080808f - 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 NYRB China: Humiliation & the Olympics By Orville Schell After a century and a half of famine, war, weakness, foreign occupation, and revolutionary extremism, a growing number of Chinese have come to look to the Olympic Games as the long-heralded symbolic moment when their country might at last escape old stereotypes of being the hapless "poor man of Asia"; a preyed-upon "defenseless giant"; victim of a misguided Cultural Revolution; the benighted land where in 1989 the People's Liberation Army fired on "the people." In one grand, symbolic stroke, the Olympic aura promised to help cleanse China's messy historical slate, overthrow its legacy of victimization and humiliation, and allow the country to spring forth on the world stage reborn—"rebranded" in contemporary parlance—as the great nation it once had been, and has yearned for so long to once more become.

Georgia Says Russian Fighters Bomb Georgian Villages (Update1)

The Times The world comes to China Despite tight security the Beijing Olympics offer many Chinese their first glimpse of the outside world and encourage a legacy of openness

Fiercest Fighting in Years Near Georgian Border

Jerusalem Post 'We'll neutralize S-300 if sold to Iran' Top defense official to 'Post': IDF will use electronic warfare device if Russia goes through with deal

Analysis: Syria is taking over Lebanon Assad's uses combination of brutal military tactics and cunning diplomacy.

Washington Post A Deal At Hand In Iraq By Jim Hoagland,

President Bush changes course on a withdrawal timetable -- and Iraq's Nouri al-Maliki could be the biggest beneficiary

In Iraq, Regional Politics Heats Up Jockeying Grows Among Groups, and Within Them, as Violence Gradually Gives Way to Power Sharing

Guardian The death of a nation

Ian Buruma: The fate of Belgium should interest all Europeans, since what is happening there now could be repeated on a continental scale

Deal to impeach Musharraf reached Former general's survival may depend on military as MPs' vote on his removal likely to be tight

MESH China in the Middle East

Los Angeles Times Pakistan coalition will seek to impeach President Pervez Musharraf The U.S. fears an ouster could bring more instability to Pakistan

BBC Heavy fighting in South Ossetia Heavy fighting resumes between Georgian forces and South Ossetian separatists despite a truce agreement.

How might the U.S. maintain its military advantage into the 21st century? Wanting an answer to the question, the Pentagon decided to look to the past... more»

US News Why the Pentagon Thinks Attacking Iran Is a Bad Idea by Anna Mulrine

Fouad Ajami: Back to the Iranian Bazaar by Fouad Ajami

Financial Times How a local squall might become a global tempest For a time, the coincidence of a US slowdown and soaring oil prices revived unhappy memories of 1970s stagflation. But now a new and colder front is crossing the macroeconomic weather map: the prospect of a global slowdown. Niall Ferguson considers the outlook

The crisis: a tale of two monetary policies Despite the similar problems faced by the ECB and the Fed, there are important differences that justify their separate strategies, says Martin Feldstein

Suspicious China prepares to welcome the world How the success or otherwise of the Olympic Games that open in Beijing on Friday will influence relations

Credit crunch in a century’s context The credit crunch is a year old, but unless a deep real recession follows, it looks like cause for reform rather than revolution in the financial system

Rise of the new Pacific powers

For all George Bush’s talk of liberty, democracy and the rule of law, he has retreated on matters of principle before the advancing powers of India and China

Time The Mystery Behind a Syrian Murder

Report: CCTV network could deter terrorism A report by India's Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses calls for the installation of surveillance cameras to prevent future terrorist bombings

CRS “China’s Foreign Policy: What Does It Mean for U.S. Global Interests?,” July 18, 2008.

The top 10 risks for business
Source: Ernst & Young Full Report (PDF: 3.1 MB)

The Economist The Middle East and America's election

Who would be best for the Arabs?

The Caucasus Bang bang, who’s dead? Sabre-rattling continues in a dangerous corner of Europe

Geopolitics (1) A bowl of thin alphabet soup The Kremlin wants a new security club for Europe and Asia. Can it work? And should it worry America, which is relearning to love its allies?

Geopolitics (2) Win today’s wars first A chastened Pentagon emphasises soft power and partnerships over military force

BBC Under pressure Musharraf's options after impeachment decision

Christian Science Monitor

What Asia wants from the next U.S. president The wish list includes continued security aid to balance China, greater engagement, and trade.

DAVID BROOKS Lord of the Memes In the age of the iPhone, prestige has shifted from the producer of art to the aggregator and the appraiser

IHT German Social Democrats in trouble The leader of one of Europe's oldest and biggest left-wing parties, Kurt Beck, has no idea how to dent Chancellor Angela Merkel's extraordinary popularity, and the party's membership is in free fall.

