081208f - 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 Guardian Russian troops close in on Georgian capital Kremlin forces seize control of several towns as Georgia pulls back troops to defend Tbilisi

Terror tactics Editorial: It would be a major strategic blunder for Russian tanks to rumble on into Tbilisi

A line in the sand Dilip Hiro: Georgia's disastrous attack on South Ossetia has given Russia a perfect excuse to roll back US control of Azerbaijan's oil supply

Bump’ or ‘Turn’ in Road - Council on Foreign Relations

In Russia-Georgia Conflict, Balkan Shadows - Council on Foreign Relations

Russia Blames the Victim By SVANTE E. CORNELL This war is about making Georgia an example of the consequences post-Soviet countries will suffer for standing up to Moscow

Newsweek The Danger of Appeasing Russia Over Georgia

McClatchy Russian troops dominate Georgia, seize key cities, port Russian troops were reported in control of Georgia's main east-west highway outside the central Georgian town of Gori, had taken control of Georgia's main port at Poti, had seized a Georgian military base in the west and had complete dominion of the skies, from which they bombed and strafed retreating Georgian troops at will. Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili accused the Russians of "implementing the reoccupation of Georgia to eliminate the independence of Georgia."

U.S. knew Georgia trouble was coming, but couldn't stop it

Slate Lonely Night in Georgia

The Bush administration's feckless response to the Russian invasion. Fred Kaplan

Ha’aretz – Olmert gives Abbas plan for Israeli pullout from 93% of West Bank Detailed final status proposal offers free Gaza-W. Bank passage only once PA has retaken coastal strip

Jerusalem Post Israel fears Russian-Syrian arms pact

Officials say Assad visit to Moscow a Russian attempt to get more involved in the indirect talks

Bush Rejects Bushism By: Derek Chollet and James Goldgeier | The American Prospect
Over the past year, the Bush administration has moved left on foreign policy -- negotiating with governments it previously shunned and abandoning its long-standing preference for unilateral action.

Financial Times Russia is forfeiting standing in world

An autocratic Russia will never get to where it wants to be in the 21st century by behaving like a 19th-century power

Decoding the messages in Moscow's movements

The new age of authoritarianism

The west has been remarkably sanguine about this resurgence, because this time the comrades have money. Even as the Kremlin confiscates the assets of its own business people and foreign ones, investors are flocking to a Moscow flush with petro-roubles, writes Chrystia Freeland

• 'America, Israel, and the Middle East: Confronting the Challenges of Tomorrow', The Washington Institute for Near East Policy (conference proceedings)

Georgia Appeals to Beijing

Ghosts of Kosovo in the Caucasus

Wall Street Journal Vladimir Bonaparte Georgia is only the first stop for Eurasia's new imperialist
.

Welcome Back to the 19th Century By Josef Joffe Neo-czar Putin has thrust us back into the age of imperialism.

How the West Can Stand Up to Russia By Gary Schmitt and Mauro De Lorenzo For starters, let's rush military and medical supplies to Tbilisi.

The War in Iraq Is Over. What Next? By Bing West We are withdrawing as conditions permit
.

'Turmoil in Central Asia'
By Martha Olcott ,And Johannes Linn A recipe for trouble in Afghanistan

“Russia and Georgia at War,” Michael A. Reynolds

Washington Post Editorial The Invasion Continues The West confronts an unfamiliar sight: a nation bent on conquest.

Russia's Power Play By George F. Will This crisis shows the paralysis of the U.N. regarding major powers

Brutality to Make a Point By Richard Cohen, Vladimir Putin is intent on making a statement: Russia is back

A Path to Peace in the Caucasus

By Mikhail Gorbachev, Georgia flouted peace and Russia had to respond.

IHT A ready response to Moscow By EDWARD P. JOSEPH Bringing Macedonia into NATO will send a strong message about the integrity of small states.

The Economist Russia has the upper hand Russia has extended the conflict to a war inside Georgia. The West will have a hard time responding

Daily Star The US will regret its reversal on Iran By Michael Rubin

US military surprised by speed, timing...

BUSH WARNS RUSSIA TO PULL BACK

The Politico: 7 worrisome signs for Obama.

Joshua Green / The Atlantic Online: The Front-Runner's Fall —

The Looming Crisis: Displacement and Security in Iraq
Source: The Brookings Institution

Der Spiegel Interview with NATO's Afghanistan Commander: 'A Counter-Insurgency Takes a Long Time, Longer than We Thought'

RFERL Former Soviet Sphere Shocked Into Silence By Ossetia Conflict CIS countries face a difficult choice in formulating their response to the Russian-Georgian conflict.

War in the Caucasus: Towards a Broader Russia-US Military Confrontation?

Public Diplomacy in the Twenty-First Century

Slate Al-Qaida at 20 From obscurity to infamy. Daniel Byman

A Roadblock to Russian Oil and Gas
BusinessWeek

War Threatens Key Pipeline For Crude Oil Wall Street Journal –

LA Times Message from Moscow There's a warning sign for the West in the conflict between Russia and Georgia.

Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili's 'calculated gamble' When he moved troops into disputed South Ossetia, the young leader adored by Washington put his nation in a precarious position

Georgia-Russia Clash: American Culpability and the Kosovo ...

Don't Cry Over Doha Failure as the Stakes Were Inflated By: Dani Rodrik | The Japan Times
Don't cry over the Doha talks. They never were a "development round," and tomorrow's world with regard to trade will hardly look any different from yesterday's.

