Trump’s only possible Iran strategy is a fantasy
Jeb Bush said Donald Trump would be a “chaos president.” And this week, President Trump lived up to the billing, choosing to defy virtually the entire world, including America’s closest European allies, and raising tensions in the most unstable part of the globe, the Middle East. It is hard to under…
UN puts brave face as climate talks get stuck
UN talks have been officially suspended as countries failed to resolve differences about implementing the Paris climate agreement. The negotiations will resume in Bangkok in September where an extra week’s meeting has now been scheduled . Delegates struggled with the complexity of agreeing a ruleboo…
Can America’s Credibility Survive the Death of the Iran Nuclear Deal?
It was never obvious that Donald Trump knew much about the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the nuclear deal with Iran, but he knew the important parts: It was Obama’s deal. It was a deal with Iran. Those two crucial facts likely doomed it from the start. Trump called it the “worst deal e…
AI will spell the end of capitalism
The most momentous challenge facing socio-economic systems today is the arrival of artificial intelligence. If AI remains under the control of market forces, it will inexorably result in a super-rich oligopoly of data billionaires who reap the wealth created by robots that displace human labor, leav…
The Fracturing of the Transatlantic Community
It has been 25 years since Samuel Huntington published in Foreign Affairs his first warning about civilization and culture rapidly superseding ideology and economics as the principal drivers of conflict in the world. Since then the key tenets of Huntington’s analysis have held; the forces of the ant…
Africa and globalisation: Transforming from taker to shaper?
In recent years, a growing number of G20 nation states have used various forms of summit diplomacy to enhance engagement with the African continent through regular high-level meetings. These have been operationalised through initiatives such as the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, India-Africa For…
Corey Lewandowski Is Offering Phone Calls With Trump As He Looks for Lobbying Work in Serbia, Politician Claims
Former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski has been accused of traveling to Serbia to seek a lobbying contract with the country’s President Aleksandar Vucic and offering to set up phone calls between the Serbian leader and President Donald Trump. The accusations were made by Vuk Jeremic, a Serb…
The United States, Russia and the ‘No Cost’ Paradigm
Washington think tanks can churn out studies about Russia, but the rationale behind them usually lack deep, strong roots sunk into the American public. Dan Drezner, who has a blog at the Washington Post, is correct to caution the foreign policy commentariat from not overblowing comparisons between t…
Solar energy is at risk
For decades, solar power has been a bit player in the energy industry, overshadowed by fossil fuel giants. But today, solar is booming. The United Nations just announced that solar attracted more investment in 2017 than any other power source, clean or dirty. Solar jobs are also on the rise around t…
War and the Asymmetry of Interests
This past weekend, I attended a re-enactment of the Battle of Lexington, the battle that started the American Revolutionary War, in Massachusetts. The pleasure of being with children and grandchildren was my primary motive. But as I watched the superb re-enactment, an obvious question came to mind: …