Gaming the China Model - Council on Foreign Relations

Der Spiegel The World from Berlin: 'Diplomacy without Real Pressure Is Asking for Failure'

China and India: protest waves , Paul Rogers

Kevin Drum The Washington Monthly "THE END OF THE AWAKENING?...."

Independent – Pakistan –World Focus: Incompetence reigns as leaders squabble over power

Reviving the Invisible Hand: the case for classical liberalism in the 21st century

Daily Telegraph The great oil bubble has burst The price rises of the past year were not a reflection of supply and demand, but the result of market speculation, argues Martin Vander Weyer

H2 The Economist Turkey After the storm The avoidance of a political collision has helped economic confidence. But without reform, it may be short lived

FT Kurds lay claim to blast on Azeri oil pipeline

The Real World: Turkey Dodging the Bullet – For Now Middle East Times, By ARIEL COHEN

New Statesman Back from the brink Observations on Turkey

Ha’aretz – Israel Slams Turkey for Ahmadinejad Visit Israeli envoy tells Ankara: By inviting leader who publicly denies Holocaust, you grant him legitimacy

Jerusalem protests Iranian president's visit to Turkey

Jerusalem Post Ahmadinejad's Turkey trip irks Israel Senior diplomatic official to 'Post': We don't think it's a good idea, and that was passed on to the Turks.

The National Turkey to push Iran toward nuclear openess

Al-Ahram Turkey and democracy

Yüzyılın projesi BTC'deki güvenlik zaafı Türkiye'ye pahalıya mal olacak

Governor: 3 injured in Istanbul mortar attack

Turkey to upgrade Pakistani F-16s as US sanctions ease

SETA AK Party Survives Closure Case: What Is Next? by Ihsan D. DAGI

Barçın Yinanç ABD ile ilişkilerde yeni soğuma noktası

Iraq Christians consider joining Kurdistan (UPI) -- Joining the region of Kurdistan may offer better security and general prosperity for the Iraqi Christian community in Mosul, church leaders said Thursday.

İşte Suriye'yi karıştıran fotoğraflar

Cuma namazını kılıp gidecek

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

Diyarbakır'a bakış
Son ekonomik tabloyla, AKP'nin sorunlara yaklaşımı

PKK claims responsibility for BTC pipeline explosion

Mete Çubukçu Kerkük yalnızca Irak'ı değil Türkiye ve ABD'yi de ilgilendiriyor

Ferai Tınç Kürt sorunu ışığında AKP-asker ilişkisi

ABD 2010'da Irak'tan çekiliyor mu?

Kirkuk provincial council votes to join Kurdistan Region
Kurdish Globe

Iraq tribal leaders ready to defend Kirkuk

İran ordusu 11 PKK’lı teröristi öldürdü

Kurdish president warns of foreign agendas (UPI) -- Kurdish President Massoud Barzani said foreign agendas should not drive Kurdish issues and warned further encroachment may divide Iraq.

Reidar Visser: The Kirkuk Issue Exposes Weaknesses in Iraq’s Ruling Coalition

Iraq Christians consider joining Kurdistan (UPI) -- Joining the region of Kurdistan may offer better security and general prosperity for the Iraqi Christian community in Mosul, church leaders said Thursday.

PKK'ya İran'dan ağır darbe

Kirkuk row scuppers chance of Iraq elections next year
Times Online

Kürt Hareketinde Birlik Sorunu

UN warns of Iraq Kirkuk crisis complication
Alsumaria

İBRAHİM KARAGÜL

Selimiye Kışlası'nı PKK mı ıskaladı?

Al Qaeda crisis erupts in Ankara

Kurdish rebels say they sabotaged Turkey pipeline (View Article)

Kurdistan's President Mulls Ways to Incorporate Peshmerga Into United Security Forces

Al Ahram No easy fix
Al-Ahram Weekly Rushing a solution to Kirkuk will trigger greater violence

Iranian Army Claims Heavy Blow to PKK

Türkiye, Afrika liderleriyle buluşuyor

Cevdet Aşkın

Ankara seeking ‘sustainable cooperation’ with Africa via summit

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

Zeynel Lüle AB'ye giden yolun haritası çıkıyor

Rauf Denktaş Biz barıştan yanayız

Oil prices rise after Turkish pipeline fire (View Article)

TASSA'nın Kurucusu Bir NASA Uzmanı

Sami Kohen Fransa’nın soykırım sıkıntısı

İsyan be annem*

'Türkiye virajdan döndü'

Lukoil and Turkey By: John C. K. Daly | Eurasia Daily Monitor
As Europe frets over the political implications of Gazprom’s increasing presence in the EU market, another Russian energy company has quietly made an inroad into hydrocarbon-starved Turkey