Moscow's Motives in Its Georgian War By: Richard Weitz | World Politics Review The question was always whether Moscow would exploit its local military superiority to compel Georgia's formal dismemberment or would instead hold the threat of armed interventions in reserve in an attempt to influence Georgian foreign policy without incurring the damage to Russian-Western relations that might ensue from blatant military action against Tbilisi.

Independent Leading article: Careless talk can cost lives

The Russian Leadership: Putin in his element as successor is left in the back seat

The Beleaguered President: High-stakes gambler who risked his country and links with the West

The Battle for Oil: EU’s hope to bypass Russian energy may be a pipe dream

Mary Dejevsky: Intervention may breed instability

Musharraf locked in battle to avoid impeachment as allies turn away Pakistan's government is finalising a "charge-sheet" against Pervez Musharraf as battle lines are drawn in the struggle over the President's future

Salon Radio: Professor Charles King on Russia/Georgia

Christian Science Monitor

Stronger U.S. role likely in Afghanistan The Pentagon wants more control over NATO there in light of Taliban resurgence.

The Times Georgia gambit may end slide in crude price

Georgia: energy market manipulation or old-fashioned power grab?

The Russia-Georgia grudge match

Retaking Ossetia is just one part of Russia's campaign to reassert dominance and defy the US

Simon Sebag Montefiore

Georgian army flees in disarray as Russians advance Georgia said the Russian army was in charge of several towns and its tanks appeared to moving towards the capital Tbilisi

The Neocons Overreact on Russo-Georgian Conflict - Joe Klein, Time

Moscow Unleashes Power Politics - Joerg Himmelreich, Der Spiegel

A Collision of Foreign Policy Narratives - Ross Douthat, The Atlantic

The Inverse of Bad News from Iraq - Christopher Hitchens, Slate

H2 Jerusalem Post Turkey's abandonment of the West

Turkey's regional influence
Washington Times BY Tulin Daloglu

9 Turkish soldiers killed by roadside bomb A roadside bomb exploded in eastern Turkey on Monday, killing nine soldiers who were on their way back from an operation against Kurdish rebels, an official said. Two other soldiers were wounded.

ABD benden niye vazgeçti

EDM TURKEY CAUGHT IN A DILEMMA OVER SOUTH OSSETIA

Lale Sarıibrahimoğlu Turkey’s strong Circassian lobby to limit Ankara’s policies on Georgia war

İlter Türkmen Bölgemizdeki her krizde telaşa kapılmayalım

Enis Berberoğlu Kafkas satrancında PKK yeniden piyon

Gürcistan harekâtının anlamı NEJAT ESLEN

Kerim Balcı Zero-problem policy disturbed

Şahin Alpay Ankara dış politika sınavlarında

A Roadblock to Russian Oil and Gas
BusinessWeek

Will Talabani return to Iraq?
By Michael Rubin

İBRAHİM KARAGÜL Bir delinin başımıza açtığı belaya bakın!

Ankara'dan Kafkas İttifakı teklifi

Ucuz Azeri doğalgazı tehlikede

Kafkas ittifakı önerisi

‘Gürcistan, Türkiye’den askeri yardım istedi’

PKK's attacks in eastern Turkey part of international energy wars

Turkish business interests at stake in Russia-Georgia war

Türkiye’deki Kafkasyalılar soydaşlarının yarasını sarmak istiyor

Erdoğan önce yalanladı, sonra ‘Silah satmak anormal değil’ dedi

Kafkasların ateşi Türkiye'yi de yakabilir

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

Hain pusu

Erzincan’da hain tuzak

Kumandalı terör

Ahmet Türk: 'Baykal’ın her sözü beni ürkütüyor'

Munzur’da büyük operasyon

Hatay'da faciadan dönüldü

Cumhuriyet editörü: Öcalan bebek katili değil

Cevdet Aşkın

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

Türkiye Kafkas İttifakı İstiyor

Sorunlu bölgeler
Gürcistan'da merkezi yönetimle gerginlik yaşayan özerk bölgelerin profili

Talat-Hristofyas görüşmesine yönelik beklentiler yüksek

PatrIck Seale

3 bin Türk ile 6 gemi mahsur

Gürcistan politikası değişmedi

Kafkas ittifakı oluşturabiliriz

Sami Kohen Rusya’nın istediği oluyor ama...

Andrew Finkel Georgia and Turkish ambivalence

[HABER İZLENİM] Gori artık hayalet şehir

Fikret Ertan Çatışmanın deniz cephesi...

HAKAN ALBAYRAK

Bu gidişle Gürcüler de Osetler de Abhazlar da kaybedecek

AKİF EMRE

Yeni dönemin ilanı

Güney Osetya ve devlet kavramı

Bülent Korucu 13 numaralı oyuncu Gürcistan mı?

Serdar Turgut Dehşet dengesi

Abdülhamit Bilici Russian solution to a global fight

Erivan: 1 - 0 öndeyiz

Safety of pipeline has conflicting reports (View Article)

'Rusya Kafkaslar'ın İstikrarını Bozuyor'

Güzelyurt garantisi

Savaş Süzal Gürcü lidere saldırı emrini kim verdi?

Hedo Okur Tuncay Nihat Altintop

Basınla ilişkilere tuğgeneral rütbesi

Hadi Uluengin Prens darbeci miydi?

