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161. Germany's Bad Example for Iraq

Author:
Michael S. Greve
Publication Date:
10-2005
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research
Abstract:
Berlin is far from Baghdad, and the Germans at least want to keep it that way. But for all the obvious differences, Germany's inconclusive election results and the impending constitutional referendum in Iraq point to some identical obstacles to effective and constitutional government. These obstacles are proportional representation and “cooperative federalism.” As it happens, well-meaning UN officials, NGOs, and U.S. advisers have been urging these constitutional arrangements upon numerous fledgling democracies, including Iraq. That may not be good advice.
Topic:
Government and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States, Iraq, Europe, Middle East, Baghdad, Germany, and Berlin

162. Cyprus after the Failure of the Annan-Plan

Author:
Jan Asmussen
Publication Date:
06-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
European Centre for Minority Issues (ECMI)
Abstract:
On 24 April 2004 Greek and Turkish Cypriots decided in separate simultaneous referenda on whether or not Cyprus would join the European Union on 1 May 2004. While 64.91% of Turkish Cypriots accepted the Annan Plan, an overwhelming majority of 75.83% of Greek Cypriots rejected the UN blueprint. The extent of the Greek Cypriot “Oxi”(No) brought an end to a large scale effort by the United Nations Secretary-General to broker a final deal for a solution of the “oldest item continuously on the peacemaking agenda”.1 Apart from the UN, the United States (Special envoy: Thomas Weston), the United Kingdom (Special envoy: (Sir David Hannay) and the European Union have constantly observed and tried to facilitate the process. Consequently, there has been a great deal of disappointment among those engaged in finding a solution. The most outspoken comment came from EU Enlargement Commissioner, Günter Verheugen who on 21 April declared that he felt “cheated” by the Greek Cypriot Government. Kofi Annan’s latest report clearly puts most of the blame for the failure on the Greek Cypriot leader, Tassos Papadopoulos, and his government and stresses that “if the Greek Cypriots are ready to share power and prosperity with the Turkish Cypriots in a federal structure based on political equality, this needs to be demonstrated, not just in word, but in action.”3 Apparently, the international community never took the possibility of such an outcome into consideration. As a result, both the EU and the UN concentrated on pressuring the Turkish Cypriot side and Turkey to accept the UN Plan. At the same time no efforts were made to secure a more positive attitude by the Greek Cypriot leadership. Today the international community is in a stage of shock and has clearly not developed an alternative plan to cope with the new situation.
Topic:
International Cooperation, United Nations, Minorities, European Union, Leadership, Ethnicity, Diversity, and Peace
Political Geography:
Europe, Turkey, Greece, and Cyprus

163. War in Iraq: Managing Humanitarian Relief

Publication Date:
03-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
The impassioned controversy that surrounded the decision to invade Iraq had the unfortunate consequence of impeding coordination of humanitarian relief operations. Now that the war has begun, it is important to deal with the urgent task of meeting the needs of the Iraqi people. That will require steps by those who were opposed to the war, in particular European governments and NGOs, to agree to work in close coordination with the United States and put their plans and their funding on the table. And it will require steps by the United States to eschew a dominant role in the post-conflict humanitarian effort and hand coordination over to the United Nations.
Topic:
Conflict Prevention, Human Welfare, Non-Governmental Organization, Politics, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States, Iraq, Europe, and Arabia

164. Ethiopia and Eritrea: War or Peace?

Publication Date:
09-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
The next few weeks will go far to determining whether Ethiopia and Eritrea resume a path toward war - which took some 100,000 lives between 1998 and 2000 - or solidify their peace agreement. Ethiopia must decide whether to allow demarcation of the border to begin in October 2003 even though the international Boundary Commission set up under the Algiers agreement that ended the fighting has ruled that the town of Badme - the original flashpoint of the war - is on the Eritrean side. The outcome will have profound implications for both countries and the entire Horn of Africa, as well as for international law and the sanctity of binding peace agreements and arbitration processes. The international community, particularly the U.S., the African Union (AU), and the European Union (EU), all of which played major roles in brokering the Algiers agreement, need to engage urgently to help Ethiopia move the demarcation forward and to assist both parties to devise a package of measures that can reduce the humanitarian costs of border adjustments and otherwise make implementation of the demarcation more politically palatable.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, International Cooperation, Treaties and Agreements, United Nations, and War
Political Geography:
Africa, Europe, North Africa, and Ethiopia

