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Iran caught up in China-US spat
China has reacted to news of the United States' proposed US$6.4 billion arms
package for Taiwan by warning that diplomacy involving the US's efforts to get
Beijing's backing in the nuclear stand-off with Iran could be damaged. By
playing spoiler, though, China risks sending Washington further down a
confrontational path with Tehran. - Kaveh L Afrasiabi
(Feb 1, '10)
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Obama losing control of Iran policy
Now that the United States Senate has passed a bill that will punish companies
that aid Iran's gas industry, analysts say US President Barack Obama's
administration is fast losing support for its foreign policies. Unless the bill
is amended, the sanctions could be viewed as a potential checklist item on a
path to military confrontation. - Ali Gharib (Feb
1, '10)
Dialogue seeks a middle ground
The Taliban, unable to deliver a decisive military blow to oust the government
in Kabul, know they will never rule Afghanistan as they once did, while foreign
forces up against an intractable foe cannot expect counter-insurgency to
succeed anytime soon. Straight talking, however, could give each side in the
conflict much of what they seek. - Brian M Downing
(Feb 1, '10)
Karzai talks on talks
Afghan President Hamid Karzai was ready to start talks with moderate elements
of the Taliban when he first entered office eight years ago, but lacked support
from the West until recently. In an interview from London, he explains why he
has for so long seen negotiations as the only option.
(Feb 1, '10)
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 SPENGLER
Profits, not principals,
move the age
What brought United States and other Western banks down was not speculative
bets in volatile markets but the necessary pursuit of profit in what appeared
to be ultra-safe investments. The sources of the crisis remain unchanged: the
industrial world's need to fund the greatest retirement wave in history.
(Feb 1, '10)
DISPATCHES FROM AMERICA
Seven days in January
On his return flight after visiting South Asia, where he was blindsided, United
States Secretary of Defense Robert Gates watched Seven Days in May, a
Cold War-era film about an attempted military coup in the US. With congress
recently approving a US$626 billion Pentagon budget, the US military is so
ascendant that it has no need for real-life coups. - Tom Engelhardt
(Feb 1, '10)
Terror comes at night in Afghanistan
One aspect of the United States' counter-terrorism war strikes fear into the
hearts of Afghans, especially in the south where the Taliban are strongest -
the special forces, often tattooed and bearded, who raid homes, invariably at
night. Suspects, including children, are then taken to secret military
detention centers from which there is no guarantee they will leave alive. - Anand
Gopal (Jan 29, '10)
Washington works the Af-Pak-India
triangle
In an effort to bring stability to South Asia, Washington continues to run from
pillar to post in Afghanistan, Pakistan and India. Even though a "trust
deficit" with Pakistan remains, US President Barack Obama has played his cards
cleverly with his surge and withdrawal strategy in Afghanistan, leading to
near-unanimous support for financial assistance at this week's London
conference. - Zahid U Kramet (Jan 29, '10)
 BOOK
REVIEW
The skeleton in the cupboard
China: Fragile Superpower
by Susan L Shirk
While avoiding the stereotypes on which Western pundits base their assumption
that China's rise to surpass the power of the United States is inevitable, this
important book charts a course of democratization. However, it fails to account
for the possibility that China may succeed precisely because of its
totalitarian nature. - Dmitry Shlapentokh (Jan
29, '10)
Border breaches reveal Iran's reach
Iranian security forces are increasingly chasing smugglers deep into Iraqi
territory. Iraqi Kurdistan and Baghdad are bickering over who should take
action, while the infringements reinforce fears that Tehran is preparing to
fill a power vacuum in Iraq when the United States withdraws. - Neil Arun
and Shorish Khalid (Jan 29, '10)
<IT WORLD>
iPad a job half done
"We think we've done it," proclaimed Apple boss Steve Jobs when he unveiled the
company's tablet computer. Yet the list of what the iPad does not do will
persuade many potential buyers to keep their cash in their wallets until
something better comes along - perhaps from Google.
Martin J Young surveys the week's developments in computing, science,
gaming and gizmos. (Jan 29, '10)
 CHAN
AKYA
Vestigial organs
As governments in the United States and Europe figure out how to bail out their
struggling states - California and Greece the prime candidates for failure -
the rest of the world can consider the body's vestigial organs, such as the
appendix, and wonder if such a fate now awaits the US dollar and the euro.
