072108f - FOREIGN PRESS REVIEW (FPR) - ‘Relevant news, views, comments and analyses for informed debate’ Compiled by Şanlı Bahadır Koç U.S. / Britain / Turkey / Magazines / Think-tanks / Blogs / Misc /Books / Quickread / Numbers / Reports - Subscribe to FPR FPR Table - H4 NYT WP GU H7 ME Isr H10 CSM IHT Eur FSU Asia H13 Times WSJ FT LAT H16 USP DT Ind H19 Mil Int Ter Wonk H21 Misc

H1 Spiegel Online: Iraq Leader Maliki Supports Obama's Withdrawal Plans

Bloomberg: Maliki Doesn't Endorse Obama Troop Withdrawal Plan

Maliki Aide's Statement Came After U.S. Call

Kevin Drum: Obama, the press and Iraq

INSS New INSS Monograph: Israel and a Nuclear Iran: Implications for Arms Control, Deterrence, and Defense

Five Questions Israel Should Ask Before Bombing Iran By: Gershom Gorenberg | The American Prospect After Iran's missile tests last week, the question of whether Israel will strike Iran preemptively is on everyone's mind. Here are five questions Israel should ponder before striking

How Obama Sees the World - Fareed Zakaria, Newsweek

William S Lind Running the Narrows

Iran must give 'serious answer' or face sanctions, Rice says

Ha’aretz – ANALYSIS / Are U.S.-Iran ties undergoing significant change?

Editorial Talking and suspecting

Crashes, Bangs & Wallops: Panic of '08 - Richard Lambert, Financial Time

Modern leadership is about what you have learned By Joseph S. Nye

Adm. Mullen: I'm Fighting Two Wars, I Don't Need a Third

Guardian Obama must curb our enthusiasm Jonathan Freedland: While the world wants to show its support for the Democrats' nominee, foreign popularity is no votewinner in the US

The not-so-winnable war against terrorism Jason Burke: Al-Qaida's unorthodox structure means the terrorist organisation is unlikely to ever face total defeat

Hopes of close cooperation between Russia and the west are now dead Max Hastings: As BP is discovering, the change of leadership at the Kremlin will not end its autocratic and nationalistic policies

U.S. Is Present, but Iran Nuclear Talks End in Stalemate International talks included one of the most important diplomatic encounters between Iran and the United States since 1979, but they ended in deadlock.

Given a Shovel, Digging Deeper Into Debt Practices that produced record profits for many banks have led millions of Americans to the brink.

The Times Q&A: The Doha Round of World Trade Organisation What is the point of the talks? | What would a deal look like? | What is the timeframe? | Why is the US election so important?

Afghanistan's pristine jihad draws in outsiders Analysts have monitored a surge in online recruitment of 'lions of Islam' to join the war through jihadist websites

The Europhiles are not the future, Mr Obama Most US Presidents share the common American view that Europe will naturally evolve into a United States of Europe

William Rees-Mogg

Jerusalem Post Rice accuses Iran of not being serious at weekend nuclear talks

Los Angeles Times A battle over 'the next war' The Pentagon long considered it an essential duty to prepare for a war of national survival. Under Robert Gates, that focus has fallen from favor. Many military officers are pushing back against Defense Secretary Gates' focus on preparing for more 'asymmetric' fighting rather than for a large, conventional conflict.

Bush's U-turn toward common sense By Graham Allison

Talks with Iran signify that the administration has finally abandoned a failed part of its foreign policy

Coal carves a place in the future of global energy As the price of oil and natural gas soars, many customers are looking to coal as an alternative fuel. That means a boon for suppliers -- and a potential bane for the environment

Food and Fuel Prices - Recent Developments, Macroeconomic Impact, and Policy Responses (PDF; 1.7 MB) Source: International Monetary Fund

Climate Change and Water (PDF; 5.1 MB) Source: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

World Trade Report 2008
Source: World Trade Organization

How Tough Would Obama Be With Iran? By: Uri Dromi | Miami Herald Sen. Barack Obama is gearing up to his Middle East trip, meant to bolster the presidential candidate's foreign policy credentials.

More Iraqi Ironies By: Victor Davis Hanson | National Review
The war was initially damned as a naked effort to grab cheap, accessible Middle Eastern oil. The war is now damned as naïve and foolish in empowering our enemies to manipulate and sell high-priced Middle Eastern oil

Cliches Won't Rescue Earth By: Hugh Cortazzi | The Japan Times
Can anything be done to eliminate the echoes of cliches and to give real substance to the results of the Group of Eight summit held this month in Hokkaido?

Contrasting goals in Iraq

WITH FRIDAY'S announcement by the White House that the United States and Iraq have agreed to set a "general time horizon" for a US troop withdrawal, it is increasingly obvious that Iraqi political leaders are calling the shots when it comes to a future role for the United States, and that President Bush has not learned anything about Iraq in ... (By Lawrence J. Korb, Boston Globe)

Iran Paper Details New US Plans for Iraq

Dear Barack Obama by Yossi Klein Halevi A letter from an anxious Israeli to the presidential candidate on the eve of his visit to Jerusalem

Wall Street Journal Europe Gets Real About America
By Bronwen Maddox
A new appreciation of shared problems.

Now Bush Is Appeasing Iran
By Michael Rubin Red lines mean nothing to this administration

Asia Times A reality check on Iran Iran is not ripe for regime change as any attack on the country would rally people around the government, not alienate them, an influential new report in the United States finds. These conclusions run counter to the neo-conservative argument, but fit with the George W Bush administration's newfound engagement, albeit limited, of Tehran. - David Isenberg

Confident Iraq Rides US Political Tides

Iraqi Media: US Building Airbase on Iran Border

Christian Science Monitor Obama's tour of Afghanistan renews debate about US role

The presidential candidate met officials and soldiers here this weekend at the start of a global tour

Obama's opportunity in the Middle East To strengthen ties, he should not ask 'Why do they hate us?' but 'Why don't they believe us?

