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America, condoms and the Taliban
The United States didn't seem to care that it was unprecedented for a tribal
chief like Afghan President Hamid Karzai to be made to admit defeat in front of
his people - as he did in a press conference to announce a run-off election.
Whether Karzai was efficient or corrupt is no more the issue. The crux now is
the Afghan perception that Westerners use their friends like condoms - to be
discarded after use. - M K Bhadrakumar (Oct
22, '09)
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Where Pakistan's militants go to
ground
The Pakistani military is taking the fight to militants in the South Waziristan
tribal area, even as the United States takes its Afghan fight to Pakistan. This
draws Pakistan into an ever-deepening quagmire, one in which militants are
carving havens. One of these is the Lyari area of Karachi, where an odd
assortment of groups - including the Iranian Jundallah and anti-Shi'ite terror
outfits - rub shoulders beyond the reach of the law. - Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Oct 22, '09)
Islamabad dismayed by 'dithering' US
The view that the United States will eventually abandon Pakistan, leaving it
alone to fend off insurgent groups and suicide bombers, is pervasive in
Islamabad. And when US President Barack Obama appears perplexed over questions
on Afghanistan such as "How many troops?" and "For what purpose?", it does
nothing to instill confidence in a besieged ally. The fine line between
"rethinking" and "dithering" is fast fading. - Zahid U Kramet
(Oct 22, '09)
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The spy who lost his thumb drives
American space scientist, missile defense expert and leading lunar researcher,
Stewart Nozette, arrested this week in a Federal Bureau of Investigation sting,
is known to have expressed his willingness to work for Israeli intelligence.
What is not known is what he did with two thumb drives he took to "Country A",
which is speculated to be India. - Peter J Brown
(Oct 22, '09)
The shape of things to come in
Indonesia
Indonesian President Susilo 
Bambang Yudhoyono's Democrat Party controls nearly four times the number of
seats in the legislature than it did during his first term. The level of
support for the new government, from both inside and outside the political
establishment, gives it an unprecedented opportunity to build on national
stability and push through important reforms. - Jacqueline Hicks
(Oct 22, '09)
Yudhoyono faces democratic test
Overwhelming political support in parliament and a potential dearth of
lawmakers who understand their roles could revert Indonesia's legislature into
a rubberstamp body for the president's office - as it was during the era of
dictator Suharto. Indonesians already view the government as corrupt, and a
return to a culture of collusion won't help. - Sara Schonhardt
(Oct 22, '09)
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Hong Kong law under Beijing’s shadow
Claims that missing Chinese dissident Zhou Yongjun was arrested in Hong Kong
and sent to China for traveling on a fake passport bring the independence and
integrity of Hong Kong's legal system into question. This comes as the wife of
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is welcomed back into the city after
receiving diplomatic immunity for an alleged assault - Kent Ewing
(Oct 22, '09)
Iran trapped in a ring of unrest
Whether the United States directed Jundallah to conduct the weekend's terrorist
attack in Iran is irrelevant. What is significant is that the Americans have
created - through their actions in Afghanistan and Pakistan - a strategic
environment in which such attacks are both practically and ideologically
possible. If Iran is to rid itself of Jundallah, and the close ties the group
has to organized crime, it has to actively lobby for the exit of foreign forces
from the region. - Mahan Abedin (Oct 21, '09)
China's navy sails past India's dock
Three Chinese naval vessels do not make a fleet, but they do make a statement.
By sending them to patrol off the coast of Somalia as part of the multinational
force operating there, in effect, China is saying to India, "We're back." - Peter
J Brown (Oct 21, '09)
DISPATCHES FROM AMERICA
A 'long war' in the blowback world
America tends to think of "blowback" as something in the past, something that
ended with the attacks of September 11, 2001. But in the Greater Middle East,
one lesson seems clear enough: for 30 years, the United States has been deeply
involved in creating, financing and sometimes arming an entire blowback world
that will strike again. - Tom Engelhardt (Oct
21, '09)
 SINOGRAPH
Ten years to tackle
the Taiwan equation
Instead of China and the United States sparring over Washington's next arms
sale to Taiwan, they should concentrate on the core issue: the reunification of
Taiwan with the mainland. At the rate of China's current economic growth, they
have about 10 years to prepare for this. - Francesco Sisci
(Oct 21, '09)
COMMENT
Why an East Asian Community matters
Historical feuds, territorial disputes and centuries of neighborly mistrust
have kept the concept of an East Asian Community on the drawing board for
decades. Some critics have called the bloc's formation a "mission impossible",
but nothing will be achieved until a first step is taken. - Jian Junbo
(Oct 21, '09)
Gloating with Wall Street's
goodfellas
If the intention of United States economic mandarins was that tough regulations
would force the large investment banks that survived the crisis to adapt to
quiet, reserved suburban lifestyles, the reality is that they've acted more
like former gangsters placed into a witness protection program, taking over the
numbers racket on the Saturday pee-wee sports fields. - Julian Delasantellis
(Oct 21, '09)
Saudi-Iranian hostility hits
boiling point
Escalating tensions between Riyadh and Tehran may have played a role in
Sunday's suicide strike that killed seven senior commanders of the Iranian
Revolutionary Guards Corps as well as 42 other people in Iran's southeast.