(Jan 29, '10)
How Myanmar's opium grows
Local monitors say opium production is surging under areas of government
control in Myanmar, as militias mandated with quelling rebels increasingly
engage in drug cultivation, processing and smuggling. These findings contrast
with those of a United Nations agency, perhaps because the UN group relies on
cooperation with the military regime for its information. - Brian McCartan
(Jan 29, '10)
Attack on the 'Shark' shakes Iran
The eye of Iran’s political storm is beginning to shift, with signs emerging
that former Iranian president Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, widely known as the
Shark, is getting pushed out altogether. This purge, led by a high-level
ayatollah, sends a strong message to the outside world: "normalization" along
prescriptive Western standards is now out of the question for Iran. - Mahan
Abedin (Jan 28, '10)
Sanctions, regime change take
center stage
United States President Barack Obama's State of the Union address signaled that
Washington is set to take a more aggressive course on Tehran, with major
sanctions legislation highly likely. Meanwhile, calls for outright regime
change are growing louder, thanks to an unexpected change of heart by an
influential American analyst. - Jim Lobe (Jan
28, '10)
Grim tales from North Korea's gulags
Former prisoners from a North Korean penal colony have dire news on the ordeal
likely being endured by the American missionary who entered the country in
December with a "message of goodwill". In the North, Christian worship is
punishable by death, while simply being a classmate of one of the Dear Leader's
mistresses is enough to earn one - along with the family - a slow, painful
death in a gulag. - Donald Kirk (Jan 28, '10)
MIXED MESSAGES OVER BIN LADEN
Better alive than dead
The release of the latest audio 
message claimed to be from Osama bin Laden has got tongues wagging again as to
his status and whereabouts. The failure of technologically peerless American
intelligence to find any trace him for nine years leads to speculation whether
the United States is keeping bin Laden alive for strategic convenience. - Farooq
Hameed Khan (Jan 28, '10)
 SINOGRAPH
Silence on Tibetan
talks is golden
The Dalai Lama's decision to keep the reopening of talks with the Chinese
government this week out of the spotlight is in line with how Beijing likes to
conduct diplomacy. But plenty of opposing forces, from a disagreement between
the parties over what constitutes the territory of Tibet to factions within
both sides, threaten to derail meaningful progress. - Francesco Sisci
(Jan 28, '10)
Zardari books fast train to Turkey
Pakistan's President Asif Ali Zardari and Turkish President Abdullah Gul have
agreed on a US$20 billion project to upgrade a rail link from Islamabad to
Istanbul by way of Iran. The pay-off from faster transport between the two
countries could be more bilateral trade - at present a dismal $740 million. - Syed
Fazl-e-Haider (Jan 28, '10)
India's rural inventors drive change
Indian coconut oil maker Marico has trebled profits, thanks in part to a
machine made by one of the farmers that compose India's vast rural population.
Thousands of such grassroots inventions, from fridges to non-stick frying pans,
are improving livelihoods across the country and demonstrating that being poor
is no bar to driving innovation. - Raja Murthy
(Jan 28, '10)
Volcker - time for real change
United States President Barack Obama's decision to lean more on ex-Fed chief
Paul Volcker reflects the US economy's dismal state and his failure to halt the
decline in jobs. Yet full employment is an achievable goal. He could attack
financial sector corruption, starting with a look at his own White House. That
would be change in which to believe. - Henry CK Liu
(Jan 28, '10)
Circles within circles around the
Taliban
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Britain will be the key partners of the United
States at the high-powered gathering in London this week to discuss, among
other issues on Afghanistan, reconciliation talks with the Taliban. There are
several potential spoilers to this display of "smart power", among them Iran,
Russia and China, not to mention the very people at whom the talks are aimed. - M
K Bhadrakumar (Jan 27, '10)
Winner of Google-China feud is - India
The Barack Obama administration has launched a crowd-pleasing salvo on Internet
freedoms over Google's tiff with China, though the United States and Google
intercept and track Internet traffic with levels of sophistication that China's
security monitors can only dream of. Obama's shifting electoral fortunes and
Google's hubris have them staring past China towards a potentially more
attractive market and ally - India. - Peter Lee
(Jan 27, '10)
Circles within circles around the
Taliban
Pakistan, Saudi Arabia and Britain will be the key partners of the United
States at the high-powered gathering in London this week to discuss, among
other issues on Afghanistan, reconciliation talks with the Taliban. There are
several potential spoilers to this display of "smart power", among them Iran,
Russia and China, not to mention the very people at whom the talks are aimed. - M
K Bhadrakumar (Jan 27, '10)
Troop surge 'supports peace deal'
For the first time, the commander of international forces in Afghanistan has
indicated that the United States will support moves towards a political
settlement between the government of President Hamid Karzai and the Taliban.