Behind Afghanistan lies Pakistan

The US is wising up about Pakistan, where Al Qaeda and the Taliban find safe haven

Time Leaving Iraq: Debate Shifts to When

Daily Telegraph A good reason to withdraw from Iraq

Barack Obama and Gordon Brown both say they will withdraw their forces from Iraq. The statement by their Iraqi ally, Nouri al-Maliki, that he favours an early evacuation, transforms the parameters of the debate

Independent on Sunday Brown plans to withdraw troops as he backs Obama Gordon Brown prepared the ground for a historic realignment in the "war on terror" yesterday by setting out a four-point plan for withdrawal of British troops from Iraq by the end of next year

The Observer Brown sets out plan for UK pull-out from Iraq

PM declares aim to hand Basra over to local military forces as early as next year

Financial Times Brzezinski wary of repeating Soviet experience

More troops in Afghanistan ‘not the entire solution’

One simple way to predict a victor Early polls and the vast enterprise of political analysis and speculation on the US elections are worthless, says Clive Crook

Arab world doubts US approach will change As Barack Obama makes his first trip to the Middle East as the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, he is coming under greater scrutiny among Arabs, with queries about his ability to deal with the crises in their region

IMF urges Iran to step up inflation fight A report by the fund says that Tehran should raise interest rates and that growth is expected to slow, but judges that overall prospects for the economy are good

Obama pledges to focus on Afghanistan Barack Obama has seized on the spiralling violence to press his argument for the US to withdraw from Iraq and refocus attention on Afghanistan, and said he would make Afghanistan the focus of the ‘war on terror’ if elected president

In search of a more dynamic economy As more job losses, stagflation and a housing slump threaten, Edmund Phelps looks at what it will take to regain prosperity

Eurogroup must shed complacencyThe shocks that face Spain and Ireland will test the see-no-evil-hear-no-evil approach to governance, says Wolfgang Münchau

Israel's Growing Consensus: Bomb Iran by Marty Peretz

Tom Barnett KnoxNews. Globalizations means fewer wars, less death

Roubini The Coming Systemic Bust of the US Banking System: “Dead Stocks Rallying”

Al Awsat Damascus and Tehran: Don’t Leave Us the Sayyed!

Newsweek Iraq's Post-Surge Prospects

Interview: Israel's Ambassador on Pressuring Iran

Washington Post As Troops Leave Iraq, Pride Mixes With Doubt Soldiers who were part of the "surge" are heartened by security improvements they helped bring about but unsure if their hard-won gains will hold

Editorial Risk Aversion U.S. financial stability is in doubt. The candidates should tell us what they'd do about it.

Pakistan's Enduring Illusions By Jim Hoagland, The exposure of illusions does not automatically cause them to be abandoned. They become even more necessary when other alternatives look riskier.

Throwing Honesty Out the Window By Sebastian Mallaby, Wall Street is already tense; it needs gratuitous disruption like a hole in the head.

Iran Columnist Analyzes Factors Leading to Nuclear Talks in Geneva

Russia's new (and old) plan

THE NEXT US president will have to deal with an energy-rich Russia that bears little resemblance to either the vanished Soviet Union or the economic basket case of the immediate post-Soviet years. Though run by a mafia of Kremlin-connected moguls and KGB veterans, Russia has an abiding interest in cooperating with the West. Yet so far, John McCain and Barack ... (Boston Globe)

Armed With Nukes and a Vague Plan By: Simon Saradzhyan | The Moscow Times The Russian armed forces have yet to complete their transition from an expensive Cold War model designed for a global conflict against an entire bloc of hostile nations to a leaner, meaner modern war machine capable of effectively fighting not only large-scale wars, but also low-intensity conflicts with insurgents

Asia Times Russia's energy drive leaves US reeling Medvedev is pursuing Russia's energy diplomacy with a vengeance. As a former head of Gazprom he is balancing the energy giant's oil export strategy between Europe and Asia-Pacific, and, significantly, has secured the right for Gazprom to handle the entire output of Libya's gas, oil and liquefied natural gas. Medvedev has also revived with Iran the idea of a "gas cartel". Ferocious rivalries over energy security will rock the foundations of overall United States-Russia relations. - M K Bhadrakumar

Committee Continues Investigation of Widespread Electrical Problems in Iraq Source: U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Oversight and Government Reform + Letter to Robert M. Gates (PDF; 388 KB) + Memorandum for DCMA (PDF; 2 MB)+ DCMA E-Mails (PDF; 870 KB) + 2006 E-mails Requesting Fire Report (PDF; 386 KB)

H2 Turkey fears for İncirlik’s status after US-Iraq deal

Russia offers Turkey direct sale of S-400s in bid outdo US competitors

Turkish déjà vu International Herald Tribune By Soner Cagaptay

SOLİ ÖZEL İyimserlik

ÖMER TAŞPINAR
ABD, AKP ve AB İlişkileri

Guardian Turkey turns westwards

Fadi Hakura: If, as is widely expected, the Islamist AKP party is thrown out, an electoral earthquake is possible

Ankara’da enerjiye rota: Türkiye-İsrail-Hindistan

İslami popülizm AKP’ye oy kaybettirdi

Der Spiegel PKK Releases Germans: Split Remains among Kurds in Germany

"Alman dağcılar nasıl serbest kaldı?"

Kadri Gürsel Cici AKP!

Gülen'in 7 yıllık vize alma süreci

Dışişleri yeni yol haritasını belirledi

The Times Islam and the great headscarf war Turkey's increasingly Islamic Government wants to relax a ban on the Muslim headscarf as secularists fight to maintain it

Traditional head scarf unveils new rifts in Turkey Globe and Mail

Kurdistan National Congress Leader Interviewed on Relations With Turkey.

FT Investors’ ruling set for appeal in Turkey Ankara’s capital markets watchdog seeks to overturn a court decision favouring investors that claimed they were unfairly treated in the lucrative 2006 takeover of Finansbank

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR: Eligible voters are applying Atatürk's fine principle

‘Türkler endişeliyse siz de öyle olun’

İç Basında Türk Dış Politikası Dış Basında Türkiye - BBC Turkish 0700 VOA TSİ 06:30 Turkish Press Review Google News Turkey TurcoPundit

Google News Fırat News Agency KurdishMedia Kurdish Kurdish Aspect Dış Basında Irak BBC Monitoring Inter-national

Kürt sorununda çözüm Ergenekon’un bitmesinde

ABD: PKK melez bir örgüt

’Hibrit’ PKK

'Sayın Öcalan'ı dinleyin silah sussun'

Ahmet Türk DTP Genel Başkanı oldu, PM'de Şahinler ağırlıkta

ERDAL ŞAFAK DTP Kongresi'nin düşündürdükleri

Koruculuğu bırakın ihanetci olmayın

Babacan: Türkiye adı konulmamış bir arabulucu konumunda

Turkey-Iran energy deal worst thing, says Israeli minister

İranlılar Türkiye’nin artan bölgesel rolünden rahatsız

MİŞEL NEVFEL

Iranian nuclear negotiator visits İstanbul after Geneva talks

Turkey ready to invest billions in South Pars gas field Tehran Times

Koruculuğu bırakın ihanetci olmayın

Çember daralınca dağcılar serbest kaldı

Amerika ile İran'ı buluşturan zirveye Türkiye damgası

Barzani’ye sığınmış

PKK Ergenekon ilişkisini Duran Kalkan sağlıyor

DTP'de beklenen sonuç

Cevdet Aşkın Öcalan: AKP benim projelerimi uyguluyor

DTP’den Erdoğan’a Ergenekon desteği Yeniden Genel Başkan seçilen Türk, Ergenekon için Başbakan’a destek verdi.