Riyadh is concerned that Iran's growing power will erode Saudi pre-eminence in
the region, and the Saudis might have a vested interest in disrupting the
United States-Iran nuclear talks. - M K Bhadrakumar
(Oct 20, '09)
THE ROVING EYE
Jundallah versus the mullahtariat
Sunday's suicide bombing in Iran has set off a war: it's the Iranian
Revolutionary Guards Corps against Pakistani Balochistan-based Jundallah and
the massive drug trafficking network in the area. In terms of the turbulent,
internal political equation in Iran, the show of force against a key element of
the mullahtariat could not be more devastating. - Pepe Escobar
(Oct 20, '09)
Iran's nuclear talks also hit
The strike in Iran raises the possibility of Iran retaliating with attacks on
bases inside Pakistan from which the main suspects operate. Iranian President
Mahmud Ahmadinejad will also now be under pressure to unravel the recent gains
made with the United States in talks over Tehran's nuclear program. - Kaveh L
Afrasiabi (Oct 20, '09)
Sunnis present a new face in Iraq
The Iraqi Accordance Front, which has announced the formation of a new-look,
all-Sunni coalition, believes it can make a major breakthrough in January's
elections, even without the inclusion of a number of heavyweights. - Sami
Moubayed (Oct 20, '09)
China opens a new front in Kashmir
China, by issuing residents from Indian-administered Kashmir visas different
from those given to Indians from other parts of the country, is treating the
disputed area as a sovereign entity. This is a surprising departure from
Beijing's traditional policy of leaving the Kashmir issue to India and Pakistan
to resolve. Delhi suspects a hidden agenda. - Sudha Ramachandran
(Oct 20, '09)
Swarms of rats plague rural
Myanmar
Some 100,000 residents of Myanmar's Chin State are without proper food after a
rare mass flowering of nearby bamboo forests triggered an infestation of
ravenous rat armies which promptly devoured local crops. Thousands of people
are migrating to neighboring countries, especially India, in search of food and
employment. - Colin Hinshelwood (Oct 20, '09)
Red meat back on (some) Russian
tables
Russia has agreed to accept shipments of Canadian beef in a deal expected to be
worth about US$31 million for Ottawa annually. The move marks a mini-revival in
Russia's battered meat imports, but also points to the inability of the
domestic industry to come up with the goods. - John Helmer
(Oct 20, '09)
India's stocks in overreach mode
 The
strength of India's stock markets, with the benchmark Sensex more than doubling
since early March, has not been backed by any substantial improvement in
corporate performance and there is little indication that company revenues are
going to improve. - Kunal Kumar Kundu (Oct
20, '09)
THE BEAR'S LAIR
Rent-seekers' nirvana
The explosion in derivatives and trading volumes can be seen as a gigantic
smokescreen which has enabled Wall Street to extract larger and larger rents
from the remainder of the economy. - Martin Hutchinson
(Oct 20, '09)
A new battle begins in Pakistan
Pakistani troops are pouring into the South Waziristan tribal area for a
conflict against militants that they have little chance of winning outright.