Eyüp Can Kolay yoldan para kazanmanın yeni yolu

Tuzla tersanelerinde insana verilen değer kum torbası kadar

Ararat

Migros'u solladı, Carrefour'u katladı: En değerli perakendeci "BİM"

Abbas Güçlü Vakıf üniversiteleri ticarethane mi?

Güngör Uras ‘Rixos’un arkasında büyük bir yatırım grubu var

Elif Şafak Habermas'ın düşündürdükleri

İran-Marmaris- İspanya üçgeninde uyuşturucu tacirlerine derin darbe!

Turks moving at snail’s pace in Beijing

H3

Kalleş mayına 9 şehit daha

Ergenekon’la Gladyo’yu bağlayan kilit isim: Emek

O gece Kılıç'la tavla oynadık

Yargıyla sıcak temas

Ergenekoncuların Sabetayist listesi

Eski MİT’çi, Küçük’ten ‘istihbaratçı’ istemiş

Anayasa değişirse söyleriz

İlk icraat halkla ilişkiler

Ahmet Türk: 'Baykal’ın her sözü beni ürkütüyor'

CHP devlet partisi değil

Davadan sonra
Alper Ballı ve Güney Yıldız kapatma davası ardından siyasetin gündemini irdeliyor

Haberal'a özel kredilerde faiz farkını Hazine ödemiş

Dursun Karataş kanserden öldü

PM Erdoğan expected to reshuffle Cabinet, top posts

Gölge ordudan Ergenekon'a-9

ERDOĞAN VE GÜL YER DEĞİŞTİRMEZ

Namlunun ucundaki dört yıldızlı generaller, Apoletli suikastlar zinciri

Eşref Bitlis ile Cem Ersever'i aynı ekip öldürdü

MİT belgesi gerçek, kardeşimi İsrail öldürdü

Bazı dernekler, Alevileri AB fonları için 'İslam dışı' göstermeye çalışıyor

CHP ile TSK arasındaki polemik yanlış normalleşme için herkese görev düşüyor

Başbakanlıktan ‘mahalle baskısı’ incelemesi

Alevi ve solcular fişlendi!

’Kasası’ beş parasız ’avukatı’ milyoner

1 milyon dolarlık iş takibi belgesi

5. ‘Bu belgenin altına imza atanların elleri temiz olamaz’

‘Utandırıcı bir hata’

‘Üniversiteleri siyasallaştırıyorlar’

CHP lideri Baykal “Önce Milli Eğitim’de yaptılar, şimdi YÖK’te yapıyorlar. Kendilerine dokununca ’demokrasi’ diye bağırıyorlar” dedi

'AKP'den yüzde 10 alırız'

Siyasete soyunan Osman Pamukoğlu katıldığı televizyon programında iddialı açıklamalar yaptı

Son Dakika Milliyet Hürriyet Zaman

Cengiz Çandar

Ahmet Taşgetiren 10 yıl sonra...

Devletin iki yanı

Ruşen - Çakır

Taha Akyol Süper devlet Rusya

Fikret Bila Saakaşvili koltuğunu koruyabilecek mi?

Hasan Cemal

Murat Yetkin Rusya, Kosova’nın hesabını Gürcistan’da mı görüyor?

İsmet Berkan Ülkesini kumarda kaybeden adam...

Fehmi Koru Dikkatle ve ihtiyatla

Taha Kıvanç Tatilde tatil üzerine düşünceler

Oray Eğin Her büyük olay ona bağlanıyor

Mehmet Altan Saakaşvili Tolstoy okudu mu?

Şamil Tayyar

Ali Bayramoğlu AK Parti neden kapatılmadı?

Yasemin Çongar

Mümtazer Türköne AK Parti'nin anayasa kurmayları

Ertuğrul Özkök Dördüncü uçak ne oldu

OKAN MÜDERRİSOĞLU
TSK'dan general ayarı

Güneri Civaoğlu Erdoğan’a Özal deneyimi

TAMER KORKMAZ

Gizli Washington Portakalı'nın 'Eşref Saati'

Milletine yabancı milliyetçilik (1)

Ahmet Hakan

M Ali Birand

Cüneyt Ülsever

Enis Berberoğlu Kafkas satrancında PKK yeniden piyon

Oktay Ekşi Kavgada ahlak

Özdemir İnce Konya Balcılar rezaleti ve çocuk hakları

Mehmet Y Yılmaz Çetemin mensuplarını nasıl seçtim?

Dine dayalı hukuk değişir mi?
TÜRKER ALKAN

Rektör atamaları ve Cumhurbaşkanı...
ORAL ÇALIŞLAR

Çıbanbaşı Kafkaslar’da zor oyun
HASAN CELAL GÜZEL

Ergenekon ve geçmişi temize çekmek
NURAY MERT

Derya Sazak CHP, Sezer, Gül

Sami Selçuk Ádil yargılamayı etkileme suçları -I

Berat Özipek ‘Yargıyı etkileme suçu?’

Eser Karakaş Ruanda’dan Ergenekon’a

MUHARREM SARIKAYA Üç Kıbrıs...

ERDAL ŞAFAKOyun kurucu olmak

ENGİN ARDIÇ

ERGUN BABAHAN Şehitlerimiz

EMRE AKÖZ Rektörü seçmek 'demokrasi' mi?