Iraqi Kurdish Alliance Says Most Blocs Agree to Kirkuk Poll Delay ...

Kahraman astsubay

Türk: Silah hak arama aracı olmasın

Kürt sorununun çözümü, Ergenekon'un bitmesine bağlı

Iranian Kurdish Politician Discusses Global Conspiracy Against Kurds

Iraqi Kurdish Press Highlights (in Arabic) 19 Jul 08

DTP congress seeks to establish ‘umbrella party’

Emin Pazarcı 50.000 YTL’ye 23 terörist

Ömer Taşpınar Washington’s U-turn on Tehran

Fikret Ertan 'Dondur-dondur' formülünü İran düşünmeli

3 ilde operasyon: 8 PKK’lı öldürüldü

Profile: The PKK

PKK, Güneydoğu’da sıkıştı

PKK, uyuşturucu trafiğinin göbeğinde!

Google News Greece Cyprus Turkish Cypriot Press ABHaber Dış Basında Türkiye-AB İlişkileri Günlük Haftalık

Selçuk Gültaşlı AK Parti davasını Türkiye'yi destekleyenlerin önüne atıyorum

The EU will show Turkey ‘tough love’ by AMANDA AKÇAKOCA

Rauf Denktaş Sayın İlter Türkmen'e mektup

Rauf Denktaş Demek federasyon ha?

Türk karşıtlığına teslim olmayalım

Turkey, Armenia enter serious negotiations for reconciliation

Gazprom shifts position on joining in Samsun-Ceyhan pipeline

Mehmet Yılmaz Türkiye'nin diplomatik gücü

Başbakan Erdoğan'dan Kıbrıs mesajı: "Çözüm iki kesimli, siyasi eşitlik temelinde yeni ortaklıkla mümkün olacak"

Erdoğan, Talat declare red lines in Cyprus talks

Oktay Ekşi Kıbrıs da gidiyor!

ENGİN ARDIÇ Sömürgemiz Kıbrıs

Busy July in Cyprus
Cengiz AKTAR

Erdoğan Kıbrıslı Türklere egemenlik garantisi verdi

‘Unacceptable’ division of Cyprus must end, says Greek FM Bakoyannis

Mehmet Altan Ali Babacan’a bir soru...

Mensur Akgün Girit mevsimi açıldı

International trade in globalizing world and Turkey (1)

Can Football Diplomacy Bring Peace?

Denktaş'a mesaj: Lütfen, birbirimizi yıpratmayalım!

İzin mi alacaktık

Washington Times'dan Kıbrıs'ta "Kültürel Soykırım" iddiası

Erdoğan: Kıbrıs Türk Devleti kesinlikle kurulacak

Tufan Türenç Girit’in hüzünlü öyküsü

Gizli diplomasi Azerbaycan gündeminde

Tarih: Komşu Ergenekon’u

AVNİ ÖZGÜREL

German hostages freed in Turkey

Rus medyasının temmuz ve Türkiye fobisi SUAT TAŞPINAR

"Kıbrıs Türk'ü azınlık olmamıştır"

Hedo Okur Tuncay Nihat Altintop

Deniz Gökçe Genç nüfusumuz ne durumda?

Toprağın 200 metre altında bile su yok

EYLÜL'DE EKRANA KÜPEYLE ÇIKACAĞIM

Nüfusa göre İstanbul 15 vekil fazla çıkaracak

İşte İstanbul'un memleket haritası: En çok Sivaslı, en az Hakkarili yaşıyor

Türk dizileri, Arap dünyasında tüm rekorları kırıyor

FT MAGAZINE: That Was Then... This Is Now: Istanbul

Liberal aydınlar da birbirine düştü

Some Lausanne Treaty articles from Mavi Boncuk

Hangi Nazlı hangi Ilıcak?

Independent The victim of Turkey's first gay honour killing? The man who might be described as Turkey's gay poster boy will be buried today.

H3 Sabancı suikastı hakkında 'ezber bozan' iddialar

İŞTE TÜRK SEÇMENİ

Abdullah Öcalan'dan şok açıklamalar... Hüseyin Kıvrıkoğlu'nun adamları benimle görüştü.

Hüsamettin Özkan 'hayır' deyince asker Süleyman Demirel'i istedi

İşte Ergenekon ailesi

AKP davasında karar tarihi yarın belli oluyor

Bu gidişe Erdoğan mâni olabilir...

Danıştay muamması

Eski Askeri Yargıtay Başkanı Nursafa Pandar: Gönüllü vazgeçilmiş darbenin cezası yok

Cemevinde Agarta hücresi kurmuş

'Cemevi' bağlantısı iddiası

PKK Ergenekon ilişkisini Duran Kalkan sağlıyor

• Teröristbaşı Öcalan: Ergenekoncu paşalar benimle görüştü

Sıkışınca borç alarak gazeteyi çıkartıyoruz

Fitili ateşleyen bombalar

Hizbülvahşet'in büyük hamisi Ergenekon çıktı

Hrant Dink davasında komutanlar hakkında soruşturma izni çıktı

El- Kaide gibi örgütlenme

Savcı - İddianamenin arkasındayım

Yalçın Küçük'ten Atatürk'e ağır sözler

Cemevinde Agarta hücresi

Ben su damlası bile değilim

Türk solu neden susuyor?

Kürt sorununda çözüm Ergenekon’un bitmesinde

Şener'e kötü haber

Ergenekon'da kritik hafta

KAFAYA BAK

Sizin eviniz yok mu paşalar

AKP Şener’in kıymetini bilmedi, uzlaşılabilirdi

Vali Okutan’dan albaya soruşturma izni

Genelkurmay’a destek

AKP, darbe önergesini destekler

Dink cinayetinde şok soruşturma

Ergenekon'da bir operasyon da derneklere

Öldürmek düşünce özgürlüğüymüş!..

Özdalga: Social democracy has failed in Turkey

Şener'i neden övdü?

Ergenekon’da bir gözaltı daha

Son Dakika Milliyet Hürriyet Zaman

Cengiz Çandar Kapanmazsa niçin kapanmaz?

Ahmet Taşgetiren

Ruşen - Çakır Aygün bu mesajı mı taşıdı?

Enis Berberoğlu 4 ayda 4 evre veya hava neden değişti?

Taha Akyol Orduyu yıpratmak

Fikret Bila TSK’nın demokratik tepki beklentisi

Murat Yetkin Genelkurmay açıklaması üzerine Becerikli Mr. Hadley

İsmet Berkan Tarihten ders alınsaydı (5) Tarihten ders alınsaydı (6)

Fehmi Koru Öfkeyle buraya kadar

Taha Kıvanç Gül Allah gül, gül Allah gül

Şamil Tayyar Sinan Aygün dersi

Fatih Çekirge Özgeçmiş değişikliği bir mesaj mıydı?