Turkey's policy on 'foreigners'
Robert JOHNSON

Hedo Okur Tuncay Nihat Altintop

Pakistan'ın eski F-16'larını Türkiye modernize edecek

Başarısız yönetici Atatürk'e sarılıyor

Öğrenci affı tasarısı Meclis'e geliyor

Köşk: Fotoğraftaki Hayrünnisa Gül değil

Bir yalan haber DHA

Detone müezzin alarmı

[89.Yılında Erzurum Kongresi] Sivil Cumhuriyet'in ilk adımı

İslami vakfın başkanı tecavüzden tutuklandı

Speeding No. 1 cause of traffic accidents

Tatlıses'e 'azmettirme' gözaltısı

H3

Darbe günlüklerinin pabucunu dama atan vahim belgeler Komutanlar: Hükümeti değiştirme şartlarını bulmamız lazım

Selimiye Kışlası'na havan toplu saldırı

Gizli tanık rezaleti

Ergenekon'un gizli tanığı açığa çıktı

1. Ordu’ya havanlı saldırı

Hedef, 1’inci Ordu Komutanlığı’ydı

Gül türbanın rövansını aldı

İddianameye giren 'çuval raporu'

Baykal: Gül'ün üzerine gidin

Büyükanıt’a haksızlık yapılmasını biz önledik

‘Türbanın rövanşı’

Yurtdışında Ermeni içeride liberal mutlu

Truth behind army restraint revealed

Gerçek bombacı serbest

60 mm'lik havanlar sırt çantasında taşınabiliyor

Kalkancı'nın hikmeti uçan postta saklıymış

Köksal Toptan'dan umutsuz çağrı

TÜSİAD: Rektör atamalarına siyaset karışmamalı

AKP’nin pornocu fişleme harekâtı

Almanya’dan esinlendim

Din devletine gidişin altyapısı

Eğitim siyasi alandan çıkmalı

Hedef Koçman mıydı?

Kırılma noktası Dolmabahçe mi

İki komutana yedi suikast

Vali Çakır Veli Küçük ortaklığı

O belge bana gelmedi

AKP’li vekilleri de fişlemişler

Gölge ordudan Ergenekon'a-6 EOKA ve TMT’yi birlestiren suikast

ASALA'yı Çatlı bitirdi efsanesi

Bir roket polise bir roket askere

Türbana tolerans ciddi karıştırır

Üsküdar'da havan topuyla esrarengiz saldırı

Tercihe saygılı ol TSK’yı yıpratma

MHP yerel seçimde ‘büyük çatı’ peşinde

'Gençler için riskli alanları belirliyoruz'

Dev-Yol'cu Ateş Dilovası kurbanı

Toplum kavgadan bıktı, CHP'den uzlaşma bekliyor

Perinçek, Mesut Yılmaz'a suikast yapmayı planlamış

Susurluk'ta Türkiye'yi ayağa kaldıran sol niye sessiz?

AKP salonunda gizli kamera

AK Parti salonundaki gizli kamera iddialarına yalanlama

Uzun sürmez

Audi tartışması

Bahçeli, Erciyes’i terör endişesiyle iptal etmiş

Yatın sahibi Tamince çıktı

Emniyet’ten katil polis için tuhaf savunma: ’Neticede polis de insan’

Eski rektör Mustafa Akaydın'ın bildirilerini, Perinçek hazırlamış

'Gizli kamera' iddiası

Saadet, Kurtulmuş dönemine geçiyor

Son Dakika Milliyet Hürriyet Zaman

Cengiz Çandar Kerkük: Dimyat'a pirince giderken

Ahmet Taşgetiren CHP ve ihraçlar

Ruşen - Çakır AKP-ORDU ilişkileri/2 CHP ile TSK’nın arası daha da açılabilir

Taha Akyol Ilımlı İslam saplantısı

Fikret Bila Rektör atamaları

Hasan Cemal Alevi yurttaşlarla barışmanın yolu...

Murat Yetkin Amerika’dan Erdoğan’a mesaj var

İsmet Berkan Anayasal düzene bağlı mısınız?

Fehmi Koru Bir çatırtı, bir çatırtı daha...

Taha Kıvanç Rektörleri Oktay Bey atayınca iyi...

Şamil Tayyar F Tipi CHP’ye mi sızdı?

Ali Bayramoğlu Majestelerinin muhalefeti ve entelektüel titreklik

Fatih Altaylı Yaşar Paşa'nın anlattığı bir hikaye

Aydın Ayaydın

Kabineye midi revizyon

Yasemin Çongar

Ertuğrul Özkök

Serdar Turgut CHP fena sarsılıyor

Serdar Akinan Büyükanıt Paşa’ya ne kızıyorsunuz?