Umur Talu
Miras nasıl elden ele geçti?

HASAN BÜLENT KAHRAMAN

NAZLI ILICAK Gül keyfi davrandı mı?

MEHMET BARLAS Gürcistan "Castro'nun Küba'sı" rolünü oynayamazdı...

MAHMUT ÖVÜR Muhalefet sendromu nasıl biter?

YAVUZ DONAT

Ali Bulaç Coups cannot always be repeated

Fatih Altaylı Türk medyasını çürüten genler

Aydın Ayaydın Başbakan Erdoğan’ın Bakırköy adayı Albayrak mı?

Can Ataklı Ne demek istediğimi anlatayım

Mehmet Tezkan Tarikatların gölgesinde göstermelik demokrasi!

rgenekon sanığı askere bilgi vermiş

Ekonomi

IMF anlaşma için ön şart koştu, hükümet kabul etmiyor

ABDURRAHMAN YILDIRIM

Kredi kartında en kötü dönem geride kaldı

Seyfettin Gürsel Yeni program

Ercan Kumcu

ABD ve Türkiye ekonomileri
MAHFİ EĞİLMEZ

Erdal Sağlam Bakanlar, kabine revizyonu telaşında

MELİKŞAH UTKU

Cari Açık ve Geleneksel İhracat Sektörlerimiz

Yaman Törüner Satmak lazım

Güven Sak Sanayi politikası ihtiyacı artıyor

Deniz Gökçe
Sanayi çöküyor mu?

Asaf Savaş Akat

İlk yarıda dış finansman

Turkish experience with banking crises resolution

War Puts Focus on McCain’s Hard Line on Russia

Investors Struggle With the Uncertainty of Fighting Between Russia and Georgia

Memos and E-Mail Reveal Discord in Clinton Campaign

H5 Washington Post Russia Pushes Into Georgia In Undisputed Area, Troops Seize Town and Military Base

Russian Airstrikes Continue

Push comes despite President Dmitry Medvedev saying that operations are almost complete.

ATTEMPT TO OUST SAAKASHVILI? Bush Questions Russia's Motives

Economic Malaise Threatens To Undermine European Unity

Editorial The Invasion Continues

The West confronts an unfamiliar sight: a nation bent on conquest.

Russia's Power Play By George F. Will This crisis shows the paralysis of the U.N. regarding major powers

Brutality to Make a Point By Richard Cohen, Vladimir Putin is intent on making a statement: Russia is back

A Path to Peace in the Caucasus

By Mikhail Gorbachev, Georgia flouted peace and Russia had to respond.

Jordan's Abdullah Travels to Baghdad King Is First Arab Ruler to Visit Iraq Since '03 Invasion

EVACUATIONS IN CAPITAL

Anxiety Hovers Over Tbilisi

Pakistan's Punjab Assembly Votes Overwhelmingly for Musharraf to Quit

When China Starved By Anne Applebaum, It's in Beijing's interest for some questions to remain unasked and unanswered.

'Snake Oil' Debunking three 'truths' about offshore drilling

H6 Guardian Russian troops close in on Georgian capital Kremlin forces seize control of several towns as Georgia pulls back troops to defend Tbilisi

Terror tactics Editorial: It would be a major strategic blunder for Russian tanks to rumble on into Tbilisi

A line in the sand Dilip Hiro: Georgia's disastrous attack on South Ossetia has given Russia a perfect excuse to roll back US control of Azerbaijan's oil supply

Standing up to Russia Alexandros Petersen: Georgia must not be abandoned by the west. Bush, Brown, Merkel and Sarkozy should all visit Tbilisi this week

The real wake-up call of South Ossetia James Poulos: The anti-Russian lobby is in full flow, but there are more important lessons to be learned from the Russo-Georgian conflict

Luke Harding: An exercise in collective punishment

Ian Traynor: Putin's war can have only one victor

Exodus gathers pace as the funerals begin

Georgia and Russia: Factfile

Q&A: what happens now?

Russia crosses the line Richard Holbrooke and Ronald Asmus: This is not a conflict Georgia wanted, and Moscow's behavior is a direct challenge to the European and international order

'Anthrax killer' remains a mystery

Brad Friedman: The FBI's accusations against dead scientist Bruce Ivins are full of holes. The case may be closed but it isn't solved

Europe's vital step to make carbon markets work Mark Bell: Emissions trading has had some success, but a new institution is needed to guarantee its future

Al-Qaida video calls for war on Pakistan Terrorist group labels Musharraf stooge of America and calls for an uprising to overthrow the Pakistan state

The laureate of all Arabs Mahmoud Darwish is dead, but the voice of the Palestinian resistance will live on in all of us, says Ahdaf Soueif

Obama to text running mate's name

Campaign team unveil plans to text and email supporters choice of vice presidential candidate

H7 Slate Iraq's Budget Surplus Scandal Why do we have such a hard time hearing good news from Baghdad? Christopher Hitchens

U.S. ship heads for Arctic to define territory...

Dollar hits 6-month high against Euro...