Ali Bayramoğlu

Yasemin Çongar

Ertuğrul Özkök

Semih İdiz AKP kapatılacak, çünkü...

İhsan Dağı The roots of anti-Westernism in Turkish military (I)

Şahin Alpay Checks and balances problem of Turkish democracy

İsmail Küçükkaya
Bir haber ve doğrular

AKŞAM gündemi belirledi

[Yorum - Prof. Dr. İhsan Işık] AK Parti davasında ihtimal hesapları

Ahmet Hakan Fişlenmişim Kıymayın Hoca’ya

TAMER KORKMAZ PKK-Ergenekon

M Ali Birand

Cüneyt Ülsever

KÜRŞAT BUMİN Gladio'dan Ergenekon'a nasıl gelindi? (2) Gladio'dan Ergenekon'a nasıl gelindi? (3)

[MONDAY TALK] ÖDP leader Uras: deputies need some courage

Oktay Ekşi Kıbrıs da gidiyor!

Özdemir İnce

Mehmet Y Yılmaz Sarışın ve açık kadın başı!

Derya Sazak Plan B 3.0

Mustafa Ünal Genelkurmay'ın açıklamasındaki kritik cümle

Mümtazer Türköne Demokrasi kapatılabilir mi?

Hamdullah Öztürk "Müesses Nizam"ın Ergenekoncası

MUHARREM SARIKAYA 6. madde...

ERDAL ŞAFAK DTP Kongresi'nin düşündürdükleri

TAMER KORKMAZ

Tereddütsüz Penaltı

Eser Karakaş Koç, Sabancı ve Sinan Aygün

ENGİN ARDIÇ Sömürgemiz Kıbrıs

ERGUN BABAHANErdoğan tiran mı?

EMRE AKÖZ Ulusalcıların yanıldığı nokta

Ferai Tınç Halkın demokratik tepkisi maddesi

Umur Talu Yanlış olmasın! Düşünce özgürlüğü!

‘Türk erkeği yardıma muhtaç değildir’ ORAL ÇALIŞLAR

Abdera’da Agartus darbesi
HASAN CELAL GÜZEL

Özgür medya zor durumda
HALUK ŞAHİN

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN Türkiye'nin son bir yılı

Eser Karakaş Liberaller ve askere saldırmak

Ömer Lütfi Mete Medyadan güvenilmezi yoksa

Mehmet Metiner Ergenekoncu zihniyetle hesaplaşmak!

Mustafa Akyol Ergenekon: Kendi hapiste fikri kapatma davasında

OKUR TEMSİLCİSİ
Odağı bozuk tartışma

NAZLI ILICAK Susurluk ve Ergenekon

MEHMET BARLAS Kırılan kol bu defa da yenin içinde mi kalmalı?

Milletvekili sayılarının illere dağılımı TARHAN ERDEM

MAHMUT ÖVÜR MHP tabanı 'Ergenekon'a nasıl bakıyor?

İsmail Küçükkaya Sistemin üzerindeki ağır baskı

YAVUZ DONAT Yükselen hilal, parlayan yıldız

Sabahattin Önkibar Kapatılma davasına rüşvet paketi!

Güngör Mengi Askerce değil!

Ekonomi

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Ercan Kumcu Amerika’da faiz politikası sakatlanıyor

Erdal Sağlam Ülkesini seven iktidar IMF ile anlaşmayı şimdi imzalar

Osman Ulagay 2050’de Almanya ve Japonya’yı geçiyoruz

Güngör Uras Dolar değer kaybediyor, bu işe akıl sır ermiyor

Yaman Törüner Resesyon mu, enflasyon mu?

Faiz artırımı ve sonuçları
MAHFİ EĞİLMEZ

Çok yüksek bir faiz artırımı!
FATİH ÖZATAY

IMF’ye ihtiyacımız devam ediyor mu? BARAN TUNCER

Deniz Gökçe Çözüm üretme zamanı geldi, geçiyor!

Asaf Savaş Akat Siyah kuğu

Political Memo: Closed Mouths, but Open Tryouts

H5 Washington Post As Troops Leave Iraq, Pride Mixes With Doubt Soldiers who were part of the "surge" are heartened by security improvements they helped bring about but unsure if their hard-won gains will hold

Editorial Risk Aversion U.S. financial stability is in doubt. The candidates should tell us what they'd do about it.

Pakistan's Enduring Illusions By Jim Hoagland, The exposure of illusions does not automatically cause them to be abandoned. They become even more necessary when other alternatives look riskier.

Throwing Honesty Out the Window By Sebastian Mallaby, Wall Street is already tense; it needs gratuitous disruption like a hole in the head.

In Iraq, and Under the Spotlight

By Robert D. Novak, Obama's visit to Iraq begs the question: Who can best lead America in a dangerous world?

Bush's Move to More Centrist Policies May Aid McCain

The Democrats' Baghdad Two-Step

By Peter Hoekstra, The responsibilities of leadership go far beyond what Democrats in Congress are demonstrating today.

U.S. Talks With Iran Exemplify Bush's New Approaches In a Matter of Days, Administration Announces Change of Tactics Toward Onetime 'Axis of Evil'

Sunni Bloc Rejoins Iraqi Government, Amid Reconciliation Hopes

War Crimes Leverage International court charges against Sudan's president might be used to win some relief for Darfur.

Obama Gets Look At Afghan War Zone Iraqi Leader Backs 16-Month Pullout Plan, Magazine Reports

A Vote for Substance By Deborah Howell, The Post needs to publish more stories about issues and fewer about tactics.

Obama, Karzai Share a 'Working Lunch' On CBS, Senator Calls Afghanistan 'Central Front on Our Battle Against Terrorism'

A Deputy Dilemma For McCain

By David S. Broder, On Wednesday morning, The Post published a poll of registered voters giving Barack Obama an eight-point lead -- largely because the voters said they trusted him more than John McCain on handling their No. 1 issue, the economy, by an astounding 19 percentage points.

The Answer's in the Wind -- and Sun

By James Tisch, Why wind and the sun will become much bigger contributors to our national electricity mix.

Paulson Reassures on Banks, Warns of More Tough Times

Snubbed by Obama By Christoph von Marschall, So far Obama has almost completely refused to answer questions from foreign journalists.

Perfect Villains, Flawed Tribunal

By Dejan Anastasijevic, Human justice is imperfect, but no justice is much worse.

Faith-Based Obama His proposal for government-funded initiatives is carefully tailored.

Liberal Bloggers Brace for Win Five years ago, they made a name for themselves in defeat. What happens if Barack Obama wins?

