Category Archives: International Relations
Coordination in the Fight Against Transnational Organised Crime in the Americas: another band-aid solution?
In light of last month’s VI Summit of the Americas in Cartagena, Colombia, it seems obvious and commendable that the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), José Miguel Insulza, would call on the leaders of the region … Continue reading
Europe: the problem is not ‘north-south’ but ‘east-west’
In his stimulating recent post ‘France and the New Balance of power’, Oxford’s Geoffrey Gertz argues that the near-certain election of Francois Hollande will change the balance between ‘North’ and ‘South’ in Europe. Having for so long reckoned herself part … Continue reading
Madness over the Himalayas: Time to demilitarise the Siachen Glacier
For nearly three decades, India and Pakistan have engaged in a maddening conflict over Siachen Glacier in the Himalyan peaks of the disputed Kashmir region. The “world’s highest battlefield” has claimed thousands of lives due to hostile weather conditions—frostbite, avalanches … Continue reading
Posted in Asia, International Relations, Terrorism and Security
Tagged conflict, Glacier, Himalaya, India, Kashmir, Pakistan, Siachen, South Asia
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France and the New Balance of Power in a Crisis-Stricken Europe
I’ve been neglecting my blogging duties of late as I’ve been preoccupied studying for an exam on International Relations theory and history. With the exam safely behind me I’m back to blogging, but still have academic IR debates on the … Continue reading
Should America Care About Energy Independence?
For the past forty years, the United States has been dependent on foreign oil. In the early 1970s, declining domestic production and America’s ever increasing thirst for oil made dependency on imports a necessity, whilst the OPEC Revolution and the … Continue reading
Posted in Environmental Policy, International Relations, Terrorism and Security, The Middle East, US Politics
Tagged Energy, oil
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Is Pakistan a bigger problem than Afghanistan? A critical appraisal of Ahmed Rashid’s ‘Pakistan on the Brink’
Ahmed Rashid, the veteran Pakistani writer on the conflict in Afghanistan and Central Asia, has authored another book, titled Pakistan on the Brink: The Future of America, Pakistan and Afghanistan. A sequel to his four earlier books on the subject … Continue reading
Posted in Asia, Books, International Relations, Terrorism and Security
Tagged Afghanistan, Al-Qaeda, insurgency, Pakistan, Taliban, Terrorism, United States
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A Lot of Talk: the Seoul Nuclear Security Summit accomplished little
The recently concluded two day Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul (March 26-27) ended with a promise to meet again. It was a follow-up to the first summit in Washington and participants will gather in the Netherlands in 2014 for what … Continue reading
Preventing progress in Palestine: Israel must do more to break the deadlock
In Israel and the Palestinian territories, decades of conflict have not offered ripe soil for mutual understanding and peace on reasonable terms. Endless confrontation has eroded hopes for successful negotiations. Nonetheless, the frequent reference to a ‘status quo’ in the … Continue reading
Forget the spending row: Nuclear deterrence is cheap at the price
My Oxford colleague Blake Ewing makes an engaging case in favour of the UK pursuing unilateral nuclear disarmament – that is, scrapping the planned replacement programme for the Royal Navy’s Vanguard-class submarines, which currently carry the Trident D5 missile — as … Continue reading
Posted in British Politics, International Relations, Terrorism and Security
Tagged Britain, Nuclear Security, Nuclear weapons, Trident
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Dealing with Iran’s Nuclear Ambitions — and what it means
In the last few weeks, there has been a flood of articles asking and seeking to answer, ’What is Iran thinking?’. It is an important question and I certainly don’t have an answer. But to try and understand Iran’s motives, … Continue reading
Posted in Asia, International Relations, Terrorism and Security
Tagged Iran, Nuclear weapons
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