The offensive does, though, emphatically shift the focus from Afghanistan,
which is what the United States has wanted for some time. Iran, following
Sunday's attack on commanders of its Revolutionary Guards Corps, also has
Pakistan on its mind. - Syed Saleem Shahzad (Oct
19, '09)
 CHAN
AKYA
Us and them
Controlling the renewed menace of the Taliban will involve actions in the
United States and Europe to destroy the demand for heroin and oil; the twin
fuels of Islamic fundamentalism. Getting this achieved may not be the most
popular course of action, but is more likely to succeed than mere adjustments
to the current war strategy. Historical evidence involving the decline of the
British Empire favors the notion, too. (Oct 19, '09)
 SPENGLER
When the cat's away,
the mice kill each other
It is most astonishing that official Washington seems oblivious to the crack-up
of American influence occurring in front of its eyes. Without America to
mediate and restrain, each of the small powers in the Middle East has no choice
but to test its strength against the others. Those who wish to reduce American
power may get what they wish for, but they might not like it.
(Oct 19, '09)
Washington presses Iran sanctions
The United States Congress is pushing through long-pending legislation to
impose new unilateral sanctions on Iran. Supporters of the sanctions claim they
give President Barack Obama more leverage in upcoming talks with Tehran about
its nuclear program, but critics say the bans may prove counter-productive to
any possible diplomatic engagement. - Jim Lobe
(Oct 19, '09)
Goldstone as a touchstone for Obama
Attempts by the United States and Israel to bury the Goldstone report on war
crimes committed during the war in Gaza - which on Friday was approved by the
United Nations Human Rights Council - could damage US President Barack Obama's
credibility among Arabs and Muslims as someone willing to stand up to Israel. - Ian
Williams (Oct 19, '09)
New broom may sweep Google China
ahead Lee Kai-fu's decision to quit his job as head of
Google China has been portrayed as a major setback for the company as it
struggles to catch up with mainland rival Baidu. Yet his successor's background
and preference for a less-technology heavy approach could play very much in the
United States company's favor. - Sherman So (Oct
19, '09)
The Dragon spews fire at the
Elephant
Indian lobbyists - with an eye on profiting from arms sales with the United
States worth billions of dollars - are whipping up war hysteria and xenophobia
over China, and Delhi is playing along. Against this electrified diplomatic
backdrop, the state-run People's Daily tore into India this week. The
relationship could nosedive further if the Dalai Lama's visit to India's
disputed areas with China goes ahead.- M K Bhadrakumar
(Oct 16, '09)
Going 'deep', not 'big', in
Afghanistan
An analysis making waves in Washington by a veteran United States officer calls
for the withdrawal of the bulk of United States combat forces from Afghanistan
over 18 months, warning against General Stanley McChrystal's counter-insurgency
strategy. Lieutenant Colonel Daniel L Davis says that it is already too late
for US forces to defeat the insurgency. - Gareth Porter
(Oct 16, '09)
ADRIFT ON A RUSSIAN ISLAND, Part 2
A political crisis erupts
 As
the 30,000-strong South Korean community on Russia's Sakhalin Island began to
demand repatriation in the mid-1970s, Soviet authorities scrambled to deal with
a political crisis that threatened to turn into a major embarrassment. A harsh
solution was found, with many of the dissenters sent packing to North Korea,
never to be seen again. - Andrei Lankov (Oct
16, '09)
This is the concluding article in a two-part report.
 PART 1:
Koreans left high
and dry
The 'other' Kurdistan seethes with
rage
While Iraqi Kurdistan elects its own parliament and forges oil contracts
independent of Baghdad, other ethnic Kurdish insurgents from Iran, Syria and
Turkey are flooding into remote redoubts in the fearsome Qandil Mountains to
battle nation-states that have persecuted them for decades. With Turkish
warplanes above and Iranian artillery firing over the border, Asia Times Online
traced a tortuous path to speak with Kurdish guerrillas. - Derek Henry Flood
(Oct 15, '09)
AN ATol EXCLUSIVE
Al-Qaeda's guerrilla chief lays out
strategy
 The
top field commander of al-Qaeda, in an exclusive interview with Asia Times
Online, proves he is alive and well after repeated drone attacks and delineates
in broad strokes al-Qaeda's strategy. The Afghanistan trap, baited on September
11, 2001, has been sprung, says formidable guerrilla leader Ilyas Kashmiri, and
events from Gaza to Mumbai should not be seen in isolation but as part of the
master plan to bloody the United States and its proxies. - Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Oct 14, '09) |
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David P
Goldman
(Oct 21, '09)
Insatiable hunger for savings instruments by the world's aging savers is
responsible for the great financial crisis.