Detainee's Trial in Military System Begins Today

Cybersecurity Will Take A Big Bite of the Budget

H6 Guardian Obama must curb our enthusiasm Jonathan Freedland: While the world wants to show its support for the Democrats' nominee, foreign popularity is no votewinner in the US

The not-so-winnable war against terrorism Jason Burke: Al-Qaida's unorthodox structure means the terrorist organisation is unlikely to ever face total defeat

People see in Obama what they want to see - that's a blessing and a curse Gary Younge: As the US Democratic candidate heads towards Europe, liberals refer to him as if he represents a second coming

Hopes of close cooperation between Russia and the west are now dead Max Hastings: As BP is discovering, the change of leadership at the Kremlin will not end its autocratic and nationalistic policies

Brown: Iran must end threat to Israel Prime minister pledges to defend country's 'right to exist' as visit to West Bank ends

Ahmadinejad hails Geneva talks as a step forward

Another MoD laptop stolen

Ministry of Defence confirms a laptop containing 'sensitive information' has been stolen, bringing the total stolen in the past four years to 659

Obama: war on Taliban 'urgent'

US presidential hopeful pledges to send 10,000 more troops to Afghanistan if he is elected

Sarkozy's reforms hang in balance

President says re-write of constitution will give new powers to weak parliament

Osama bin Laden, Bard of Terror

Bernard Haykel: In the battle to win Muslim hearts and minds al Qaida's leader is turning to poetry

'Thousands face job loss in UK'

Top economist says the Bank must cut interest rates rapidly as Britain is heading for recession

Threat of mass starvation looms in Zimbabwe after harvest fails

Five million will need help within months, warns UN, as many are reduced to one meal a day

Film shows Israeli firing rubber bullet

High water Editorial: Tidal schemes, unlike wind, produce electricity reliably, reducing the need to keep replacement sources on tap

Claims of British hostage suicide in Iraq

The Observer Brown sets out plan for UK pull-out from Iraq

PM declares aim to hand Basra over to local military forces as early as next year

It's time to come home but is it really the end?

Iran given two-week nuclear deadline Six-nation negotiating team at the United Nations warns Iranian delegation that it has run out of patience

We're quick to damn the US but slow to see our own faults

Constanze Stelzenmüller: Europe will welcome Barack Obama as the saviour of democratic virtues, values which too many of our leaders have ignored

War fears cast shadow over Abkhazia Bombing campaign spreads fear in Black Sea resort as tension mounts between Russia and Georgia

Analysis: Luke Harding A furious Kremlin is determined to bar Nato from its backyard but conflict will solve nothing Conflict with Georgia is about Russia's lingering resentment at what it regards as Western encirclement

Is this the last stand for globalisation? Poor nations derailed the last WTO deal. Now economic turmoil means rich countries could kill it off

Poorly directed aid increases Afghanistan's woes Editorial: Without a tighter focus, Afghans see increased assistance budgets as a small elite's opportunity to enrich themselves

Obama takes fight to the war zones

US Democratic presidential candidate arrives in Afghanistan on the first leg of his high-profile tour

Immigration row divides haven for US super-rich

South Korea: Moonies leader hurt in helicopter crash The Reverend Sun Myung Moon and 13 others are injured after their helicopter crashes into a mountain in South Korea

H7 How Tough Would Obama Be With Iran? By: Uri Dromi | Miami Herald Sen. Barack Obama is gearing up to his Middle East trip, meant to bolster the presidential candidate's foreign policy credentials.

More Iraqi Ironies By: Victor Davis Hanson | National Review
The war was initially damned as a naked effort to grab cheap, accessible Middle Eastern oil. The war is now damned as naïve and foolish in empowering our enemies to manipulate and sell high-priced Middle Eastern oil

Cliches Won't Rescue Earth By: Hugh Cortazzi | The Japan Times
Can anything be done to eliminate the echoes of cliches and to give real substance to the results of the Group of Eight summit held this month in Hokkaido?

Contrasting goals in Iraq

WITH FRIDAY'S announcement by the White House that the United States and Iraq have agreed to set a "general time horizon" for a US troop withdrawal, it is increasingly obvious that Iraqi political leaders are calling the shots when it comes to a future role for the United States, and that President Bush has not learned anything about Iraq in ... (By Lawrence J. Korb, Boston Globe)

Asia Times A reality check on Iran Iran is not ripe for regime change as any attack on the country would rally people around the government, not alienate them, an influential new report in the United States finds. These conclusions run counter to the neo-conservative argument, but fit with the George W Bush administration's newfound engagement, albeit limited, of Tehran. - David Isenberg

An Obama Impact on Bush's Positions? - Trudy Rubin, Philadelphia Inquirer

Bush Administration Flip-Flops on Iran - Stephen Hayes, Weekly Standard

Al Hayat Good Luck to Sarkozy with Syria! Randa Takieddine - Sarkozy has driven Syria out of the international isolation it has been mired in since the UN SC Resolution 1559 and the assassination of PM Hariri.

Daily Star Lebanon can reap the rewards of Moallem's diplomatic prowess

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

Iraqi Panel Proposes Delay in Key Election

Maliki Doesn't Endorse Obama Troop Withdrawal Plan

Iraqi PM disputes report on withdrawal plan

Sadr backers seethe over Iraqi army but avoid violence

US sets nuclear deadline for Iran Iran must decide within two weeks between co-operation or confrontation over its nuclear plans, the US warns after talks

Obama expected to meet Iraq war commanders Maliki's strategy

No progress in Iran talks, so Europe, U.S. renew threats

Petraeus Says Al-Qaida May Be Rethinking Its Iraq Fight

U.S. Troops Kill Son Of Iraqi Governor

Work resumes at Iraq refinery in once-violent area

Largest Sunni Arab Bloc Ends Boycott, Rejoins Government

Iraqi Sadrist Parliamentarian Views Syria Talks, Security Agreement With USA

Jordanian Article Says Lebanese MP's Visit to Iraq "Completely Surprising"

Al-Jazeera TV Programme Discusses US-Iraqi "General Time Horizon" Pact

Troop withdrawal timeline concerns Pentagon chief

Correction: Syrian Foreign Minister to Visit Lebanon, Convey Al- Asad Message

UK PM to warn Iran in Israel speech

Britain is determined to prevent Iran developing a nuclear weapon, PM Gordon Brown is to tell the Israeli parliament

Mixed views

Delegates split over outcome of Saudi interfaith forum

H9 Ha’aretz – ANALYSIS / Are U.S.-Iran ties undergoing significant change?

Editorial Talking and suspecting

No breakthrough on Iran nuclear talks in Geneva; another round in two weeks

The road to Palestine leads through Damascus

Don't waste the money The strength of the Palestinian Authority, under the leadership of Mahmoud Abbas and Salam Fayyad, wanes, while the public standing of Hamas increases with each consecutive visit by world leaders

Ahmadinejad's deputy: Iran is a friend of Israel, is not interested in war

Uzi Beniziman: Iranian bomb threatens the world more than it does Tel Aviv

The talk of the town

MI chief: Hezbollah may try to attack North soon

VIDEO: Troops shoot bound Palestinian at short range

Most Americans believe Iran will get nukes (WTR)

Al-Qaida in Israel / Fertile ground for terrorism

Jerusalem Post Rice accuses Iran of not being serious at weekend nuclear talks In her first public comment since Geneva meeting, US secretary of state warns that the Islamic Republic may soon face new sanctions

Take on Iran no laughing matter There's been significant change in US approach to Teheran.