Iranians In Dark Over Power Investment By: Najmeh Borozogmehr | Financial Times
In the 1980s, power cuts were accepted as part of daily life, but now Iranians question how record oil revenues, which amounted to $54bn (€36bn, £28bn) for the first half of this year, can have such little impact on their living standards

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

Iraq Private Sector Falters; Rolls of Government Soar By: Campbell Robertson | The New York Times
Hampered by years of violence, a decimated infrastructure, a lack of foreign investors and a flood of imports that undercut local businesses, Iraq’s private sector, particularly its small non-oil economy, has so far failed to flourish as its American patrons had hoped

Despite Amnesty Offer, Violence Continues in Iraqi Province (View Article)

BBC Jordan's king in first Iraq visit

King Abdullah of Jordan becomes the first Arab head of state to visit Iraq since the 2003 overthrow of Saddam Hussein.

Iraq and its neighbours

H9 Ha’aretz – Olmert gives Abbas plan for Israeli pullout from 93% of West Bank Detailed final status proposal offers free Gaza-W. Bank passage only once PA has retaken coastal strip

Benn The Taiwan of the Middle East Three years after the disengagement, the Taiwan of the Middle East is taking shape in the Gaza Strip - a "rebellious province" of the Palestinian Authority whose government is not internationally recognized, subject to meddling by regional and international superpowers.

PA negotiator: Israel may make two-state solution impossible

VIDEO / Young Hamas campers now ready for battle with Israel

Bush: Russia's acts in Georgia jeopardize its U.S., Europe ties

Jerusalem Post Israel fears Russian-Syrian arms pact

Officials say Assad visit to Moscow a Russian attempt to get more involved in the indirect talks

Analysis: Russia sends a message to the West By TOVAH LAZAROFF
Israeli Russian experts: Georgia lost a foolhardy gamble in thumbing its nose at its neighbor

Russia appreciates Israeli 'balance' Russian ambassador tells 'Post' that Moscow, too, recognizes Georgia's terroritorial integrity

Georgian official to 'Post': Russia moving in on capital Georgian president confirms Russian forces have overtaken Gori, only 100 kilometers from capital; says Russia has split Georgia in half

Yedioth Ahronoth Tbilisi- Georgia's last stand?
As Russian troops advance towards Georgian capital, President Bush slams Moscow's military campaign in South Ossetia as 'unacceptable.' PM Putin retorts, calling Washington hypocritical while comparing Georgia to Saddam's Iraq

No reason for pride

Israel should be ashamed of military experts who sell know-how worldwide, B. Michael says

Post-Zionism’s fatal flaw If Israel is not Zionist, it won’t be Jewish; if it’s not Jewish it won’t be democratic

Russia flexing its muscles Fighting in Georgia a serious test for the West, and mostly for America

Hamas hunts truce violators Islamist group vows still committed to ceasefire, says searching for perpetrators of rocket attack

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

Palestinians doubt two-state deal Israel's negotiating strategy could force Palestinians to abandon their goal of a two-state solution, a top official says.

The laureate of all Arabs

Mahmoud Darwish is dead, but the voice of the Palestinian resistance will live on in all of us, says Ahdaf Soueif

Mahmoud Darwish is gone, but his struggles are not yet laid to rest

Israel May Suspend Arms Sales to Georgia By: Yaniv Berman | The Media Line Israel's Foreign Ministry has issued a recommendation to freeze the sale of Israeli security equipment to Georgia, fearing complications with Russia. Israeli officials believe Russia may interpret the sale of Israeli weapons to Georgia as a move that jeopardizes Russia's security, the Israeli Daily Haaretz reported.

Hamas Tightens its Hold on the Gaza Strip INSS

Gaza blockade

Guide to what gets in and what gets out of the strip

CSM In one town, Gazans yearn for previous Israeli presence

Mawassi residents say life was better before 2005, when they were part of an Israeli settlement enclave. Few can find work now

Defining identity, the dilemma facing Arabs in Israel
By Anna Mahjar-Barducci

H10 Christian Science Monitor

Stronger U.S. role likely in Afghanistan The Pentagon wants more control over NATO there in light of Taliban resurgence.

Roots of Georgia-Russia clash run deep The war broadened Monday as Russian troops moved beyond rebel provinces into Georgia proper.

ASIA

Today's Pictures China's Muslim minority.

Securing Pakistan's Tribal Belt CFR This 78-page US monograph analyzes the challenges presented by the Pakistani tribal areas bordering Pakistan

The Right Way to Engage China
\"Foreign Affairs\"

The Other Olympic Gold By: Gregory Rodriguez | Los Angeles Times 'One World, One Dream" -- that's the slogan the Chinese Olympic Committee chose for the 2008 Games in Beijing. But don't let the idealism fool you. This year, beneath the roar of the high-minded sloganeering, you could hear the same twin engines that have powered all modern Olympiads: nationalism and capitalism.

Pakistan's Musharraf faces impeachment, al Qaida's wrath

Pakistan's beleaguered President Pervez Musharraf, a U.S. ally, on Monday received a direct violent threat from al Qaida while his political opponents convened parliament to begin impeachment proceedings against him

IHT RETURN TO GLORY

China's sudden fall and slow recovery By PHILIP AUERSWALD China may most accurately be understood simply as a rich country gradually returning to its old form.

The long, hard slog against scrappy Taliban fighters

'RAGTAG TALIBAN Show Tenacity in Afghanistan," read the headline last week. Washington and NATO capitals were reportedly "soul-searching" over how a disheveled insurgency had managed to "keep the world's most powerful armies at bay." This should hardly have come as a surprise. (By H.D.S. Greenway, Boston Globe

The Dissident Within

What a book about China's great famine says about the country's transformation. Anne Applebaum

H11 IHT A ready response to Moscow By EDWARD P. JOSEPH

Bringing Macedonia into NATO will send a strong message about the integrity of small states.