165. Some remarks on Trans-Atlantic Convergences and Divergences

Author:
Bronislaw Geremek
Publication Date:
11-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Transatlantic Relations
Abstract:
Only a few short years have passed since we bade farewell to the 20th century and ushered in a new millennium. Generalised assessments always include the question of whether the glass is half empty or half full; and so there have been differing evaluations put forth on the outcomes of the passing century and the prospects of the new one. However, we can quite safely say that we bid farewell to the 20th century - the century of two world conflicts, totalitarian ideologies and systems, of the holocaust, concentration camps, the gulag-with a sense of relief. The cold war came to an end, the Soviet empire collapsed, and the spread of democracy and freedom around the globe seemed to justify proclamations of the advent of a Hegelian "end of history". The United Nations Millennium Declaration announced the undertaking of new and effective action that would liberate the world's population from the plagues of hunger, poverty and fear.
Topic:
International Relations, NATO, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States and Europe

166. The United States, the European Union, and International Human Rights Issues

Author:
Esther Brimmer
Publication Date:
05-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Transatlantic Relations
Abstract:
As pillars of the transatlantic community, the United States and the European Union often talk about their shared values derived from their common heritage in the western liberal democratic tradition. Both claim to base their domestic and external policies on their values; and both play a role in international affairs. Their common values suggest that they would support similar policies on international human rights issues. Yet on the international stage they have surprisingly different approaches. This paper will analyze areas of commonality and divergence in United States and European Union policies on international human rights and examine the implications of these differences for human rights and for transatlantic relations.
Topic:
Human Rights, Human Welfare, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States and Europe

167. The EU NATO: Harmonizing Efforts in Southeast Europe

Author:
Alan Gorowitz
Publication Date:
04-2003
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
George C. Marshall European Center for Security Studies
Abstract:
The beginning months of 2003 have witnessed historic moments in the evolution of the policies and visions of the European Union (EU) and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Southeast Europe. On March 30, 2003, NATO forces handed over responsibility for peacekeeping operations in Macedonia to a European Un i o n - l e d operation. Dubbed Operation Concordia, this operation marked an important victory toward harmonizing the effort s of the EU and NATO. Almost simultaneously, many countries of Southeast Europe were taking important steps toward integration into European structures: Bulgaria, Romania, and Slovenia signed the protocols for Accession to NATO in March 2003. Finally, many European leaders were pointing to the need for the EU to more fully develop its European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) in order to better cope with world events .
Topic:
Peace Studies and United Nations
Political Geography:
Europe

168. Special Policy Forum Report: Iraq Crisis After the Blix Report -- Diplomatic and Military Options

Author:
Patrick Clawson, Michael Eisenstadt, David Kay, and Philip Gordon
Publication Date:
01-2003
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Washington Institute for Near East Policy
Abstract:
On January 27, Hans Blix, director of the UN Monitoring, Verification, and Inspection Commission (UNMOVIC), delivered a straightforward report to the Security Council regarding Iraqi compliance with arms resolutions. Twelve years after taking up the obligation to disarm under UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 687, Baghdad still does not genuinely believe that it needs to disarm. Hence, asserting that inspections will work if given time is rather naive. Many in Europe have made this very argument, claiming that the Blix report is just the beginning of a long-term process. Yet, the mission of the inspectors under UNSCR 1441 (passed in November 2002) is to confirm that Iraq has made the decision to disarm and to verify that disarmament has in fact taken place; the Blix report shows that neither of these criteria has been met.
Topic:
Security, Religion, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Iraq, Europe, Middle East, and Arabia

169. The Asian Balance of Weapons of Mass Destruction A Quantitative and Arms Control Analysis

Author:
Anthony H. Cordesman
Publication Date:
01-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)
Abstract:
Beijing continues to emerge as an increasingly active player in the region. Therefore, it is focused on becoming a world - class industrialized power through a countrywide modernization effort, which includes economic, technological, and military components of national power. Beijing already wields significant international influence by virtue of its permanent membership on the United Nations (UN) Security Council and its economic influence. China's public support for nonproliferation regimes is motivated by several factors, including a desire to enhance its image as a responsible world power and support for nonproliferation objectives.
Topic:
Nuclear Weapons, Treaties and Agreements, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Russia, China, Europe, South Asia, Beijing, and Asia

170. The New Transatlantic Security Network

Author:
Chantal de Jonge Oudraat
Publication Date:
07-2002
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Transatlantic Relations
Abstract:
The United States and its European allies often found themselves at loggerheads in the 1990s. Disputes over arms control, peacekeeping operations in the Balkans, the environment, and the role of the United Nations (UN) were frequent. European governments repeatedly accused the United States of being disengaged and not living up to its responsibilities as a global power. When it did, they feared U.S. power and its disdain for multilateral approaches to international problems.
Topic:
Security, Terrorism, and United Nations
Political Geography:
United States, Europe, and Balkans