İsmail Küçükkaya
Tırmandırmamak lazım

Gülay Göktürk Rektör atamaları

Is Turkey's problem 'unreformed Islam'? Mustafa AKYOL

Ahmet Hakan Fadime telekızmış

Sabahattin Önkibar Türk Silahlı Kuvvetleri'nde anlayamadıklarım!

Mehmet Altan Rektörlüğe aday...

Okay Gönensin

Mecburen oy verenler

Mehmet Tezkan

AB üyesi olsaydık Gül o yatla gezebilir miydi?

M Ali Birand

Cüneyt Ülsever

Enis Berberoğlu

Oktay Ekşi Tepetaklak yaşam

Tufan Türenç Huzur içinde mavi yolculuğa çıktı

Özdemir İnce Anayasa Mahkemesi’nin kararını yorumlamak

Yalçın Bayer ’Rektörler türbana selam duracak’

Mehmet Y Yılmaz

MUHARREM SARIKAYA Bir deri: Asırlık bin ağaç

Nagehan Alçı Dersimiz: Namaz

Halit Kakınç “YÖK”ten YONCA çıkmaz!

AK Party decision and its aftermath by ERGUN ÖZBUDUN*

ERDAL ŞAFAK Yolsuzluk, yoksulluk, darbe

ENGİN ARDIÇ Bam teline basıldı

ERGUN BABAHAN Havanda su dövmek

EMRE AKÖZ 'İkna olmaya hazırım' yalanı

Umur Talu Çivi çiviyi söker!

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN AKP ve cehennem senaryosu-3

NAZLI ILICAK CHP ve asker

Nasuhi Güngör Celladına selam veren komutan

[Yorum - M. NACİ BOSTANCI] Tartışılmayacak rektör atamaları mümkün mü?

MEHMET BARLAS AK Parti'nin başarı şansı az... Çünkü alternatifi yok...

MAHMUT ÖVÜR Farkında mısınız TBMM devre dışı kaldı

YAVUZ DONAT

TAMER KORKMAZ

Bir bulmacam var…

Rektör atamaları mugalâtası
HASAN CELAL GÜZEL

AKP’ye muhalefette kalite...
ORAL ÇALIŞLAR

Bu memlekette ilkeli insan yok mu?
HALUK ŞAHİN

Çankaya’ya itibar
MEHMET ALİ KIŞLALI

Necati Doğru

Kral gibi cumhurbaşkanı! İmtiyaz sahibi orgeneral!

Yusuf KANLI
AKP ordeal might not be over yet

Ekonomi

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Ercan Kumcu Büyüme hızlandı mı

Erdal Sağlam

Eser Karakaş Alan Greenspan’e kulak vermek

Asaf Savaş Akat

İlk yarıda dış ticaret

Güven Sak Artan ulaştırma maliyetleri ille de risk midir

Şimşek, cari açığın çaresini değil ama sorumlusunu buldu: IMF

Hurşit Güneş Tek kabahatli biz değilmişiz

Güngör Uras IMF’yi beklemeden programı hazırlayalım

Turkey’s economic indicators worsen World Socialist Web Site

Deniz Gökçe Sürpriz mi?

Political Memo: Roles of Clintons at Convention Start to Clear

H5 Washington Post A Deal At Hand In Iraq By Jim Hoagland,

President Bush changes course on a withdrawal timetable -- and Iraq's Nouri al-Maliki could be the biggest beneficiary

In Iraq, Regional Politics Heats Up

Jockeying Grows Among Groups, and Within Them, as Violence Gradually Gives Way to Power Sharing

Musharraf Faces Impeachment

Pakistan's Ruling Coalition Calls for No-Confidence Vote in Parliament

For China, It's Showtime Games Offer Platform to Display Party's Achievements

Study Cautions Against Strike on Iran's Nuclear Facilities

No Will To Drill The Democrats Resist Logic -- and Politics By Charles Krauthammer, Why must there be a choice between encouraging conservation and increasing supply?

Obama's Tactical Gift to McCain

By Michael Gerson, Obama's tactics have raised a damning political question: Who is this man?

Editorial Beijing's Games The high political price of Olympic gold

China Rebuffs Criticisms As Bush Arrives in Beijing

New Details Show Anthrax Suspect Away On Key Day

Anthrax Case Raises Doubt On Security Gaps in Lab Safeguards Prompt Calls for Investigations

Bin Laden Driver Gets 51/2 Years; U.S. Sought 30

Smog in Beijing By Eugene Robinson China's economic boom has been quite literally breathtaking.

