As talks between U.S.-led global negotiators and Iran over its nuclear program resume this week in Geneva, the most welcome shift on the Iranian nuclear front may be occurring thousands of miles away in Washington. There, in the aftermath of November’s congressional elections that reflected a broad public repudiation of President Barack Obama, both parties …
The events of recent days in Egypt remind us that U.S. foreign policy is inherently complicated, that our global priorities often clash and that, in some cases, the wisest choice is far from the most morally satisfying. In Egypt, the United States faces a clash between two key priorities – our long-term support for freedom …
Nothing better showcases Washington’s confusion over foreign policy than the idea that – as part of a U.S.-Iran nuclear deal – Iran would ship much or all of its enriched uranium to Russia, and Russia would then process it for Iranian civilian usage. Were the U.S.-led “P5+1” negotiators (the five permanent U.N. Security Council members …
A quarter-century ago this month, East Germany’s communist leaders announced they were opening the Berlin Wall in an act that, as much as anything else during that momentous year, symbolized the Cold War’s end. The anniversary is timely, for it provides history lessons that seem particularly relevant at a time when America is re-thinking its …
Continue reading “3 Lessons From the Fall of the Berlin Wall”
Western views toward Israel have returned to Kafkaesque normalcy after a brief break for sanity, as the United States now argues that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is making Islamic State group recruiting easier, and Europe punishes Israel and rewards the Palestinians for their ongoing conflict. Israel’s return to normal status comes just three months after the …
Monday’s reported explosion at Iran’s secretive Parchin nuclear site – leaving two dead and shattering windows 12 kilometers away – is welcome news to those concerned about Tehran’s nuclear progress, but it’s likely a mere blip on what seems an increasingly smooth Iranian road to nuclear weaponry. For a host of reasons, Washington is growing …
[This is a guest commentary in the run-up to Friends of Europe’s annual State of Europe 2014, to be held on October 9th. It examines one of the sessions of the daylong programme of discussions. This and other hot-button issues will be discussed by leading policymakers, thinkers, business leaders and journalists. Read more.] As a …