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691. President Bush's Muddled Policy on Taiwan

Author:
Ted Galen Carpenter
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
The Cato Institute
Abstract:
The Bush administration has gone from one extreme to the other with regard to U.S. policy on Taiwan. During the early months of his administration, the president gave a seemingly unconditional pledge to defend Taiwan from attack by mainland China—going significantly further than his predecessors had. He followed that assurance by approving the largest arms sales package to Taiwan in nearly a decade. In marked contrast to the Clinton years, high-profile visits by Taiwanese leaders to the United States have been encouraged, despite Beijing's protests.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Development, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States, China, and Asia

692. Syria Under Bashar (I): Foreign Policy Challenges

Publication Date:
02-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
International Crisis Group
Abstract:
Since the end of the Iraq war, Washington and Damascus have been locked in a dialogue of the deaf. U.S. policy has been reduced to a series of demands and threats. Syrian policy, with President Bashar still struggling to formulate and implement a coherent strategy, has been mainly wait-and-see – offering a few concessions and hoping to weather the storm while refusing to relinquish what it sees as trump cards (support for Hizbollah and radical Palestinian groups) so long as the conflict with Israel continues. Despite the current deadlock, however, the current regional situation presents an opportunity for an intensive, U.S.-led diplomatic effort to revive the Israeli-Syrian peace process and thereby achieve significant changes in Syrian policy.
Topic:
Conflict Resolution, Foreign Policy, Politics, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
United States, Iraq, Washington, Israel, Arabia, and Syria

693. International Organizations and Security Issues: An American Perspective

Author:
J. Matthew Vaccaro
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:
This memo outlines the perspectives of US foreign policy practioners concerning the role of international organizations in managing security issues. The memo is based on contemporary literature, numerous interviews with current and former US foreign policy practioners, and the views of the author, a former practioner. The author argues that an instrumental perspective of international organizations prevails among practioners regardless of the party-affiliation of the Administration. He concludes by proposing a methodology that can be used to understand and predict US participation within international organizations on security matters.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
United States

694. The United States in a Global Age: The Case for Multilateral Engagement

Author:
Stewart Patrick, Shepard Forman, and Princetown Lyman
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Center on International Cooperation (CIC)
Abstract:
This paper outlines a new conceptual framework for U.S. foreign policy appropriate to a global age. It argues that constructive multilateral engagement is essential if the United States is to grapple with the challenges and take better advantage of the opportunities presented by globalization. The paper emerges from a collaborative study sponsored by the Center on International Cooperation (CIC) to examine the causes and consequences of U.S. ambivalence toward multilateral cooperation.
Topic:
Security, Foreign Policy, and International Cooperation
Political Geography:
United States

695. Bush is from Mars, Kerry is from Mars too: The Presidential Election and U.S. Foreign Policy

Author:
Michael Fullilove
Publication Date:
10-2004
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Lowy Institute for International Policy
Abstract:
According to polling commissioned by the Lowy Institute, twice as many Australians think that US foreign policy is on the wrong track as think it is on the right track. Many observers argue that the direction of American policy will vary greatly depending on the outcome of the presidential election. Certainly, there are significant differences in style and substance between the two candidates, George W. Bush and John F. Kerry. However the similarities are as striking as the differences. External challenges, in particular the Iraq war and the war against terrorism, and internal pressures have combined to produce something of a convergence between the outlooks of foreign policy makers in both parties. In the event of a Bush victory, the failure of its foreign policy adventurism in the first term would probably make for a more centrist policy in the second term. In the event of a Kerry victory, the realities of the international system and the probable Republican control of the Senate would do the same. Whomever is elected, America is likely to pursue an assertive foreign policy involving the use of military force; there will less gleeful unilateralism and steroid-fuelled pre-emption than we have seen in the past four years, but it will still be a world away from the kind of strategy many observers are anticipating. From Australia's perspective, the fundamentals of our alliance with the US will ensure that it endures regardless of the result on 0 November. However the temperature of the relationship would probably be affected by a Kerry win. Given the task the senator has set himself of strengthening links with allied capitals, the relationship with Canberra would likely be less of a priority for him than for President Bush. On the other hand, the election of a new face in Washington would make other aspects of Australia's diplomatic life easier.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Government, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States, America, and Australia