Tactic Used After It Was Banned

Detainees at Guantanamo Were Moved Often, Documents Say

Bush's Idea of Swift Justice By Dan Froomkin

H6 Guardian The death of a nation

Ian Buruma: The fate of Belgium should interest all Europeans, since what is happening there now could be repeated on a continental scale

Deal to impeach Musharraf reached

Former general's survival may depend on military as MPs' vote on his removal likely to be tight

Whatever the result, Sharif is likely to win

Georgia preparing for war - Russia

Authorities in breakaway region's capital says 18 people wounded in overnight shelling

Clinton dig unearthed to hurt Obama Footage of slur at Illinois senator appears the day before running mate's appearance in Nevada

France must answer for its actions in Rwanda Andrew Wallis A report into its role in the 1994 genocide has been branded 'unacceptable'. Is there one rule for the west, another for the rest?

The human rights games

Editorial: The legitimacy the government will reap from the games will be worth more to it than the $43bn they have cost so far

Tear down the walls Philippe Legrain: Europe's war against immigration is immoral and unwinnable. It's time for a radical rethink

I chose not to stay in Beijing for the games - it is a city drained of joy

Sun Shuyun: The Olympic hosts ought to be jubilant. But China is cheerless amid state fear of disruption and a flood of western criticism

Coal isn't the climate enemy, Mr Monbiot. It's the solution

Arthur Scargill: We must draw on existing resources as part of an integrated energy policy, not flirt with nuclear, the most dangerous option

Biggest house price fall since 1983 in the UK

Bin Laden driver given light sentence US military panel rule that Yemeni national Salim Hamdan should serve five and a half years

High noon in the Middle East

Jonathan Demme's new film has an unlikely hero: Jimmy Carter. The director talks to Oliver Burkeman

H7 Coping with the Challenge of Iran - Nicholas Burns

Rice: US Can't Stop Israeli Decision to Attack Iran

Study Cautions Against Strike on Iran's Nuclear Facilities

Israel Threatens to Neutralize Russian Air Defense if Iran Sales Continue

Three Key Questions Still Unanswered in Anthrax Case

Did Bush Manipulate the Anthrax Scare? by Alexander Cockburn

CRS “Islamic Finance: Overview and Policy Concerns,” July 29, 2008.

Now Oil's Fall Seems Unstoppable ,Forbes

War with Iran - On, Off or Undecided
The Baltimore Chronicle

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

Iraqis: Deal close on plan for US troops to leave

In Iraq, Regional Politics Heats Up

BBC Peace move Why Iraqi cleric wants his fighters to drop their guns

Drive for New Iran Sanctions Seen Long and Hard

Iraq to resume oil exploration after 20 year pause

Iran Sunni Rebels Say Willing to Talk to Tehran

Kurdistan's President Mulls Ways to Incorporate Peshmerga Into United Security Forces

Gulf Countries Say Iranian Statements on Monarchies "Irresponsible"

Iraq Press Roundup

U.N. Iraq Mandate Renewed; Baghdad Wants More U.N. Help

U.S. Plans Surveillance Buildup In Iraq, Afghanistan

Iran May Gain From Iraq's Suffering

Iraq's Islamic Party Leader Assassinated in Mosul

UN nuclear agency back in Iran
The deputy head of the UN nuclear agency arrives in Tehran for talks on Iran's disputed nuclear programme

H9 Ha’aretz – Israel Slams Turkey for Ahmadinejad Visit Israeli envoy tells Ankara: By inviting leader who publicly denies Holocaust, you grant him legitimacy

Israel: Lebanon is responsible for Hezbollah's actions Cabinet decision marks change from Israel's firm separation of Hezbollah and Lebanese government

Peres to meet Chinese president, stress 'global nature' of Iran nuclear problem

Jerusalem Post 'We'll neutralize S-300 if sold to Iran' Top defense official to 'Post': IDF will use electronic warfare device if Russia goes through with deal

Analysis: Syria is taking over Lebanon

Assad's uses combination of brutal military tactics and cunning diplomacy.

Yedioth Ahronoth

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

Israel Threatens to Neutralize Russian Air Defense if Iran Sales Continue

Israeli politicians chase Arab vote Contenders to be Israel's next prime minister are stepping up their efforts to court the Arab vote.

H10 Christian Science Monitor

What Asia wants from the next U.S. president The wish list includes continued security aid to balance China, greater engagement, and trade.

How did anthrax suspect Ivins keep security clearance? The army microbiologist sought aid for mental health years ago.

Calls for France to rethink its Africa role A Rwandan report this week charged Paris with complicity in the 1994 genocide.

--

ASIA

This Is No Triumph of Chinese Totalitarianism By: Daniel A. Bell | The Guardian
The message will be one of openness to the world, of a self-confident China that has moved beyond resentful nationalism to one that relies on soft power such as scientific inventions, beautiful buildings, artistic creations, and Confucian values to inspire and impress the rest of the world.

