Jun 9, 2012

Disappointing Baghdad talks

The most recent round of nuclear negotiations with Iran began with optimism. The previous round of talks appeared to make headway and there was hope that a breakthrough could be achieved when the seven parties — the five permanent members of the United Nations ...

Apr 16, 2012

China's prodemocrats lose a giant

Fang Lizhi, one of China’s best-known dissidents, has died. He passed away in the United States, where he had spent the last two decades of his life after being forced to flee China in the aftermath of the 1989 crackdown on prodemocracy activists. The ...

Mar 1, 2012

Labor showdown in Canberra

by Gregory Clark

It was a battle of the opposites. On one side we had ex-Australian prime minister, Kevin Rudd, 54, a former diplomat with baby-face looks, devoted wife and family, carefully cultivated religious persona and impeccable CV. Opposed was current Prime Minister Julia Gillard, 51, ex-lawyer, ...

Feb 29, 2012

U.S. needs to renew ties to Baghdad

by Danielle Pletka and Gary Schmitt

This month, Obama administration officials revealed plans to dramatically reduce embassy staff in Baghdad, the largest U.S. diplomatic mission abroad. Along with the announcement in December of the withdrawal of all U.S. troops from Iraq — the message President Barack Obama is sending is ...

Jan 16, 2012

Finer details of atmospheric science in Beijing

by Frank Ching

In July 2009, China’s Foreign Ministry made a demand of the American embassy: Stop taking measurements of air pollution in Beijing available to ordinary Chinese since they conflicted with official data and could lead to “confusion” among the public and undesirable “social consequences.” The ...