The counter-insurgency strategy is aimed at providing the time and space for
this to happen. - Gareth Porter (Jan 27, '10)
Re-elected Rajapaksa has tough job
ahead
Mahinda Rajapaksa has retained the Sri Lankan presidency after beating off a
challenge at the polls from his former ally, ex-army chief Sarath Fonseka.
Campaigning before Tuesday's vote was particularly acrimonious, exposing the
deep rifts among Sinhalese as well as that community's strained relations with
the minority Tamils. Rajapaksa's first task will be to heal these divisions. - Sudha
Ramachandran (Jan 27, '10)
Economy: Onwards and upwards
The economic revival being enjoyed by Sri Lanka should continue with the return
to office of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, whose big-spending plans will add to
inflows from the International Monetary Fund and the government's own stimulus
spending. - R M Cutler (Jan 27, '10)
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Al-Qaeda's shadow over Taliban talks
The initiative to reconcile the United States and its allies with elements of
the Taliban is gaining momentum, with governments from Kabul to London to
Washington involved, as are the Pakistan military and former Arab jihadis.
Offers of integration into the Afghan political process will not extend to
anyone with links to al-Qaeda. This could prove a crucial issue, depending on
just how deep al-Qaeda's ties with the Taliban run. - Syed Saleem Shahzad
(Jan 26, '10)
 SUN
WUKONG
Xi blows whistle
for the big match
Vice Premier Xi Jinping is thought to have thrown his weight behind a crackdown
on football corruption in China. Successful efforts to clean up the game and
bring happiness to legions of frustrated fans could put one in the back of the
net for Xi's bid to be supreme leader. - Wu Zhong
(Jan 26, '10)
Main Street's Disneyland folly
Main Street America's enthusiasm for blaming its woes on Wall Street blithely
ignores the benefits that accrued to the general population from the bankers'
greed. Did the owners of businesses, large and small, really not know where
their burgeoning custom came from, much as Nazi-era Germans knew "nothing" of
what was happening in their own backyard? - Julian Delasantellis
(Jan 26, '10)
 ASIA
HAND
Trial by fire in Thailand
The highly anticipated verdict of a corruption case involving exiled ex-Thai
premier Thaksin Shinawatra could result in the seizure of US$2.3 billion of his
and his family's assets. It could also set the scene for more political
instability, with Thaksin's red-shirted supporters already pressurizing the
legal proceedings with threats of chaos and street violence. - Shawn W Crispin
(Jan 22, '10)
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David P
Goldman
(Jan 28, '10)
The 0.3% rise in US durable goods sales doesn’t quite make it the first robin
of spring.
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China's
US spending passes landmark
Chinese businesses last year invested more in United States entities than was
invested in the other direction. Such cash flows can benefit the American
economy at large; if politicians mishandle matters, the Chinese funds will go
elsewhere. - Benjamin A Shobert
Methane is laughing
gas for oligarchs
Evraz, whose Ulyanovskaya mine holds the record for Russia's worst mining
disaster, makes little reference in its financial reports to mine accidents or
their impact on revenue and profit. As the debt-burdened company closes down
another mine for a methane investigation, the miners' union laments the
sector's loss of prestige and subsequent rising death toll. - John Helmer
Obama's polemics
versus economic facts
President Barack Obama would have voters believe that the United States economy
is recovering, that jobs are being created and that the outlook is positive.
Unfortunately for him, the economy is in shambles and Americans can add. - Peter
Morici
FROM THE BLOG
Obama no Clinton
US President Barack Obama can no more conjure up an economic recovery by doing
things that look like what Bill Clinton did than the natives of New Guinea
could draw cargo from the sky with straw totems. - David Goldman
MARKET RAP
Storm clouds burst
A late recovery was too little to mask the continued decline in Asian stocks -
with Taiwan and Shanghai being particularly volatile - and the outlook remains
pessimistic. (Jan 29, '10)
R M Cutler runs his eye over the ups and downs in the week's markets.
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"[S]eems Hong Kong must be in a bit of a panic, they are bidding up available
properties in my neighborhood [in Vancouver, Canada]. A neighbor was selling
his mother's house, and there was a group of Hong Kong buyers bidding it up, he
got $400,000 over his asking price. He said they were angry, nasty to one
another, in some kind of frenzy. ... [L]ots of anxiety and fear around town,
and things can turn nasty in recessions. All the racial and cultural
differences that flow under the radar when things are good come bubbling to the
surface. ..." - Michael
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From Our Mailbox
[Re US and China pick
their fights, January 25] The United States will default on its loans
from China due to our Greater Depression. And when China comes to collect its
money from [US President Barack] Obama, it will bring its nuclear strong-armed
friend, Iran.
Helen Logan
Fullerton, California
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 Go
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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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