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Property too hot
to handle in Hong Kong
A world-record price for an apartment in Hong Kong highlights rising demand
from wealthy mainland Chinese, while a 26% surge in prices since January raises
fears of a bubble. This boom has prompted calls for restrictions on non-Hong
Kong residents buying residential housing, and for the government to release
its vice-like grip on land. - Olivia Chung
Azerbaijan and Turkey
clash over energy
A public cry of "no more cheap gas to Turkey" by Azerbaijan's President Ilham
Aliev has exacerbated rising Azeri-Turkish energy tensions. Ankara's efforts to
play different suppliers against one other - and position itself as a regional
energy hub - are not a fatal blow to the stalled Nabucco pipeline, but the
rival White Stream may come more to the fore. - R M Cutler
Europe gets serious about gas
As part of efforts to beat Russia and China to Central Asia's huge untapped
natural gas resources, Europe is creating the Caspian Development Corp, which
will bind European gas buyers and pipeline projects into a single entity. The
question is whether the group can offer Central Asian nations a sweet enough
deal to betray Moscow. - Nicholas Clayton
Nero's ghost in Istanbul
The hot subject at the recent Istanbul meeting of the International Monetary
Fund was how to reshuffle its voting power - as if, having failed to see
financial disaster coming, the fund could be placed to recommend what to do to
prevent future crises. The meeting had a feeling reminiscent of Rome burning as
Nero made music. - Hossein Askari
FROM THE BLOG
Global surfeit of
savings caused crisis
Every sort of idiotic explanation is offered by academic economists for the
financial crisis, by and large they haven't a clue. The investors who bought
subprime assets in 2006 weren't any greedier than when they bought prime assets
in 2004. The difference is that monstrous demand crushed the returns on prime
assets. - David Goldman
MARKET RAP
Asia continues to advance
Absolute gains were less overall in the region, but with more stable patterns
of recovery. The schizophrenic North Asian exchanges were the most divergent,
with the Nikkei 225 average in Tokyo the second-best performer and the KOSPI in
Seoul the worst. (Oct 19, '09)
R M Cutler runs his eye over the ups and downs in the week's markets.
CREDIT BUBBLE BULLETIN
Clinging to misguided
mentalities
Inflationists like those running the United States Federal Reserve see easy
credit and the government printing press as the solutions to unemployment and
other economic problems. But they fail to recognize that aggressive stimulus
is, once again, fostering problematic bubbles. (Oct
19, '09)
Doug Noland looks at the previous week's events each Monday.
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Prepare to duck
"... Is a swan supposed to be abnormal if it has black instead of white
plumage? Well, here in Australia ... - MonsoonWind
"[T]he point about the 'black swan' is that everyone in the world appears to
assume that the US dollar will remain the payment currency of choice for the
indefinite future. Changing that assumption will mean chaos to the status quo.
The global financial system may well hold, but we now have to deal with the
added complication of US creditworthiness (which wasn't an issue in the past).
That destroys the standard for the US dollar, and argues for a replacement." - Chan
Akya
"'Black swan event' is not such a useful phrase other than it's catchy. ...
[T]he real observable norm, the 'white swan', is 'sporadic collapse'. I suggest
'paradigm shift' is ... far more understandable and accurate to our discussion.
..." - ding73ding
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From Our Mailbox
Peter J Brown's China's
navy sails past India's dock [October 21] makes for interesting
reading. It is true China's "games" in Central Asia give New Delhi much cotton
to thread, but the emergence of a nascent, modern Chinese navy is more a
statement that China has a vocation as global naval power.
Nakamura Junzo
Guam
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ATol Specials
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By Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Jan '09) |
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VIDEO
Taliban's new breed of leader
(May '08) |
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The
Gates
Inheritance
By
Roger Morris
(June '07) |
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Syed Saleem Shahzad reports on
the Afghan war from the Taliban side
(Dec '06)
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How
Hezbollah defeated Israel
By
Mark Perry and
Alastair Crooke
(Oct '06)
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Mark
Perry and
Alastair Crooke
talk to the 'terrorists'
(Mar '06)
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China:
The
Impossible
Revolution
By
Francesco Sisci
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The Coming
Trade War
By Henry C K Liu
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A series
by Henry C K Liu
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Sinoroving
Pepe Escobar in China
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Money, Power
and
Modern Art
A series by Henry C K Liu
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Andre Gunder Frank on Uncle Sam and his
shrinking dollar
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By Pepe Escobar with
photographs by Kevin Nortz
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Nir Rosen goes inside the Iraqi
resistance
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Nir Rosen rides with the US 3rd
Armored Cavalry in western Iraq
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