Olmert: Agreement with PA by end '08

Nearing foreign policy consensus Obama and McCain clashed over foreign policy last week - or did they?

Yedioth Ahronoth 'Iran strike a speculation'
US Secretary of State Rice refuses to address reports on Israel's plan to attack Islamic Republic's nuclear facilities. US, Israel committed to diplomatic route, but President Bush leaving all options open, she tells CNN

Mideast survival guide We need patience, ideology, and endurance to survive in Middle East

Hamas should pay the price/ Orbach

Daily Alert.org – Hebrew Press Editorials (2008) - Middle East Progress - EJC Israeli Press Review – Google News Israel - Palestine

Five Questions Israel Should Ask Before Bombing Iran By: Gershom Gorenberg | The American Prospect After Iran's missile tests last week, the question of whether Israel will strike Iran preemptively is on everyone's mind. Here are five questions Israel should ponder before striking

Britain's Brown demands end to Israel settlements

Israel probes 'detainee shooting' Israel launches an inquiry after footage emerges appearing to show a soldier fire a rubber bullet at a Palestinian detainee.

From Boston Review, Elias Khoury on imagining justice in Palestine

Fundamentalism with nuances
Hamas in Politics by Joeroen Gunning Hamas is caught in an unresolved tug-of-war between pragmatic Gaza politicians intent on winning elections and paramilitary leaders and refugees who are steadfast on the vow of relentless jihad, British political scientist Gunning argues. The winner could determine whether Israel and the United States will ever allow a full-fledged Palestinian state. - Sreeram Chaulia

Palestinian hope withers, Hizb al-Tahrir flourishes By Omran Risheq

H10 Christian Science Monitor Obama's tour of Afghanistan renews debate about US role

The presidential candidate met officials and soldiers here this weekend at the start of a global tour

Obama's opportunity in the Middle East To strengthen ties, he should not ask 'Why do they hate us?' but 'Why don't they believe us?

Behind Afghanistan lies Pakistan

The US is wising up about Pakistan, where Al Qaeda and the Taliban find safe haven

Why France can't see past the burqa It denied citizenship to a Muslim woman for her conservative dress. Is that fair?

Economic stimulus, Part 2?

Rumblings about a possible second boost prompt economists to look at alternatives to the 'tax rebate.'

Historic first terror trial opens at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba Hamdan case tests special courts for 'illegal enemy combatants.

As Olympic glow fades, Athens questions $15 billion cost Many venues stand empty four years after Greece hosted the summer Games.

ASIA

China's Economic Fortunes Swing Toward Recession By: William Pesek | Bloomberg News
Those few last souls clinging to the idea that Asia separated its fortunes from the U.S. have to be sobered by China's latest growth figures. Gross domestic product grew 10.1 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, down from 11.9 percent for all of 2007.

What’s left of Confucianism? Daniel A. Bell wants to know.

India set for key nuclear debate India's parliament is to begin a two-day debate that will end in a vote of confidence over the issue of a nuclear deal with the US

From FT, a review of books on China, Tibet and the Dalai Lama

Hong Kong Paper on Efforts of China, Iran to Turn Around Negative Image

The dark side of paradise: A special New Statesman focus on South East Asia.

Obama calls situation in Afghanistan 'precarious' and 'urgent'

How Changes in the Value of the Chinese Currency Affect U.S. Imports (PDF; 637 KB)
Source: Congressional Budget Office

H11 IHT A Muslim woman too orthodox for France A recent case has sharpened the focus on the delicate balance between the tradition of Republican secularism and the freedom of religion guaranteed under the French Constitution - and how that balance might be shifting.

Roger Cohen: Sobriety, Herr Obama

Bonhomie is nice, but there's work to be done. Obama arrives in Europe at an all-shift moment

Russia's new (and old) foreign policy plan John McCain and Barack Obama have paid too little attention to Russia and how it sees its role in the world

EUROPE European press review

Bulgaria Under Fire for Corruption Levels By: Elitsa Vucheva | EU Observer The European Commission is next week to release a report harshly criticising Bulgaria for the way it has been handling EU funds, and suspend payments to two of the country's agencies charged with managing EU projects

H12 RFE/RL

Google News Azerbaijan

Russia's new (and old) plan

THE NEXT US president will have to deal with an energy-rich Russia that bears little resemblance to either the vanished Soviet Union or the economic basket case of the immediate post-Soviet years. Though run by a mafia of Kremlin-connected moguls and KGB veterans, Russia has an abiding interest in cooperating with the West. Yet so far, John McCain and Barack ... (Boston Globe)

Armed With Nukes and a Vague Plan By: Simon Saradzhyan | The Moscow Times The Russian armed forces have yet to complete their transition from an expensive Cold War model designed for a global conflict against an entire bloc of hostile nations to a leaner, meaner modern war machine capable of effectively fighting not only large-scale wars, but also low-intensity conflicts with insurgents

Asia Times Russia's energy drive leaves US reeling Medvedev is pursuing Russia's energy diplomacy with a vengeance. As a former head of Gazprom he is balancing the energy giant's oil export strategy between Europe and Asia-Pacific, and, significantly, has secured the right for Gazprom to handle the entire output of Libya's gas, oil and liquefied natural gas. Medvedev has also revived with Iran the idea of a "gas cartel". Ferocious rivalries over energy security will rock the foundations of overall United States-Russia relations. - M K Bhadrakumar

Russia faces an aging defense industry A plane, hailed as having the latest in aircraft technology, is only an upgrade on a 20-year model. It symbolizes a sector that needs an overhaul

Sunni bloc returns to Iraq Cabinet

In a victory for Prime Minister Nouri Maliki, the Iraqi Accordance Front comes back a year after quitting the Shiite-led government

Linking Communism With Nazism By: Maxim Shevchenko | The Moscow Times Lithuania is the latest country to conduct a hysterical campaign that equates Soviet symbols with Nazism. The bill, approved by the Lithuanian parliament last month, would prohibit public displays of Soviet symbols, including the Soviet flag, hammer and sickle, military uniforms and the five-pointed star

H13 The Times Q&A: The Doha Round of World Trade Organisation What is the point of the talks? | What would a deal look like? | What is the timeframe? | Why is the US election so important?