The Economist Pakistan

More to worry about than Musharraf

US Gen.: Pakistan Spies Behind Afghan Violence

China discovers al Qaeda in its backyard by Walid Phares

Pyrrhic Olympic Victory for China By: Boris Kagarlitsky | The Moscow Times For China's leaders, the 2008 Summer Olympic Games were supposed to mark the country's incredible achievements -- a testament to the Celestial Empire's rebirth as a modern world power. Some observers even speak of China as the next global leader that will soon eclipse the waning power and influence of the United States.

Stop Criticizing China, It has Come So Far By: Lijia Zhang | The Japan Times When I was at school, sports lessons included an exercise where we threw hand grenades (made from wood topped with metal to resemble the real thing) against a wall over which a red slogan had been stretched offering the reason for such a militaristic pastime: "Exercise our bodies and protect our motherland."

China's political Games

For China's rulers, the Olympics are also a test of how much they can make international organizations and other governments play by Beijing's rules. (Boston Globe)

Indian Presence Essential in Afghanistan By: Sushant K. Singh | Pragati Afghanistan at th e crossroads and India, as a close ally of the Karzai government, has an important role to play. The debate on Indian involvement in Afghanistan is sharply polarized - between one group, which wishes to restrict Indian involvement to providing non-military support, primarily in the infrastructure and human resource development projects; and the another, which advocates Indian military involvement in Afghanistan

Violence Spreads After Kashmir Shrine Siege By: Rhys Blakely | The London Times
Manmohan Singh, the Indian Prime Minister, held emergency talks with opposition leaders yesterday in an attempt to calm some of the worst Hindu-Muslim clashes in Kashmir for two decades.

Ahead of the Olympic Games, Excitement and Fear in Beijing By: Iason Athanasiados | World Politics Review
In Athens, four years ago this week, Greek officials were still scurrying to put the final touches on sporting venues and other civil infrastructure that had been constructed for the games. China's Olympic infrastructure has been ready for much longer, yet Chinese officials are still in panic mode: With just hours to go before the opening ceremony, Beijing's notorious pollution clouds refuse to budge, and Chinese Communist Party officials remain on edge about displays of political dissent.

H11 IHT German Social Democrats in trouble The leader of one of Europe's oldest and biggest left-wing parties, Kurt Beck, has no idea how to dent Chancellor Angela Merkel's extraordinary popularity, and the party's membership is in free fall.

EUROPE European press review

Tear down the walls Philippe Legrain: Europe's war against immigration is immoral and unwinnable. It's time for a radical rethink

Not so lazy, after all: Is it possible that Europeans — famed for their endless vacations - - work as much as we do?

H12 RFE/RL

BBC Heavy fighting in South Ossetia Heavy fighting resumes between Georgian forces and South Ossetian separatists despite a truce agreement.

Clashes reignite war fears

Georgia's separatism woes

Profile: South Ossetia

Georgian Forces Attack Russian-Backed Separatists

Google News Azerbaijan

Georgian army moves to retake South Ossetia

The Economist Alexander Solzhenitsyn Speaking truth to power

Russian intellectuals The hand that feeds them Individual voices are brave. But Russia’s intelligentsia, which could be much freer than in the bad old days, is still mealy-mouthed

The Russian futurist: Aleksander Solzhenitsyn killed off leftist attachment to the Soviet ideal in Europe, but his own attitude towards the motherland was complex (and more from Christopher Hitchens).

Russia Can Play a Vital Role in the West's Security By: Maurizio Massari | Financial Times
The enlargement of Nato to include Georgia and Ukraine could become the most dangerous spoiler in relations between Russia and the west next year. It would also set the new US president off to a bad start

The Russian Prophet and the Commissars By: Nina Khrushcheva | Miami Herald The Russian capital has just witnessed the extraordinary sight of Alexander Solzhenitsyn -- the dissident and once-exiled author of The Gulag Archipelago and One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich -- receiving what amounts to a state funeral, with Prime Minister Vladimir Putin acting as chief mourner

Uzbekistan: Losing Control By: Asbed Kachikian | ISN Security Watch
A munitions depot explosion in Uzbekistan is kept low key by the government, while the public credits Islamic extremists and opposition groups.

Georgia Clashes Spark Fears of All-Out War

Moscow Diary

Solzhenitsyn and submarines - how deep is Russia?

