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602. Security First: A Strategy for Defending America
- Author:
- Sharon Burke, Dr. Elaine C. Kamarck, and William Galston
- Publication Date:
- 05-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Third Way
- Abstract:
- For more than four decades, the purpose of American foreign policy was to win the Cold War. On November 9, 1989, with the fall of the Berlin Wall, that understanding of America's place in the world changed forever. Less than one month later, the Presidents of the Soviet Union and United States met at Malta and agreed that the Cold War was over.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Arms Control and Proliferation, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- United States, America, Middle East, and Soviet Union
603. A Growing Threat: Al Qaeda and Its Allies on the Move
- Author:
- Matt Bennett, Sharon Burke, and Jeremy Ershow
- Publication Date:
- 09-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Third Way
- Abstract:
- The idea that Americans are safe from al Qaeda because the group has not struck inside the United States since 9/11—a claim repeated just this week by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff—is one of the Bush administration's most dangerous, short-sighted and questionable notions about terrorism. Experience alone suggests otherwise: eight years passed between al Qaeda's first attempt to destroy the World Trade Center in 1993 and their attack in 2001. Indeed, a more thorough examination of the facts suggests that the threat not only remains—it is growing.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- United States and Middle East
604. Troop Levels in Stability Operations: What We Don’t Know
- Author:
- Peter Krause
- Publication Date:
- 02-2007
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- MIT Center for International Studies
- Abstract:
- Troop levels in Iraq have been one of the most hotly contested issues om American foreign policy over the past three years, from debates over the initial deployment in 2003 to those surrounding the troop surge in 2007. The Bush administration has faced significant criticism for ignoring the conventional wisdom regarding the number of soldiers required to secure Iraq, and recent attempts to change course in this area are seen by some as too little, too late. Specifically, the Pentagon’s deployment of only 120,000 American troops for the invasion and the decision by Paul Bremer, U.S. Administrator in Iraq, to disband the Iraqi army and police has kept the ratio of security forces to Iraqi civilians well below the 20 per 1,000 seen as the basic ante required to play the high stakes stabilization game. Many supporters of higher troop levels blame these missteps for the emergence of the robust insurgency and the coalition’s failure to defeat it. But where exactly does the 20 per 1,000 figure come from, how strong is the evidence sup- porting it, and what steps are being taken to assess and improve the conventional wisdom in this area? While the answer to the first part of the question is relatively accessible, the latter are more difficult. They address a daunting problem, but unveil a disconnect between the objectives and methods of policy and social science.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy, Military Strategy, Iraq War, and Troop Deployment
- Political Geography:
- United States, Iraq, Middle East, and North America
605. Security Implications of Russian Energy Policies
- Author:
- Keith C. Smith
- Publication Date:
- 01-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Centre for European Policy Studies
- Abstract:
- Russia's tough stance towards Ukraine on natural gas prices was viewed by many in Europe and the United States as raising new issues concerning Russia's foreign economic policies and growing European and US dependency on energy imports. For many new EU member states and for countries such as Ukraine, Georgia, and Moldova, however, this is an old problem. Central European attempts to flag the issue in Western capitals have until now been brushed aside. The rapid approval by the EU Commission of the Russian-German undersea gas pipeline project was a mistake. The concerns of the Central Europeans should have been examined in more detail. Western governments would also be wise to analyse more closely the political and security implications of Russia's energy policies.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, and Energy Policy
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Europe, Ukraine, Asia, and Germany
606. American hegemony: A dangerous aspiration?
- Author:
- James L. Richardson
- Publication Date:
- 05-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Australian National University Department of International Relations
- Abstract:
- The Bush administration's foreign policies have sparked off a round of new debates on America's power and its international role. At the core of these debates are ideas of empire and hegemony, but these terms are used in many senses and often interchangeably. The paper first distinguishes among these usages and spells out its own concepts. As understood here, a hegemonic power is one that plays a leading role in shaping and maintaining a certain international order, exercising its dominant power in such a way as to win broad acceptance and legitimacy. It is argued that the discussion of hegemony can best be advanced by distinguishing among the various domains of power: military, economic, ideological and political, to follow Michael Mann's breakdown. The US is closest to hegemony in the international economic domain, but in each domain its hegemony is at best partial and qualified. Nonetheless, it remains the preponderant power, with aspirations to hegemony and empire. The benefits of American preponderance are widely acclaimed in the West and infrequently questioned in the international relations discipline, but its dangers merit far greater attention than they normally receive. In particular, beyond the short-term context, the specifically American version of liberal ideology renders the US ill-suited to respond to some of the foreseeable challenges of the twenty-first century. Consequently there is a need for others to engage a great deal more actively than heretofore with the construction of a more viable international order.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Development
- Political Geography:
- United States and America
607. China's Charm: Implications of Chinese Soft Power
- Author:
- Josh Kurlantzick
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Policy Brief
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- Over the past decade China has downplayed its hard power in Southeast Asia, instead creating a strategy to build its soft power. For the first time in post-WWII history, the United States may be facing a situation in which another country's appeal outstrips its own in an important region, a change sure to shock the United States. Before China's appeal spreads to other parts of the developing world, U.S. policy makers need to understand how China exerts soft power, if China's soft power could be dangerous to developing nations, and whether elements of China's charm could threaten U.S. interests.
- Topic:
- Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- United States, China, Asia, and Southeast Asia
608. Pakistan-Afghanistan Relations in the Post-9/11 Era
- Author:
- Frédéric Grare
- Publication Date:
- 10-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
- Abstract:
- Taliban insurgents and their Al Qaeda allies, once thought defeated in Afghanistan, are regaining strength. Regrouped and reorganized, better equipped and financed, and more sophisticated tactically, they are threatening both the reconstruction process and the U.S.-led coalition forces on the ground. According to the U.S. Department of Defense, sixty-six U.S. troops were killed in combat in Afghanistan in 2005, more than in the previous four years combined.
- Topic:
- International Relations and Foreign Policy
- Political Geography:
- Pakistan, Afghanistan, United States, Middle East, and Taliban
609. Reappraising Nuclear Security Strategy
- Author:
- Rensselaer Lee
- Publication Date:
- 06-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- The Cato Institute
- Abstract:
- The danger posed by Russia's inadequately secured stocks of nuclear weapons and fissile material is a major national security concern for the United States. Various cooperative U.S.-Russian programs aimed at securing nuclear material, weapons, and design intelligence have been mounted since the 1990s, but clever and determined adversaries may be able to circumvent or defeat the defenses that the United States and its partners are attempting to put in place. U.S. programs are by their nature reactive: they have long time horizons; they focus preeminently on the supply side of the problem; and they face serious technological limitations. Russia's imperfect commitment to nonproliferation also undermines the effectiveness of U.S. nonproliferation efforts.
- Topic:
- International Relations, Security, Foreign Policy, and Nuclear Weapons
- Political Geography:
- Russia, United States, Europe, and Asia
610. US Policy in South Asia: Under Secretary Burns
- Author:
- Nermeen Shaikh
- Publication Date:
- 11-2006
- Content Type:
- Working Paper
- Institution:
- Asia Society
- Abstract:
- Good evening, and thank you Dan for that nice introduction. It is a pleasure to be here at the Asia Society. Thank you, Vishakha [Desai, President] for your remarks and also for inviting me.
- Topic:
- Security, Foreign Policy, and Terrorism
- Political Geography:
- United States, South Asia, and Asia