Afghanistan's pristine jihad draws in outsiders Analysts have monitored a surge in online recruitment of 'lions of Islam' to join the war through jihadist websites

The Europhiles are not the future, Mr Obama Most US Presidents share the common American view that Europe will naturally evolve into a United States of Europe

William Rees-Mogg

Obama controversy over Iraqi 'endorsement' The Iraqi Prime Minister was quoted as saying that he backed the senator's plan to recall all US combat troops within 16 months

Brown gives Iran two weeks to back down Gordon Brown will use speech to Knesset today - the first by a British PM - to make his strongest attack on Iranian regime

Sarkozy 'won't bully Irish into new EU referendum' Visit to Dublin by French President will be to listen, Foreign Minister says, as France backs tougher sanctions on Zimbabwe

Sunday Times Pragmatism takes centre stage in Washington

US foreign policy is shifting towards Obama

US gives Iran two week nuclear deadline US and Iranian officials reach deadlock over Iran's nuclear enrichment programme leading to a two week break in talks

Iran rules out freeze on nuclear work At a meeting being held today in Geneva the Iranian ambassador said it was not in Iran's agenda to discuss the issue

Brown agrees to cut British troops in Iraq The decision was made during a surprise visit to the country today, however the Prime Minister declined to set a timeframe for their departure

No 10 aide in honeytrap at Chinese disco Top aide to Gordon Brown had his Blackberry stolen after going home with a Chinese woman he met in a Shanghai hotel disco

Obama fears the Blair effect as tour continues

The Democrat contender will win fans on his European tour, but voters are likely to demand something more than photo ops

Wall Street Journal Europe Gets Real About America
By Bronwen Maddox
A new appreciation of shared problems.

Now Bush Is Appeasing Iran
By Michael Rubin Red lines mean nothing to this administration

Fannie and Freddie's Enablers
They now want a get-out-of-bailout free card.

We're Asking Too Much of the Fed
By R. Glenn HubbardnTax cuts would help with economic stimulus.

Let's Have Some Love for Nuclear PowerThe rest of the world realizes this is a valuable energy source.

Doha's F-Words
A global trade deal is more than a short-term fix for the finance, food and fuel crises. Review & Outlook

Hong Kong's Olympic Kowtow
A lost opportunity to defend basic freedoms. Review & Outlook

A Civil Nuclear Power
By M.R. Srinivasan
The U.S. should stop worrying

Good Scholarship Is Worth Honoring By L. Gordon Crovitz
Information Age:
Academia still needs the Milton Friedman approach

Global Economic Trends: The Credit Crunch

Commercial bankruptcies soar, reflecting widening economic woes

Housing prices haven't hit bottom yet

H14 Financial Times Brzezinski wary of repeating Soviet experience

More troops in Afghanistan ‘not the entire solution’

One simple way to predict a victor Early polls and the vast enterprise of political analysis and speculation on the US elections are worthless, says Clive Crook

Arab world doubts US approach will change As Barack Obama makes his first trip to the Middle East as the presumptive Democratic presidential candidate, he is coming under greater scrutiny among Arabs, with queries about his ability to deal with the crises in their region

IMF urges Iran to step up inflation fight A report by the fund says that Tehran should raise interest rates and that growth is expected to slow, but judges that overall prospects for the economy are good

Obama pledges to focus on Afghanistan Barack Obama has seized on the spiralling violence to press his argument for the US to withdraw from Iraq and refocus attention on Afghanistan, and said he would make Afghanistan the focus of the ‘war on terror’ if elected president

In search of a more dynamic economy As more job losses, stagflation and a housing slump threaten, Edmund Phelps looks at what it will take to regain prosperity

Eurogroup must shed complacencyThe shocks that face Spain and Ireland will test the see-no-evil-hear-no-evil approach to governance, says Wolfgang Münchau

Sarkozy in drive to hold ECB to account The French president is drawing up plans to boost the political accountability of the European Central Bank, underlining his focus on the conduct of monetary policy

Bulgaria faces loss of aid over corruption The EU’s poorest member state could lose billions of euros in funding to modernise transport links due to the government’s mismanagement of pre-accession funding

Bad debts mean more bank bids

The next stage of the recovery process will be takeovers. Many weak banks need to raise capital but investors are nursing heavy losses

Confidence test Courageous policies to free fuel prices and start delivering promised reforms are fraught with risk. But they are essential to India’s prosperity

Bulgaria’s shame Sceptical voters will be convinced of the merits of enlargement only if members – old and new alike – stick to common standards

US builders forced to sell off holdings

Demand for new homes on the outskirts of US towns has fallen spectacularly in the last three years, while foreclosures and speculative building have created a far greater supply of homes than there are buyers

H15 Los Angeles Times A battle over 'the next war' The Pentagon long considered it an essential duty to prepare for a war of national survival. Under Robert Gates, that focus has fallen from favor. Many military officers are pushing back against Defense Secretary Gates' focus on preparing for more 'asymmetric' fighting rather than for a large, conventional conflict.

Bush's U-turn toward common sense By Graham Allison

Talks with Iran signify that the administration has finally abandoned a failed part of its foreign policy

Coal carves a place in the future of global energy As the price of oil and natural gas soars, many customers are looking to coal as an alternative fuel. That means a boon for suppliers -- and a potential bane for the environment

Obama sticks to his goal of swift Iraq withdrawal He meets with Karzai in Afghanistan and calls for diverting U.S. troops in Iraq to the Central Asian nation, which he says is the main front in the fight against terrorism.

Editorial

Think of this economy as a series of storms By Peter G. Gosselin

First Bear Stearns. Then Fannie-Freddie. Next might be credit cards or muni debt. But the crisis could end as abruptly as it began

Obama meets Afghanistan's Karzai

He tells the Afgan president that his nation is central to the fight against terrorism

U.S. fails to sway Iran at 7-nation nuclear talks Washington's presence at the Geneva meeting marks the highest-level diplomatic contact with Tehran in decades. But it yields no breakthrough as Iran refuses to say whether it will halt uranium enrichm

Iraq Prime Minister Maliki embraces Obama withdrawal plan

By Peter Nicholas and M. Karim Faiez

The Democratic candidate meets military planners and troops in Afghanistan on a tour aimed at raising his foreign policy profile

The greatest Russian of all

Who's the greatest Russian of all? The answer says more about the people than the historical figure.

For Darfuris, justice is the enemy of peace By David Rieff

A war crimes trial for Sudan's leader would be gratifying. But is it worth the price?

Beijing goes to extremes for its Olympic face-lift The transformation goes beyond the architecture, which helped inflate the Games' price tag to a record-smashing $43 billion. The government is also trying to create a new, improved population

H16 American Politics

Gallup Daily: Obama Maintains Slight Edge Over McCain

Obama's steady centrism

Crashes, Bangs & Wallops: Panic of '08 - Richard Lambert, Financial Time

How big will Democratic gains be this fall?

Conservative Thinkers Think Again - Patricia Cohen, New York Times

Andrew Sullivan The two rivals are in danger of agreeing

Is U.S. media playing fair in Obama-McCain campaign coverage?

