Iran's headstrong attempt to join the world's nuclear-weapons club is setting the stage for a military confrontation that nobody wants, but may happen anyway. The Obama administration has decided to ratchet up the rhetoric in its outreach with Gulf State partners. Israel's view on the...

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By Agnes Gereben Schaefer and Anita Chandra Previous efforts by the international community to stabilize Haiti have met with little or only short-term success. This time, following the earthquake, the U.S. response could actually leverage the response and recovery opportunities into a broader international plan...

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IntroductionMany lawmakers, policymakers, and heads of major corporations worldwide have expressed a willingness to address climate change. They believe the scientific evidence is clear enough to warrant action. But some scientists, economists, industry groups, and policy experts continue to insist there is no need for...

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Mexico's problems are partly a result of its own policies and partly are a symptom of US problems. A core problem is the concentration of wealth in the hands of the political elite and widespread poverty among the indigenous population. The Mexican Revolution, beginning in...

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The Pentagon's long-awaited Quadrennial Defense Review (QDR) is out. By law, the major defense strategy must look forward 20 years and delineate how the U.S. will structure its armed forces. The QDR is supposed to outline the Pentagon's threat assessments, military strategy, force structure, and...

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The core objective of National Strategy is to insure the survival and prosperity of the nation -- "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" in the words of the Declaration of Independence. For a number of years, Soviet missiles actually threatened our national survival, and...

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You Have the Watches, We Have the Time say the Taliban. The implication is that the Americans will eventually leave and they will inherit the country. This implication is wrong. Their race is not with the Americans who will indeed leave, but with modernization that...

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The problem isn't the border fence, it's the job hole in the United States and corrupt leaders worldwide supported by Western money. Immigration complicates both these challenges and diminishes national well being. Of course, it was not always so. The Statue of Liberty proclaims, "Send...

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IntroductionRussia’s use of energy as a tool for foreign policy and its efforts to reimpose Kremlin control of its energy sector has set off alarm bells in foreign capitals. Moscow’s latest infraction: the takeover by the state-owned gas monopoly Gazprom of the $22-billion Sakhalin II...

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US-China relations are back in the headlines after the administration announced it planned to follow though on arms sales to Taiwan and Beijing mad clear it was not happy. The most recent confrontation is reminder that the stability of US-Chinese relations cannot be taken for...

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IntroductionIn addition to the ongoing military campaign against al-Qaeda, financial regulators are beefing up efforts to cut the terror group's lines of funding. These efforts are showing signs of progress. In Europe, al-Qaeda recruits complain of being forced to pay for their own training and...

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