696. Law Watch - Detainees: Supreme Court Guantanamo Decision

Author:
Steven C. Welsh
Publication Date:
06-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Defense Information
Abstract:
With a decision notably brief for the mountain of argument leading up to it, the U.S. Supreme Court in Rasul v. Bush held on June 28, 2004, that foreign nationals imprisoned without charge at the Guantanamo Bay interrogation camps were entitled to bring legal action challenging their captivity in U.S. federal civilian courts.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Human Rights, International Law, and Terrorism
Political Geography:
United States

697. The “New World Order”: From Unilateralism to Cosmopolitanism

Author:
Jeffrey Herf and Jürgen Neyer
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Minda de Gunzburg Center for European Studies, Harvard University
Abstract:
On January 26, 2004, the topic of the CES-Berlin Dialogues was “The 'New World Order': From Unilateralism to Cosmopolitanism.” It was the second in a series of four meetings organized in Berlin under the heading “Redefining Justice.” The session was intended to examine successful and failed arenas of cooperation between the US and Europe; political misunderstandings and conscious manipulation; and models for future transatlantic relations. The presenters were Jeffrey Herf, Professor of History, University of Maryland, and Prof. Dr. Jürgen Neyer, Professor of International Political Economy, Ludwig-Maximilians-University of Munich, and Heisenberg Fellow of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft at the Department of Political and Social Sciences of the Freie Universität Berlin. Jeffrey Herf was asked to speak on the basic tenets of U.S. foreign policy in the administration of President George W. Bush, and Jürgen Neyer focused on the European view of international relations and conduct in the period since the invasion of Iraq.
Topic:
International Relations, Foreign Policy, and Politics
Political Geography:
United States, Iraq, Europe, and Berlin

698. A Unified Security Budget for the United States

Author:
Miriam Pemberton and Marcus Corbin
Publication Date:
03-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Center for Defense Information
Abstract:
Since September 11, 2001, the question of how to provide for our security has loomed large over our national life. Many of the Bush administration's answers to this question have come under intense challenge—from the doctrine of preventive war to the development of new designs for “usable” nuclear weapons to the choice of war with Iraq as the centerpiece of its war on terrorism. But until recently one aspect of the administration's strategy has gone virtually unchallenged, namely its military budgets and the spending priorities contained within them. From 2000 to 2004, these budgets have increased by more than 50%. Congress has approved each of these budgets, and virtually the entire menu of programs specified in them, with hardly a whisper of debate.
Topic:
Foreign Policy and Defense Policy
Political Geography:
United States

699. "Compassionate Conservatism" Comes to Africa

Author:
Salih Booker and Ann-Louise Colgan
Publication Date:
05-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Africa Policy Information Center
Abstract:
The Bush administration's foreign policy priorities over the past year have left Africa worse off in a variety of ways. America's pre- occupation with the “war on terrorism” and its military misadventure in Iraq have distracted attention and resources, injuring Africa politically and economically. The White House has turned the continent into geostrategic real estate, defining its value in terms of access to oil and military bases, and viewing U S -Africa relations again through a cold - war -like lens. More broadly, to the extent that American actions have undermined the very notion of multilateralism, they remain directly at odds with Africa's interests. Africa's priorities—in particular, the fight against HIV / AIDS and poverty—are being ignored, and U S unilateralism threatens to undercut international cooperation.
Topic:
Foreign Policy and Human Welfare
Political Geography:
Africa, United States, Iraq, and America

700. Questions on Africa Policy for Candidates Policymakers

Publication Date:
09-2004
Content Type:
Working Paper
Institution:
Africa Policy Information Center
Abstract:
As the U.S. enters an important election season with a greater focus than usual on foreign policy issues, Africa remains largely absent from the national debate. Despite historical ties and important current interests, Africa is still considered to fall outside the scope of U.S. policymakers' concerns.
Topic:
Foreign Policy, Human Welfare, and International Affairs
Political Geography:
Africa and United States