Russia steps up its push; West faces tough choices The United States and its European allies faced tough choices over how to push back Russian troops from Georgian territory

For a president with a penchant for flourishes, a rebuke in the boom of artillery Critics say Mikheil Saakashvili, Georgia's president, has shown he is willing to put his ambition ahead of the best interests of his people

RETURN TO GLORY China's sudden fall and slow recovery

By PHILIP AUERSWALD

China may most accurately be understood simply as a rich country gradually returning to its old form.

EUROPE European press review

Central Asia fighting imperils fuel flow to Europe

Union for the Mediterranean: Building on the Barcelona Acquis ISS
A 32-page report evaluating the challenges facing the Mediterranean and the EU's policy towards the region

All Signs Indicate that Euro's Joyride Is at an End By: Rosemary Righter | The London Times
Feet firmly planted on the Maginot Line last Thursday, Jean-Claude Trichet reaffirmed the European Central Bank's settled conviction that “the fundamentals of the euro area are sound and the euro area does not suffer from major imbalances”.

A Common EU Defense Strategy Is Still a Ways Ahead By: Henri Bentageat | The Daily Star
Anyone reflecting on the value, weight, and relevance of today's European military forces for global affairs needs to keep two crucial questions in mind: Where do we want to go? What do we want to achieve?

EU-Russia Relations in Jeopardy as Bombs Hit Tbilisi By: Andrew Rettman | EU Observer
The suspension of EU-Russia negotiations on a new bilateral pact, freezing talks on visa-free travel for Russian citizens and holding back EU humanitarian aid to Chechnya until Russia ends aggression in Georgia could be among ideas debated by EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Wednesday (13 August).

France's Nuclear Conundrum: Atomic World Champ on the Ropes

H12 RFE/RL

EDM RUSSIAN “TANDEMOCRACY” STUMBLES INTO A WAR

- SOME ANALYSTS SAY RUSSIA’S SILOVIKI BENEFIT FROM A WAR WITH GEORGIA

- UKRAINE AND THE CONFLICT IN SOUTH OSSETIA

BBC Russian troops advance in Georgia Russian forces enter Georgia from the breakaway region of Abkhazia as the conflict between the neighbours appears to broaden.

High stakes Russia's incursions deep into Georgia worry the West

Widening Russian action in Georgia affecting global oil supplies

Google News Azerbaijan

Russian tanks roar deep into Georgia, launching new front

In Search of a Free Georgia and South Ossetia By: Lincoln Mitchell | The Moscow Times Last week, tension between Russia and Georgia, which had been growing since the Rose Revolution brought Georgia's reformist, pro-U.S. President Mikheil Saakashvili to power in 2004, finally led to open hostility between the two countries.

Democracy and Autocracy in Eurasia: Georgia in Transition

Mediation efforts to end Georgia-Russia conflict step up

Russian "Imperialist Boots" Stomping on Georgia - President
Beleaguered yet unbowed, President Mikheil Saakshvili urged Georgians to resist a relentless Russian military onslaught. At the same time, the Georgian leader stepped up efforts to mobilize international opinion against the Kremlin, amid reports that Russian forces are deliberately trying to terrorize the civilian population

War of the hotheads

RUSSIA'S ATTACKS on Georgian troops, territory, and infrastructure over the weekend were brutal and unjustified. For the sake of all the people in that region of the Caucasus, and to avoid a calamitous new rift between Russia and the West, there must be an immediate cease-fire and negotiations to resolve the disputes that caused the current war. Chief among these ... (Boston Globe)

Grappling with an emboldened Russia

MUCH MORE than in Iraq, world democracy is at stake in Georgia. Russia has preserved the form of democratic elections, within which cliques of secret policemen and economic oligarchs run the country. All the democratic revolutions in Europe in the last 20 years, beginning with the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, are presented as "operations" of Western states. (By Timothy Snyder, Boston Globe)

Ukraine to Defend Georgia Against Russia’s Blockade By: Grigory Plakhotnikov, Valery Kalnysh, and Yelena Geda | Kommersant
Ukraine is practically the only CIS country to openly back Georgia demanding that Russia immediately withdraw its troops from the territory of Georgia. Yesterday Kiev threatened to block the returning of Russia’s Black Sea Fleet to Sevastopol in case the ships take part in a sea blockade of Georgia.

Central Asia: Hizb-ut-Tahrir on the Rise By: Samantha Brletich | Diplomatic Courier Hizb-ut-Tahir seeks to establish a Caliphate that will govern the world according to Islamic law, but in Central Asia it claims to be just another political party

Geogia Conflict Alert
Crisis Group
A media release calling for an immediate end to hostilities in South Ossetia

H13 The Times Georgia gambit may end slide in crude price

Georgia: energy market manipulation or old-fashioned power grab?

