On a television channel on counting day, the panellists discussing the assembly election results were asked to offer advice to the Left, which had lost both the large states it ruled, one of them quite massively, on how it should reform itself for a future resurrection. The overwhelming opinion among them was that it should […]
Geography Archives: Iraq
Parroting the Obama Administration’s Line on Iran and Syria
Last year, we took the Washington Post‘s Joby Warrick to task for stories he published that relied “almost entirely on unnamed U.S. officials and a known terrorist organization” to advance “Iraq-redux” claims that the Islamic Republic is seeking to build nuclear weapons. Now, Warrick published a front-page story in the Washington Post — a story […]
New Insights into the Islamic Republic of Iran
Arguably the most important reason for the international interest in Iran is its strategically pivotal geography. Like some of its Muslim neighbours, it has tremendous oil and gas reserves. For the United States, the revolution in Iran was nothing less than a geopolitical shock. Revolutionary dynamics in the Arab World have recently rekindled the debate […]
Justice
ICC to Sudan: “Who committed the crimes of genocide?” STL to Lebanon: “Who killed Hariri?” Justice, however, is asleep when it comes to Iraq, Gaza, and Afghanistan. . . . Fahd Bahady is a Syrian cartoonist. This cartoon was first published in his blog on 9 March 2011; it is reproduced here for non-profit educational […]
Tariq Ali on Syria and Libya: “Whenever the West Intervenes, It’s a Disaster”
Tariq Ali and Rory Suchet
Tariq Ali: I don’t think sanctions work. They are essentially a symbolic measure. Usually when sanctions are applied against a country, they affect the poor people in that country more than the ruling elites, as we saw for years before the United States invaded Iraq in 2003. They had imposed a bloody sanctions regime, […]
Obama on the Middle East: Sticking with a Failed Script
May 18, 2011 In an effort to define the dominant narrative about the ongoing Arab awakening and America’s role in the Middle East, President Obama will give what the White House is billing as a major address on Middle East policy. However eloquently delivered, the address will not be able to overcome or compensate for […]
Post-3/11 Japan: Learning from Crises Past, Facing the Critical Present
Two months after the disasters of March 11, most of the rhythms of everyday life have returned to Tokyo. Although dimmed city streets remain as daily reminders of the critical nuclear situation 140 miles north, the university campuses that were deserted over an extended spring break have refilled. Although the earth still shivers, the anxious […]
Ten Reasons Why Protecting Unions Is a Life and Death Issue
In Wisconsin, tens of thousands of public sector workers were going to work every day, helping the people in the DMV, hospitals, health care centers, public transportation, teachers, fire fighters, and clerical workers. Then, on February 11, 2011 Republican Governor Scott Walker introduced a bill, with a Republican majority in the legislature, that would virtually […]
Intervention in the Name of Stability
Intervention in the Name of Stability Professor Noam Chomsky recently delivered an important address in Amsterdam entitled “Contours of the World Order.”1 A large part of the speech was devoted to the role of the United States in defending its area of absolute hegemony. According to Chomsky’s excellent analysis, the US relates to all countries […]
Cuba Opposes Any Foreign Interference in Syria
Statement of Cuban Ambassador Rodolfo Reyes, at the Special Session of the Human Rights Council, on the human rights situation in Syria, Geneva, 29 April 2011 Mr. President: Cuba condemns the hypocrisy and double standards on which the convocation of this special session is based. Human rights are not its genuine motive. The motive is […]
“Justice Has Been Done”?
“Justice has been done,” said President Obama. “Justice has been done.” “Justice has been done.” Justice has been done!? Justice!? Justice?? For the last ten years, we’ve been engaged in an exercise of justice? That’s what you call what we’ve been doing? Are we supposed to take out a large magnifying glass and a delicate […]
The Syrian Opposition’s “National Initiative for Change”: A Missed Opportunity
Given the atrocities currently committed in Syria and the spectacularly bad press this generates for the regime, one would think that issuing an effective petition calling for political change in this country would be an easy task. All such a petition needs to do is to jump on the bandwagon of rapidly mounting protests […]
The Pillars of Democracy
Nicolas Sarkozy: “Boys, these are the pillars that support authentic democracies!” Barack Obama: “Well said, Sarko!” José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero: “This is not Iraq . . . This is not Iraq . . . This is not Iraq . . . This is not Iraq . . .” Ferran Martín, born in Barcelona in […]
Demystifying Syria
Two relationships have long been key to the stability of the Syrian regime. The first is an economic relationship: the regime puts back into national production just enough to create jobs and produce cheap national goods to keep the working population in steady or, better yet improving, living conditions. The second is a political […]
The Lessons of Iraq
“Come on, boys! Let’s teach those Libyans everything we have learned in Iraq!” Ferran Martín, born in Barcelona in 1970, is a cartoonist, illustrator, web designer, and radio and TV screenwriter. This cartoon was first published in La información on 18 March 2011; it is reproduced here for non-profit educational purposes. Translation by Yoshie […]
When China Overtakes the United States
Various observers have noted this week that China’s economy will be bigger than that of the United States in 2016. This comes from the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) latest projections, which were made in its semi-annual April World Economic Outlook database. Since 2016 is just a few years away, and it will be the first […]
Iraqis Demand “Unconditional Departure of Occupation Forces from Iraq”
On Friday, Iraqis demonstrated in Mosul City’s Ahrar Square (Square of the Free) for the ninth consecutive day to demand “the unconditional departure of occupation forces from Iraq” and the release of detainees. Meanwhile, in Sulaymaniyah province’s Hurriya (Freedom) Square, protestors demanded that the government and parliament be dissolved and asked for political reform.
Only in America: Former U.S. Official Sued Haiti Contractors for Kickbacks
Corruption takes many forms, and if the United States seems like it has less of it than many developing countries, this is partly because we have legalized so much of it. Election campaign contributions are only the most costly and debilitating form, a legalized bribery that, for example, gives the pharmaceutical and insurance companies a […]
Why the Bombing of Libya Cannot Herald a Return to the 1990s Era of Humanitarian Intervention
On 4 April 2011, when David Chandler’s essay below was first published in e-IR, French and UN forces intervened in Ivory Coast on behalf of Alassane Ouattara and his forces, eventually deposing President Laurent Gbagbo on 11 April 2011. Humanitarian pretexts were offered for that intervention, but rather perfunctorily, almost as an afterthought to […]
The United States and the Gulf Arab States: Interview with Adam Hanieh
Adam Hanieh: Well, we’ve seen over the last few days a wave of repression [in Bahrain] that’s ongoing, repression against the protests after the Saudi troops went in on March 15, about a month ago. As you said, there have been reports that up to 31 people have been killed during the demonstrations. And now […]