H13 The Times The world comes to China Despite tight security the Beijing Olympics offer many Chinese their first glimpse of the outside world and encourage a legacy of openness

Georgia pounds Russian-backed rebels Battles erupt after Georgia's President Saakashvili makes a dramatic appeal for a ceasefire after a day of heavy fighting

President Musharraf to be impeached The Pakistani President's political enemies have agreed on terms to force him out of office, but he has vowed to fight on

Troops on standby after Kashmir shrine violence Indian Army prepares to send 10,000 extra soldiers to Kashmir amid fears that Hindu-Muslim violence will spread

France and genocide: the murky truth How far was Mitterrand's Government involved in the slaughter of hundred of thousands of Rwandans? Linda Melvern

Bin Laden driver gets 66 months - but will not be freed With time served Salim Hamdan should be released in five months but the Pentagon has indicated he wil not be released

Analysis: Hamdan trial a disaster for Bush

Hillary Clinton threatens Obama with 'honour my supporters' demand

New survey highlights another problem for the Democrats — nearly 50 per cent of voters have 'Obama fatigue'

Wall Street Journal Political Cycles By Peggy Noonan
Declarations
The presidential campaign is shifting, but it's only perceptible up close.

Thank God for the Chinese ConsumerBy Zachary Karabell
In the years ahead Chinese demand will be a major source of U.S. growth

Solzhenitsyn Was a Russian Patriot By Robert Conquest
He may have been hard on American culture, but he remained staunchly anticommunist.

Trade Freely and Expand

By George Alogoskoufis
Europe must continue to open markets -- and itself.

Hamdan Sentenced to Less Than Six Years

A military jury sentenced Osama bin Laden's former driver to 5 1/2 years in prison for aiding terrorism, making him eligible for release in just five months. Salim Hamdan had faced up to life in prison, and prosecutors sought a sentence of at least 30 years.

The Beijing Games

Dealing with the dichotomy of modern China.

Barack and the Buck

One thing Obamanomics gets right

The Ivins Dossier

The FBI case needs a second opinion.

H14 Financial Times How a local squall might become a global tempest For a time, the coincidence of a US slowdown and soaring oil prices revived unhappy memories of 1970s stagflation. But now a new and colder front is crossing the macroeconomic weather map: the prospect of a global slowdown. Niall Ferguson considers the outlook

The crisis: a tale of two monetary policies Despite the similar problems faced by the ECB and the Fed, there are important differences that justify their separate strategies, says Martin Feldstein

Suspicious China prepares to welcome the world How the success or otherwise of the Olympic Games that open in Beijing on Friday will influence relations

Credit crunch in a century’s context The credit crunch is a year old, but unless a deep real recession follows, it looks like cause for reform rather than revolution in the financial system

Rise of the new Pacific powers

For all George Bush’s talk of liberty, democracy and the rule of law, he has retreated on matters of principle before the advancing powers of India and China

Rachman France and the Rwandan genocide

Fighting intensifies in South Ossetia Fierce fighting erupted in Georgia’s breakaway enclave of South Ossetia on Thursday night and Friday morning, and government troops reportedly surrounded Tskhinvali, the region’s capital, following days of clashes with separatist forces in the area

Georgia denies preparing for war over breakaway regions

Georgia yesterday denied claims by Russia it was preparing for war to reclaim two breakaway regions, following a week of military skirmishes with separatists.

Europe and UK banks hold rates steady The ECB and Bank of England leave interest rates unchanged as they try to balance the competing demands of rising inflation and slowing growth

Democratic jitters as Obama heads home As Barack Obama heads off for his first week-long break since he launched his presidential bid 19 months ago, he is dogged by rising angst about his campaign’s direction.

Party gets nervous as Obama goes on holiday

H15 Los Angeles Times Pakistan coalition will seek to impeach President Pervez Musharraf The U.S. fears an ouster could bring more instability to Pakistan

Beijing Olympics organizers play host to political games too

Where to put Taiwan, North Korea and South Korea in the opening march? Will Arab athletes face Israeli ones? Some solutions are easier than others

Beijing Olympics visitors to come under widespread surveillance The government has installed about 300,000 cameras in Beijing and set up a network to spy on its citizens and foreigners

H16 American Politics

Newsweek Understanding Barack Obama's Faith

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

The Economist Energy supplies

The devil and the deep blue sea

Lexington Obama fatigue Is America beginning to weary of “Yes we can”?

Is Obama Fatigue Real, And Is It A Danger to Him? - Walter Shapiro, Salon

Time The Global Ambition of Rick Warren (The Well / Cover Story)
How a charismatic Californian became the closest thing to Billy Graham — and why religion in America will never be the same

Have the Clintons Gotten Over It? (The Well / Campaign '08)
Will the Clintons forge a peace with Camp Obama? It hasn't happened yet

A Whole New McCain (The Well / Campaign '08)
After months of often feckless campaigning, the Arizona Senator has started throwing heat. What's behind McCain's hardball strategy

How America Decides (Campaign '08)
A TIME poll shows that Evangelicals are sticking with McCain. But they're not excited about it

Open to Debate (In the Arena)
The best way for Obama to defend against the McCain campaign's attacks is to start a real conversation

The Anthrax Files (The Well / Nation)
The FBI was on the trail of Army scientist Bruce Ivins for years. As investigators closed in, he committed suicide. But how credible was their case?