The Russia-Georgia grudge match

Retaking Ossetia is just one part of Russia's campaign to reassert dominance and defy the US

Simon Sebag Montefiore

Georgian army flees in disarray as Russians advance Georgia said the Russian army was in charge of several towns and its tanks appeared to moving towards the capital Tbilisi

King of Jordan pays secret visit to Iraq King Abdullah II of Jordan is the first Arab head of state to travel to Iraq since the fall of Saddam Hussein in 2003

Kashmiri leader shot dead by Indian police Sheikh Abdul Aziz was killed when police opened fire on a huge pro-independence march in Indian-administered Kashmir

France unveils plan for Georgia at the UN The proposal, calling on both sides immediately to cease hostilities, has had a frosty reception from Russia

Wall Street Journal For Putin, a Line in the Sand

Russia's military operations in Georgia highlight two trends: Putin still plays a preeminent role in Kremlin policy. And Moscow is determined to reassert its role as the dominant force inside, and beyond, the former Soviet frontiers.

Vladimir Bonaparte
Georgia is only the first stop for Eurasia's new imperialist.

Welcome Back to the 19th Century By Josef Joffe
Neo-czar Putin has thrust us back into the age of imperialism.

How the West Can Stand Up to Russia
By Gary Schmitt and Mauro De Lorenzo For starters, let's rush military and medical supplies to Tbilisi.

The War in Iraq Is Over. What Next?
By Bing West We are withdrawing as conditions permit.

'Turmoil in Central Asia'
By Martha Olcott
And Johannes Linn A recipe for trouble in Afghanistan

Prizes to Improve Life
By Newt Gingrich

Turtle Bay to the Rescue
By James Taranto Russia's aggression against Georgia exposes the vanity of idolizing the U.N.

Chinese Faith
Religious repression rears its ugly head again.

Peace Bid in Georgia Fails Russian troops occupied towns outside Georgia's disputed territories, sparking fears of a full invasion. Bush demanded that Moscow end a "dramatic and brutal escalation" of violence, but U.S. efforts to press its case in the U.N. failed to get traction. The conflict marks Europe's biggest diplomatic test since the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq. (Complete Coverage)

U.S. Retools Economy, Curbing Thirst for Oil

The U.S. economy is starting to figure out how to curb its appetite for energy. Consumers are buying fewer SUVs and more energy-saving washing machines; with shipping costs surging, companies are rethinking overseas production. And evidence is emerging that the changing behavior of consumers and businesses may be making a dent in the oil market.

Why Tony Blair May Be Having a Laugh By Kyle Wingfield
The former prime minister still defines British politics

Oil Goes to the Bears Crude fell 75 cents to $114.45 a barrel as the conflict between Russia and Georgia failed to halt oil's retreat. Inside the commodity-trading pits and brokerage houses, the conversation isn't whether prices are pulling back in the near term, but how far and for how long. The Dow industrials advanced 48.03 points, or 0.4%, to 11782.35, building on a rally from last week

Texas Is Fed Up With Corn Ethanol

By Rick Perry
There are better energy solutions than turning food into fuel.

What If the FBI Is Right About Bruce Ivins?

By Randall J. Larsen
Everything we thought we knew about bioterror could be wrong

H14 Financial Times Russia is forfeiting standing in world

An autocratic Russia will never get to where it wants to be in the 21st century by behaving like a 19th-century power

Decoding the messages in Moscow's movements

The new age of authoritarianism

The west has been remarkably sanguine about this resurgence, because this time the comrades have money. Even as the Kremlin confiscates the assets of its own business people and foreign ones, investors are flocking to a Moscow flush with petro-roubles, writes Chrystia Freeland

China’s next gold It must be persuaded to play its part in global efforts to cut emissions; that task will be far harder than meeting the challenge of Chinese competition

Russia opens up new front

Blow dealt to prospect of oil pipeline security

Moscow threatens Georgia regime, says Bush President George W. Bush accused Russia of invading Georgia and said Moscow appeared to be mounting an effort to overthrow the “duly elected government” in Tbilisi

McCain condemnation upstages Bush

It took four days and a growing chorus of criticism from conservatives before George W. Bush matched John McCain’s tough stance on Russia

Rachman Georgia and Russia could both lose

Ukraine toughens Moscow stance

Along with Georgia, Ukraine is a rare western ally on post-Soviet turf and has much at stake in Tbilisi’s bloody standoff with their neighbour, Russia

Saakashvili says Moscow wants to oust him President Mikheil Saakashvili accused the Russian government of invading the undisputed territory of Georgia and of seeking to depose his government as Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, blasted the US for airlifting Georgian troops home from Iraq

Brown criticises Moscow over Georgia Britain’s prime minister has said there is “no justification” for Russia’s continued military action in Georgia, in another sign of mounting tension between London and Moscow

Algeria tightens foreign investor rules Majority stake to be held by nationals after president says foreigners have been allowed to profit without reinvesting in the country

Carrefour shakes up Iran retailing

What should the west do? Forum: As the conflict between Russia and Georgia escalates, the west seems increasingly powerless to stop it. Should western governments let events unravel?

A Danish fix for the US mortgage crisis In Denmark, loan-to-value ratios and underwriting standards are strictly enforced by a single, strong regulator, writes George Soros

Obituary: Mahmoud Darwish The concept of a national poet with the power to shape a national movement and define a country’s collective spirit seems to belong to a different century. But for Palestinians, who have yet to see their dreams of an independent state realised, it was embodied by Mahmoud Darwish

Disquieting holiday reading for politicos The preconditions for a globally organised terrorism are in place: the weapons are potentially available, writes John Lloyd

Georgia unrest poses problems for Sochi 2014 Russia’s plans to host the 2014 winter Olympics in Sochi are likely to face difficulties because of its support for the separatist movements in the breakaway regions of Georgia

Gloom for European manufacturers

Slowdown and inflation hit optimism

Trichet’s biggest test Criticism of the policy decisions that the European Central Bank has taken over the past year has been misguided, writes David Mackie

Baltic states turn on Russia The Baltic states, past victims of Kremlin attacks, have called on the European Union to suspend its drive for closer relations with Russia after its invasion of Georgia

H15 Los Angeles Times Russians open second front in Georgia clash

Troops seize an army base and reportedly control a key highway. Bush is sharply critical of Russia.

