CAPP Newsletter Archive: September 2003
September 2003 Table of Contents
Message from the Director
CAPP
in the News
New RAND Publications on Asia
RAND
Research Highlights
CAPP News and Events
Recommended
Resources
Message
from the Director
Last month, RAND had the honor of hosting a visit by the President of Pakistan,
General Pervez Musharraf, for a small roundtable discussion with Jim Thomson,
RAND's President and CEO, and others. This newsletter also describes a recent
RAND report that analyzes the challenges in Iraq in light of the United States'
past nation-building experiences.
-Nina Hachigian, CAPP Director
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US:
Stick to Diplomacy with North Korea, Even If Talks Fail
Commentary by Nina Hachigian in the Christian Science Monitor
August 7, 2003
CAPP Director Nina Hachigian argues in a recent op-ed that while a better government in Pyongyang is a long-term vision, stopping North Korea's nuclear program is a short-term necessity that can only be accomplished through rigorous and sustained diplomatic engagement.
Getting
Beyond Boundaries
Commentary by William H. Overholt in the South China Morning Post
July 16, 2003
Overholt addresses the controversy surrounding Article 23 of Hong Kong's
Basic Law, which requires that Hong Kong enact laws forbidding subversion
of China. Hundreds of thousands of citizens turned out to protest the government's
restrictive proposed language and perfunctory public consultation. Overholt
argues that the fundamental interests at stake nonetheless are not contradictory,
and that carefully focused actions by each party can lead to a successful
outcome.
Be
Tougher on Burma Than China
Commentary by William H. Overholt in the Asian Wall Street Journal
July 4, 2003
At
the same time that the U.S. is imposing sanctions on Burma,
it pursues a policy of open trade with China. Overholt argues
that while this may seem inconsistent, a closer look at both
countries reveals enormous differences that justify pursuing
two different policies.
America's
Role in Nation-Building: From Germany to Iraq
by James Dobbins, John G. McGinn, Keith Crane, Seth G. Jones, Rollie Lal,
Andrew Rathmell, Rachel Swanger, and Anga Timilsina
In Iraq, the United States is facing its most challenging nation-building
project since the 1940s. Based on the historical evidence drawn from case
studies of prior nation-building efforts in Japan, Germany, Kosovo, Afghanistan
and other countries, the authors argue that the United States cannot afford
to contemplate an early exit from Iraq and leave the job of nation-building
there half completed. They conclude that rebuilding Iraq will be difficult
but possible, given enough time and a sufficient investment of financial,
military, and political resources.
Military
Operations in Urban Areas: The Indian Experience
by C. Christine Fair
Originally published in India Review
Fair analyzes the dimensions of urban conflict as expounded within Indian
defense literature, examining efforts to determine the unique demands the
urban environment exerts on its forces. This research finds that within the
Indian force structure, Indian institutions have generally been unable to
absorb and disseminate the various lessons learned from these operations.
In particular, there are few if any joint mechanisms to ensure that India's
entire security apparatus can draw from accumulated operational knowledge.
An
Evaluation of Universal Health Insurance in the Elderly:
Burden of Disease, Utilization, and Costs in the Republic
of Korea
by John W. Peabody, David A. Robalino, and Jin Ho Kin
The authors evaluated Korea's national health insurance system for the elderly
and found that by simultaneously analyzing utilization rates, disease patterns,
and relative costs of care, policymakers may be able to avert a financing
crisis. They also determined that different pricing strategies and better
disease targeting would adjust rates of use and therefore increase efficiency
of health expenditures.
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RAND
Research Highlights
Japan's Energy Policy
RAND is beginning a study that 1) describes Japan's medium to long-term energy
outlook including trends in oil, natural gas, and nuclear energy usage, as
well as likely import patterns, and 2) offers an assessment of the role energy
plays--and will play in the future--in shaping Japanese foreign policy decisionmaking.
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CAPP
News and Events
RAND
Welcomes President of Pakistan
Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf discussed his country's role in the war on terrorism, root causes of terrorism, and potential solutions during a recent visit to RAND's Santa Monica office. The high-level delegation also included Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs, Shaukat Aziz, and Pakistan's Ambassador to the United States, Ashraf Jehangir Qazi.
Experts Weigh In on Key Issues in Asia
The July/August issue of The Atlantic Monthly Magazine features a compilation of ten short essays written by analysts at RAND that focus attention on several important but generally ignored international security developments. The article, "Headlines Over the Horizon," features analysis by several Asia experts on topics such as the recent warming trend in Indo-Iranian relations, the potential radicalization of religious identities in India, and the high-stakes dispute between India and Pakistan over water.
Symposium: Diagnosing al Qaeda
As the global war on terror continues, there are still many unanswered questions about the nature of al Qaeda and the threat it poses. Frontpage Symposium and RAND recently co-sponsored a panel discussion to focus on this issue. Frontpage Magazine's Jamie Glazov spoke with a group of RAND experts who described al Qaeda as more of an ideology than an organization, one that can survive Osama bin Laden and must be met with countermeasures that are equally as dynamic and innovative as the al Qaeda movement itself.
The following are newsgroups, magazines, portal sites, and other online resources that policy analysts, researchers, and others studying Asia-Pacific policy may find helpful. Please note that CAPP has no control over these sites and is not responsible for their content. Links to other sites are provided for convenience of reference only and are not intended as an endorsement by CAPP or RAND.
The Portal to Asian Internet Resources (PAIR) offers over six thousand professionally selected, cataloged and annotated online resources. The PAIR Project is supported by a group of area studies scholars, bibliographers and subject selectors based at the libraries of the University of Wisconsin, the University of Minnesota, and Ohio State University.
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