18- to 29-year-olds more likely to be liberal and less likely to follow presidential campaign very closely, Annenberg survey shows

realclearpolitics memeorandum ABC’s The Note – US News Political Bulletin Early Bird GovExec Swamp Gas The Swamp

Race to the bottom: Bush's disapproval rating beats Nixon's

H17 Daily Telegraph A good reason to withdraw from Iraq

Barack Obama and Gordon Brown both say they will withdraw their forces from Iraq. The statement by their Iraqi ally, Nouri al-Maliki, that he favours an early evacuation, transforms the parameters of the debate

Brown backs Israel against Iran PM launches his strongest attack yet on Iran.

Obama: Redeploy troops to Afghanistan Senator Barack Obama has demanded plans be drawn up immediately for US troops to be redeployed from Iraq to Afghanistan.

Sarkozy interfering on Irish EU vote Nicolas Sarkozy will be told that he must stop interfering in Irish politics by pressuring Dublin to hold a second referendum on the Lisbon Treaty.

Sunday Telegraph Iran refuses to discuss nuclear freeze Chief negotiator refuses to discuss deal over controversial nuclear programme, after talks attended for first time by senior US diplomat.

Rice wins battle for Bush's ear over Iran

Breaking the silence on Pakistan When it comes to talking about international threats to our everyday wellbeing, one country hardly ever seems to merit a mention, says Con Coughlin.

Obama's appeal should be his policies Barack Obama undoubtedly has the charisma to make him President. But for his next trick, he needs to develop policies to match his enormous personal appeal.

Nato bombing blunder kills 13 Afghans At least 13 police and civilians have been accidentally killed in bombings by Nato forces in Afghanistan

Iranian adulterers to be stoned Eight women and one man convicted of adultery are set to be stoned to death in Iran, according to activists and lawyers

Obama fans' hopes unrealistic, says aide Barack Obama feels like he is carrying the hopes and dreams of people around the world on his shoulders, a burden his aides believe has created unrealistic expectations

Darfur indictment prompts coup fears Sudan's military regime has placed Khartoum on a near siege footing to prevent the war crimes indictment of President Omar al-Bashir from prompting a palace coup.

H18 Independent World warned over killer flu pandemic The world is failing to guard against the inevitable spread of a devastating flu pandemic which could kill 50 million people and wreak massive disruption around the globe, the Government has warned.

Brown to target Iran in historic Knesset speech Gordon Brown will today issue a clear threat of tougher international action if Iran fails to halt steps towards becoming a nuclear military power.

World Focus: Iran's stalling on nuclear compromise will only hand ammunition to hawks

Bernard Jenkin: We're making headway in Iraq and need to stay there

Leading article: Mr Brown must replace confusion with clarity

Sun shines on Obama's Iraq debut

Independent on Sunday Brown plans to withdraw troops as he backs Obama Gordon Brown prepared the ground for a historic realignment in the "war on terror" yesterday by setting out a four-point plan for withdrawal of British troops from Iraq by the end of next year.

Shoulder to shoulder: Obama and Brown unite in new approach

John Rentoul: Obama, the most dominant force in British politics

Leading article: About-turn in Iraq

H19 Military Intelligence Terrorism

Armed With Nukes and a Vague Plan By: Simon Saradzhyan | The Moscow Times The Russian armed forces have yet to complete their transition from an expensive Cold War model designed for a global conflict against an entire bloc of hostile nations to a leaner, meaner modern war machine capable of effectively fighting not only large-scale wars, but also low-intensity conflicts with insurgents

More and more and more and more on Soldiers of Reason: The RAND Corporation and the Rise of the American Empire by Alex Abella

B-52 bomber carrying six crew members crashes near Guam

No Simple Solution to Problem of Terrorist Watch List Inflation By: Richard Weitz | World Politics Review Underlying the dispute over the numbers of people contained on the U.S. government's terrorist watch list is a deeper debate over how U.S. government agencies determine who poses a terrorist threat.

Baghdad Bonanza: The Top 100 Private Contractors in Iraq and Afghanistan Source: Center for Public Integrity

Council Report Urges U.S. to Improve Use of Assurances Against Torture for Detainee Transfers Source: Council on Foreign Relations

UK 'must check' US torture denial The British government should no longer rely on US assurances it does not use torture, a parliamentary report says.

H20 Slate

World Trade Report 2008
Source: World Trade Organization

Climate Change and Water (PDF; 5.1 MB)
Source: Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC)

2.5 billion live with poor sanitation facilities Full Report (PDF; 16.9 MB)
Source: World Health Organization

Food Crisis Global Review, Part 1: Stratfor on Global Implications

Food Crisis Global Review, Part 2: Export Controls

H21

Psych departments won’t teach Freud, nor is Marx taught in econ, while Hegel hardly figures in philosophy. In the mall of education, they are now boutique thinkers... more»

The police, courts, and prisons are charged with solving social problems, but their only tools are powers of arrest and imprisonment. We need a new way... more»

TAC contributors debate the lessons of World War II and their relevance to American foreign policy today

Why doesn't the world understand us? A review of God and Gold by Walter Russell Mead.

Persia’s Cyrus II was a great defender of human rights. Just like the late Shah, who gave proof of the wisdom of both men to the United Nations... more»

Saying farewell to the sort of horrible social engineering projects that dominated the 20th century is a major example of human progress

For centuries, Oxford remained a bastion of Western Civilization — then came American marketing

Kermode reviews How Fiction Works by James Wood

American lawns cover an area about the size of New York State. Every year, $40 billion is spent on their upkeep... more»

'Heavy Metal Islam' By MARK LeVINE
Reviewed by HOWARD HAMPTON Mark LeVine discovered that the Islamic world has a surprisingly active heavy metal subculture

She was the new Chomsky, the young woman to re-invent politics for a new generation. Then came 9/11... more»

The Future of Social Enterprise
Source: Harvard Business School Working Papers

Ten Commandments of race and genetics are issued.

From Big Think, Harvey Mansfield defines the concept of "manliness".

From Reason, Ronald Bailey on TEOTWAWKI! Or, the end of the world as we know it at the Global Catastrophic Risks conference.

Self-interest is bad? Andrew Ferguson on CGTYOSI, or the "cause greater than your own self-interest".

The divine Homer. So how will you have him? In the earthy, rough-hewn words of Fagles, or with the nobility of Pope?... more»

From The Wilson Quarterly, the abolition of slavery was the great cause of 19th-century humanitarians; in the 21st century, it needs new champions (while thousands still live in slavery in northern Mali).

Animal cruelty today is not as barbaric as in the 18th century, but with factory farming it is more widespread... more»

What's the best way to keep a secret? Tell the world the details on your website Gossip is really only interesting if it looks as though you're trying to hide something

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