first caucus of the revolution The Iowa results show a longing for change. The candidates must respond and articulate what kind of country they wish America to be

COMMENT & ANALYSIS: Inspiring and untested Man in the News: Barack Obama

International reaction to Iowa caucus

FT MAGAZINE: Trouble ahead By Strobe Talbott When taking the oath of office on January 20 2009, the next president of the United States will be assuming responsibility for the most difficult, dangerous and complex set of foreign-policy challenges ever to face a newcomer to the White House.

Georgia election process labelled as ‘rigged’ On the eve of a hard-fought presidential election, opposition leaders in the former Soviet republic of Georgia have denounced the process as unfair

Iranian bank shrugs off cost of US sanctions Unilateral sanctions by the US have cost Iran’s Bank Saderat a third of its foreign partners but its overseas operations remain profitable, says the institution’s managing director -

El sobrepaso If Italy must pit itself against an increasing wealthy Spain in a competitive, zero-sum game, then surely that is why football was invented

Clinton under pressure as Obama takes leadBattle to stop Democratic rival’s momentum

After Iowa Gideon Rachman: The democratic field narrows to two – Hillary and Obama. And Republicans Huckabee and McCain have a real shot

Jobless figures stoke fears of US recessionThe prospect of a US recession rose after new data revealed a sudden increase in unemployment and weak job creation in December, sending the dollar lower and equities sharply down

Retailing gloom rising

Clinton under pressure as Obama takes lead Hillary Clinton was planning an increased campaign role for her husband and more direct attacks on Barack Obama’s political inexperience as she battled to prevent her rival for the Democratic nomination building up an unstoppable momentum

WORLD NEWS - US ELECTION: Huckabee win no guarantee in fluid race

WORLD NEWS - US ELECTION: War vet regains momentum after return from near-dead

Huckabee's hypocrisy

By Elliot Slosar

The Times should have high-lighted inconsistencies in the candidate's positions.

Editorial Handling the CIA tapes case With a criminal investigation underway, Congress members should tread carefully

H16 American Politics

The Candidates on Iraq
Newsweek

[ANALYSIS] The Iowa Caucuses and the Atlantic Alliance

It's far too early to end the campaign

The U. S. should adopt a more sensible and more representative system of regional primaries.

Aura of victory?
Iowa makes hopefuls look that much more presidential

Why Obama won Iowa

realclearpolitics – ABC’s The Note – US News Political Bulletin

Early Bird GovExec Swamp Gas The Swamp

Why America needs Obama

Iowa's lessons for N.H.

Matthew Yglesias & Jonathan Chait: Iowa and Everything After

H17 Daily TelegraphKeeping faith with democracy Many of the things that we in Europe tend to find unattractive in the content of American democracy, says Sam Leith, are signs of what makes it so robust.

Obama and democracy are the winners Participants in the Iowa caucuses decided which candidate they wanted as their leader. It is a brutally efficient system, and one whose verdict is hard to dispute.

Obama's 'day that would never come' In the first stage of the long race for the White House, Barack Obama has scored a historic victory. But just how far can he go, asks Anne Applebaum?

'They said this day would never come'

Desire for change stops Hillary bandwagon

The secret of Obama's sweep to victory

White House a win away, says Obama Barack Obama has told voters that he will become US President if he wins the Democratic Party's New Hampshire primary.

H18 Independent The White House? Obama wins Iowa Democractic caucuses It's now a real possibility that America will have its first black president after Barack Obama’s resounding victory in Iowa.

History repeating itself: Clinton, the favourite, in a crisis

Leading article: One state down and a presidency still to play for

How Iowa plotted a polite insurgency

Georgia's darling of the West faces rough ride in re-election bid

Israel 'deviating from road map'

Huckabee's crushing win piles pressure on Romney

H19Military Intelligence Terrorism

Intrepidity… And Character Development within the Army Profession. Authored by Dr. Don M. Snider.

a review of Finding the Target: The Transformation of American Military Policy by Frederick W. Kagan;

Anti-Detection Skills

Operatives use low-tech tricks to communicate, making life difficult for authorities who hope technology would give them the upper hand

Al-Qaida recruits women bombers

a review of The Age of Total War, 1860–1945 by Jeremy Black

NSC Intelligence Directives 1950-55

nscids-50-55.pdf

In China We Trust? Lowering U.S. Controls on Militarily Useful Exports to China (PDF; 123 KB)
Source: Wisconsin Project on Nuclear Arms Control

Sustaining the Peace after Civil War. Authored by Dr. T. David Mason.

The military establishment, along with most of its blessed wars, is mostly nothing but a racket, creating a costly and dangerous form of fascism... more»

From City Journal, Rudy Giuliani on The Resilient Society: A blueprint for homeland security.

White House yet to fill homeland security vacancy

H20 Slate

An article on the green upside to $100-a-barrel oil.

In praise of $100 oil: There's a case to be made for why $100 oil is good for everyone.

International Trade Statistics, 2007 (PDF; 8.4 MB) Source: World Trade Organization (via UN Pulse)

Latest AGA White Paper Outlines the Challenges of Estimating the Social Costs of Gambling
Source: American Gaming Association

Science, Evolution, and Creationism
Source: National Academy of Sciences/Institute of Medicine (National Academies Press)

The Role of Digital Networked Technologies in the Ukrainian Orange Revolution
Source: Berkman Center for Internet & Society (via SSRN)

H21 People are not generally negative about their own lives. But more than ever they think the world is going to hell in a handbasket. Why?... more»

Last gaspers Britain, along with other western countries, is now in the late stages of the typical smoking epidemic. While a safer fix for nicotine addicts is being researched, are we now within reach of a future in which the repellent and unhealthy habit is finally eradicated ?

Dear Economist... It’s boring to order the same food as my husband. What can I do?

Down with pubsThe unpretentious American bar is more appealing than its English counterpart, which owes the vast exaggeration of its virtues to nostalgia

A measured approachYoung economists are proving that big goals such as curbing corruption can be addressed in little, randomised and quantifiable steps

The reading cure
The idea that literature can make us emotionally and physically stronger goes back to Plato. But now book groups are proving that Shakespeare can be as beneficial as self-help guides. Blake Morrison investigates the rise of bibliotherapy

Melatonin up, civilization down: An article on reading Jacques Barzun this winter.

Acrimony as Intel exits One Laptop projectChipmaker describes ‘philosophical impasse’

The future is another country It’s a gold rush for the emigration industry as more and more British citizens decide they want to leave the UK. Life abroad is less foreign than it used to be, with cheap travel and improved communications making the move less daunting

Glorious resolutions Year-long extraordinary pledges are very much in vogue, but is a complete transformation really possible?

Britain 'on verge of new Renaissance'

Policy review of state subsidy says Britain may be about to produce 'the greatest art yet created'

Interview: Culture secretary James Purnell

Are $100 Laptops Doomed?

How Sweden cut street prostitution
Sweden's law against buying sex views women involved as victims of male violence

SPORTING LIFE - SIMON KUPER: Presidential candidates jump through the hoops

Don't blame your job, the traffic or your mindless chores: Battling boredom means finding focus, living in the moment and having something to live for.

How does a copyright owner make a book downloadable on Google Books

Converting Google Book PDFs to Actual Books

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