Leaked McCain Memo: Paint Obama As A “Job Killing Machine”

Bill Clinton to speak at Democratic convention, officials say

Rice: US would be safe under Obama

White House memo exposes Rove knew of problems with anthrax vaccine

Judicial Partisanship Awards: Cass Sunstein on a study of over 20,000 decisions that reveals how politics shapes ruling.

H17 Daily Telegraph The great oil bubble has burst The price rises of the past year were not a reflection of supply and demand, but the result of market speculation, argues Martin Vander Weyer

Pakistan's deadly vendetta

Musharraf's life may not be in danger, but few of his countrymen can say the same, writes David Blair

War in Caucasus as Georgia invades rebel region The Caucasus descended into crisis after Georgian troops launched a full-scale assault against Moscow-backed rebels

More troops may be sent to Afghanistan, hints Des Browne

Pervez Musharraf faces impeachment

H18 Independent The Big Question: Why is the United States still imposing the death penalty?

Leading article: For all their problems, the Olympics still matter

On the brink of historic change, but will China see the light?

World Focus: Incompetence reigns as leaders squabble over power

Dominic Lawson: If you think China is a police state, just look at us in Britain

Leading article: In today's China, not all that glisters is gold

The Big Question: Why is the United States still imposing the death penalty?

Kim Sengupta: Why Bush's 'dead or alive' posse haven't got their man

Musharraf to be impeached as opponents seek to oust him

Pakistan's President is fighting for his political life after his opponents announced their intention to try and impeach him and bring an end to his eight years in power.

World Focus: Incompetence reigns as leaders squabble over power

Fury after Israeli officer in charge of prisoner's shooting is 'reassigned'

Outraged Israeli human rights organisations have united in challenging the military's decision to invoke only minor penalties against a senior officer over the shooting of a bound and blindfolded Palestinian prisoner by a soldier under his command.

H19 Military Intelligence Terrorism

Report: CCTV network could deter terrorism A report by India's Institute for Defense Studies and Analyses calls for the installation of surveillance cameras to prevent future terrorist bombings

Australia's Involvement in Peacekeeping Operations Commonwealth of Australia
This 417-page report studies the criteria against which Australian decision makers should assess whether or not to commit to a peacekeeping operation

CRS “The U.S. Secret Service: An Examination and Analysis of Its Evolving Missions,” July 31, 2008.

How might the U.S. maintain its military advantage into the 21st century? Wanting an answer to the question, the Pentagon decided to look to the past... more»

“Presidential Advisers’ Testimony Before Congressional Committees: An Overview,” updated July 16, 2008.

“The Global Nuclear Detection Architecture: Issues for Congress,” July 16, 2008

“Foreign Science and Engineering Presence in U.S. Institutions and the Labor Force,” updated July 23, 2008.

“Intelligence Reform at the Department of Energy: Policy Issues and Organizational Alternatives,” July 28, 2008.

Pentagon Mounts $2.2 Billion Push for War Zone Surveillance

New US Cyber Defense Coordinator Hints at Plans

CACI International taps former CIA official

CACI Appoints James L. Pavitt to Board of Directors

Militarizing the Social Sciences

H20 Slate

H21 From Literary Review, John Gray reviews Between the Monster and the Saint: Reflections on the Human Condition by Richard Holloway

From California to Ulan Bator, from $500 to $1.23 per week, from sashimi to mayonnaise sandwiches, the photos tell it all. What the world eats... more»

The Neanderthal murder mystery Why did Neanderthal man become extinct? Was it interbreeding with humans? Or did our ancestors wipe them out? Steve Connor reports on a fossil that may solve the puzzle

I'm torn to see newspapers go

I love my laptop, but I'll miss the feel of paper.

Alain de Botton: Nice buildings don't always make us better people

Literary critics often use “voice” to mean “style.” But real writers have real voices too, and they have been recorded... more»

The death of the perfect 10 Gymnastics fans once held their breath, hoping to see that flawless score, but no more

Los Angeles may force restaurants to post calories on menus

George Orwell would have blogged Allan Massie says the news that Orwell's diary is to go online is further proof of the joys of e-journals

The American Conservative How Good Was the Good War? TAC contributors debate the lessons of World War II and their relevance to American foreign policy today. Scott McConnell Thomas E. Woods Jr. Andrew J. Bacevich Stuart Reid
Christopher Layne
Ted Galen Carpenter
Michael Vlahos

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