2009

Counterterrorism

commentary
Fighting Terror the Cold War Way
With much talk about how to “win hearts and minds” in the Muslim world, it's surprising that few are looking back to a global contest of ideas that the U.S. and its allies categorically won: the Cold War, write Todd C. Helmus and Dalia Dassa Kaye.
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Oct 14, 2009
ForeignPolicy.com
Todd C. Helmus @Helmus, Dalia Dassa Kaye

Terrorism Threat Assessment

commentary
How a Decade of Terror Changed America
Two foiled airliner bombings bracket a decade that changed the world's understanding of terrorism as a new form of global warfare and has had profound ramifications we are still coming to grips with in the U.S., writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Dec 30, 2009
AOL News
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Nuclear Disarmament

commentary
Punish Iran's Rulers, Not Its People
Time is running out for the U.S. to persuade Iran to halt its nuclear program. As the potential for a diplomatic solution wanes, the administration must consider what steps might dissuade Tehran from continuing its nuclear program without punishing the Iranian people, writes Alireza Nader..
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Dec 14, 2009
Foreign Policy
Alireza Nader
Afghanistan

commentary
Ends, Ways, and Means—the Debate We Still Need on Afghanistan
When President Obama explained his decision to send 30,000 additional U.S. troops to Afghanistan to support General Stanley McChrystal's new counterinsurgency campaign, he left a key question unanswered: Will this be enough to achieve U.S. strategic ends in Afghanistan? writes David E. Johnson.
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Dec 9, 2009
RAND.org
David E. Johnson
Security Cooperation

commentary
Take the War to Pakistan
The United States and Pakistan must target Taliban leaders in Baluchistan. There are several ways to do it, and none requires military forces, writes Seth G. Jones.
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Dec 4, 2009
New York Times
Seth G. Jones
Military Force Deployment

commentary
Afghanistan: A Marathon, Not a Prize Fight
President Obama's decision to send 30,000 additional troops to Afghanistan reflects a nation deeply divided on the war. There are compelling arguments on both sides, writes Brian Michael Jenkins.
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Dec 1, 2009
RAND.org
Brian Michael Jenkins @BrianMJenkins
Afghanistan

commentary
A False Promise of 'Counterinsurgency'
If the additional troops President Obama has ordered sent to Afghanistan are intended to pursue a "population-centric counterinsurgency" campaign, as described in news reports about General McChrystal's thinking, then this decision is regrettable, writes Celeste Ward Gventer.
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Dec 1, 2009
NYTimes.com
Celeste Gventer
Terrorism Threat Assessment

commentary
A Year After Mumbai, Lashkar's Threat Has Only Grown
One year ago, 10 gunmen from a Pakistani militant group Lashkar-e-Taiba laid siege to Mumbai. Lashkar's main enemy is India, but it has also waged a peripheral jihad against the United States and its allies since shortly after 9/11, writes Stephen Tankel.
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Nov 25, 2009
RAND.org
Stephen Tankel
Afghanistan

commentary
When Generals and Ambassadors Feud
In 2007 in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus and Amb. Ryan Crocker set a model for civil-military collaboration: They never let daylight show between their positions. General McChrystal and Ambassador Karl Eikenberry have diverged from this model, writes James Dobbins.
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Nov 13, 2009
Foreign Policy
James Dobbins @Jim_Dobbins
Globalization

commentary
The Fall of the Wall: A World Restored?
The fall of the Berlin Wall retains its status as an epoch-making event inmodern world history, even as it passes from recent into truly historical memory, writes Christopher Chivvis.
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Nov 10, 2009
CNN.com
Christopher S. Chivvis
Afghanistan

commentary
Our Man in Kabul
The last thing Karzai, NATO, and the United States can afford is the emergence of a renewed northern alliance, writes James Dobbins.
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Nov 4, 2009
Foreign Affairs
James Dobbins @Jim_Dobbins
Nation Building

commentary
Karzai's Second Term a Test for International Community
Afghan President Hamid Karzai begins his second term with his country on the brink of chaos. To establish control, two major elements of reform are necessary, writes Terrence Kelly.
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Nov 2, 2009
RAND.org
Terrence Kelly
Alcohol

commentary
Price of Intoxication: The Case for a Minimum Price for Alcohol
If ever there was a scheme that might reduce excessive alcohol consumption while causing minimal social and economic disruption, a minimum price on alcohol may be it, writes Lila Rabinovich.
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Oct 30, 2009
RAND.org
Lila Rabinovich
North Atlantic Treaty Organization

commentary
Keeping Our Allies on Our Side in Afghanistan
'There is only one thing worse than fighting with allies," observed Winston Churchill in 1945, "and that is fighting without them." It's a truth worth recalling as the Obama administration nears crucial decisions on Afghanistan, write Leo Michel and Robert Hunter.
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Oct 27, 2009
Los Angeles Times
Leo Michel, Robert E. Hunter
International Diplomacy

commentary
Biden's Task in Eastern Europe: Reassurance
After the decision to cancel missile defense plans in Poland and the Czech Republic, the US needs to do more than damage control to soothe ties there, write F. Stephen Larrabee and Christopher Chivvis.
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Oct 20, 2009
The Christian Science Monitor
F. Stephen Larrabee, Christopher S. Chivvis
commentary
Prime Numbers: Doped
The illicit drug trade is the ultimate value-added chain. As cocaine and heroin make their perilous journeys from the fields of Colombia and Afghanistan to markets in U.S. and European cities, each border crossed and each trafficker involved adds dollars to a price, write Beau Kilmer And Peter Reuter.
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Oct 19, 2009
Foreign Policy
Beau Kilmer @BeauKilmer, Peter Reuter