Message from Moscow There's a warning sign for the West in the conflict between Russia and Georgia.

Georgia President Mikheil Saakashvili's 'calculated gamble' When he moved troops into disputed South Ossetia, the young leader adored by Washington put his nation in a precarious position.

Editorial

U.S., Allies Keep Up Pressure on Russia to End Attacks in Georgia The United States and its allies scrambled Sunday to respond to Russia's attack on Georgia, including asking Moscow whether it intended to overthrow democratically elected President Mikheil Saakashvili.

Getting one's bearings in the Georgia-Russia conflict The fighting in the Caucasus is Russia's biggest foray beyond its borders since the Soviet collapse. It is also the culmination of years of antagonism

A big surprise on gas You may not believe it, but fuel is more affordable than it was during the early '60s

Jordan's King Abdullah II visits Iraq The move is a boost to Iraq's bid to forge ties with its Sunni-led Arab neighbors, who it says have shunned its Shiite Muslim leadership

U.S. coalition kills 25 militants, 8 Afghan hostages KABUL, Afghanistan – A series of clashes and an airstrike in southern Afghanistan killed 25 militants and eight civilians held hostage by insurgents, the U.S.-led coalition said in a statement Monday

H16 American Politics

The Politico: 7 worrisome signs for Obama.

Joshua Green / The Atlantic Online: The Front-Runner's Fall —

Obama bothered by McCain's 'celebrity' taunts

Did McCain Plagiarize His Speech on the Georgia Crisis?

25 Hints You're Not Voting for Obama

Andrew Sullivan / The Daily Dish: Taking Back The Campaign Nominee

Why Obama is in Trouble - Steven Warshawsky, American Thinker

Obama's Biggest Problem is Racism - John Heilemann, New York Magazin

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

Tough tasks await Obama on march to convention AS BARACK Obama vacations in Hawaii, his staff is on heightened image alert in these two weeks before his official nomination for president. The problem is not Republican John McCain. It is the Democratic dysfunction erupting and festering all around him. (By Derrick Z. Jackson, Boston Globe)

H17 Daily Telegraph Silence that condemns Britain How the West reacts to Russia's action in Georgia will determine how far Russia is prepared to go.

Analysis: Putin sends emphatic message of global importance

Second Front: Russian troops seize a strategic prize

Bush warns Russian actions will "jeopardise relations" President George W Bush has stepped up the pressure on Russia by calling its actions "unacceptable".

Entrust France with our nuclear energy Selling British Energy to the French is preferable to relying on Russia or Algeria, argues Tracy Corrigan.

H18 Independent Russia tightens the noose Troops are sent deep into Georgia amid claims that Moscow is mounting a coup

Leading article: Careless talk can cost lives

The Russian Leadership: Putin in his element as successor is left in the back seat

The Beleaguered President: High-stakes gambler who risked his country and links with the West

The Battle for Oil: EU’s hope to bypass Russian energy may be a pipe dream

Mary Dejevsky: Intervention may breed instability

Musharraf locked in battle to avoid impeachment as allies turn away

Pakistan's government is finalising a "charge-sheet" against Pervez Musharraf as battle lines are drawn in the struggle over the President's future

H19 Military Intelligence Terrorism

Slate Al-Qaida at 20

From obscurity to infamy.
Daniel Byman

Central Asia: Hizb-ut-Tahrir on the Rise By: Samantha Brletich | Diplomatic Courier
Hizb-ut-Tahir seeks to establish a Caliphate that will govern the world according to Islamic law, but in Central Asia it claims to be just another political party

Who dares wins: the SAS in Iraq The secret work of SAS troops battling Al Qa'eda terrorists in Iraq has been exposed and lauded by the US commander in the country.

Military aviation: Bidding war for US refuelling tankers creates transatlantic storm

Aug 12 2008:

Aerospace companies vying for $35bn contract to meet Pentagon officials as Boeing threatens to withdraw

H20 Slate

Incentives Nudge Mexico's Poor in Right Direction By: Andrew Jack | Financial Times
In a poor district of Mexico City, Fiomena Reyes sends her 12-year-old daughter to school and takes her four-month-old for regular medical check-ups. What is more, she gets paid for it. Ms Reyes says the cash payment of about US$100 (€67, £52) a month that the state provides makes a big difference to her family.

H21

We don’ t want your type round here, thanks Roman Abramovich turned away from restaurant in fashionable Italian resort of Forte di Marmi on the Tuscan coast

A forger's masterpieces

By JONATHAN LOPEZ

Smart, knowledgeable people can sometimes be taken in by attractively packaged products of little inherent value.

Is charging interest sinful?

A bid to reconcile Scripture and the modern economy.

GOOGLE's foray into content raises eyebrows...

Modern-Day Blackout: GMAIL Goes Dark...

Swimming records fall: Is there something in the water?

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