U.S. and NATO Finalize Pacts on Ending Afghan War: What We're Reading Now
Apr 19, 2012
Korean Peninsula
This Time, a Less Predictable Pyongyang
Choe Sang-Hun, New York Times - April 18, 2012
Things tend to repeat themselves enough in the continuing North Korean missile and nuclear crises that analysts and journalists often joke that if they pulled out their old reports and changed the dates, they could pretty much describe the latest episode.
S. Korea deploys new missile capable of hitting anywhere in N. Korea
Yonhap News Agency - April 19, 2012
South Korea has deployed a new long-range cruise missile that puts nuclear and missile sites in the entire North Korean territory within striking distance, defense ministry officials said Thursday, amid growing security jitters sparked by the North's botched rocket launch.
Afghanistan
U.S. and NATO Finalize Pacts on Ending Afghan War
Elisabeth Bumiller, New York Times - April 18, 2012
The United States and its allies in NATO finalized agreements on Wednesday to wind down the war in Afghanistan, paving the way for President Obama to announce at a NATO summit meeting in Chicago next month that the unpopular, nearly 11-year-old conflict is close to an end.
Afghanistan needs firm security funding pledges, U.S. says
David Cloud, Los Angeles Times - April 18, 2012
The United States and its allies are promising to provide more than $4 billion a year for Afghanistan's army and police after international forces depart in 2 1/2 years, but they still lack firm financial pledges to meet the target, U.S. officials said.
Missile defense cooperation could be "game-changer" for US, Russia: What We're Reading Now
Feb 06, 2012
IRAN
Just a Bluff? Fears Grow of Israeli Attack on Iran
Dan Perry and Josef Federman, Associated Press - February 5, 2012
For the first time in nearly two decades of escalating tensions over Iran's nuclear program, world leaders are genuinely concerned that an Israeli military attack on the Islamic Republic could be imminent - an action that many fear might trigger a wider war, terrorism and global economic havoc.
Trading Threats With Iran
Editorial, New York Times - February 3, 2012
The posturing and saber rattling from both Iran and Israel are getting frightening. Iran threatened to close the Strait of Hormuz after the European Union and the United States tightened sanctions.
House Intel Chair: Attack on Iran Would Harm U.S. National Security
Michael Ono, ABC News - February 5, 2012
As United States and Israel grow increasingly concerned over Iran’s nuclear program, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee is cautioning that a pre-emptive strike by Israel could spell trouble for America.
Joint Drill with U.S. to be Held After Delay
Yaakaov Katz, Jerusalem Post - February 6, 2012
Israel and the United States will hold the postponed Austere Challenge missile-defense exercise before the end of the year, likely in October or November.
Iran Blocks U.N. Nuclear Inspectors: What We're Reading Now
Feb 03, 2012
IRAN
Iran Blocks U.N. Nuclear Inspectors
Jay Solomon, Wall Street Journal - February 3, 2012
Iran denied United Nations inspectors access to a suspected nuclear site, scientists and documents during a visit to Tehran this week, dimming already scant hopes for a breakthrough to end a standoff over Iran's nuclear work, said diplomats briefed on the International Atomic Energy Agency's mission.
Panetta believes Israel could strike Iran this spring
Barbara Starr, CNN (Blog) - February 2, 2012
U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta has come to the conclusion there is a growing likelihood Israel could attack Iran sometime this spring in an effort to destroy its suspected nuclear weapons program, according to a senior administration official.
Senate Panel Approves Potentially Toughest Penalty Yet Against Iran’s Wallet
Rick Gladstone, New York Times - February 2, 2012
The Senate Banking Committee unanimously approved a new regimen of anti-Iran sanctions on Thursday that would for the first time threaten to punish the global financial telecommunications network that nearly all banks rely on to conduct their daily business.
West making case to Israel: Don't attack Iran
Anne Gearan, Associated Press - February 2, 2012
Israel's major allies in the West are working hard to talk it out of a unilateral military strike on Iran's nuclear facilities, arguing forcefully that an attack ultimately would strengthen, not weaken, the regime in Tehran.
UN Official Says New Trip to Iran Planned, Indicating Progress: What We're Reading Now
Feb 01, 2012
IRAN
UN Official Says New Trip to Iran Planned, Indicating Progress on Nuclear Issues
Associated Press - February 1, 2012
A U.N. nuclear team on Wednesday announced plans to revisit Tehran “in the very near future,” indicating some progress on its quest to wrest information from Iran about allegations that it secretly worked on an atomic arms program.
Iran Praises Nuclear Talks with Team from UN
Rick Gladstone, New York Times - January 31, 2012
Iran said Tuesday that a team of United Nations nuclear inspectors visiting since the weekend had concluded “constructive and positive” talks with Iranian officials, with further discussions planned at an unspecified date.
Intelligence Report Lists Iran and Cyberattacks as Leading Concerns
Eric Schmitt, New York Times - January 31, 2012
Some senior Iranian leaders are now more willing to carry out attacks inside the United States in response to perceived American threats against their country, the Obama administration’s top intelligence official said on Tuesday, pointing to last fall’s suspected assassination plot against the Saudi ambassador to Washington.
Group Urges Credible U.S. Military Threat to Iran
Arshad Mohammad, Reuters - February 1, 2012
The United States should deploy ships, step up covert activities and sharpen its rhetoric to make more credible the threat of a U.S. military strike to stop Iran's nuclear program, a bipartisan group said on Wednesday.
In Israel, A Nonstop Debate On Possible Iran Strike
Lourdes Garcia-Navarro, NPR - January 31, 2012
In Israel, there is daily speculation over whether Israel will attack Iran's nuclear facilities in the near future. The debate is not only over whether Israel should strike Iran, but what the costs and benefits might be from such a strike.
Pakistan to boycott meeting over deadly NATO raid: What We're Reading Now
Nov 29, 2011
IRAN
Iran Nuclear Sabotage Suspected After Reports of Blasts at Atomic Centers
Ladane Nasseri, Bloomberg - November 29, 2011
Reports of a blast in the province of Isfahan, home to one of Iran’s atomic facilities, adds to a series of unexplained incidents that have raised suspicions of sabotage against the country’s nuclear program.
Analysis: For Iran, the sanctions price may be worth paying
Fredrik Dahl, Reuters - November 29, 2011
Iran regards its nuclear programme as a source of power and prestige and tougher sanctions look unlikely to alter Tehran's cost-benefit analysis much despite the economic pain they cause.
The Real Lesson of Iraq
Malrid Braut-Hegghammer, NYT (Op-Ed) - November 28, 2011
Parallels between Iraq’s former nuclear weapons program and the Iranian nuclear program have shaped policy debates for nearly a decade. We are still paying the costs of failing in Iraq. Israel now seems determined to make similar mistakes in Iran.
NORTH & SOUTH KOREA
Blix: NK Not a Topic at Seoul Nuclear Summit
Evan Ramstad, WSJ - November 29, 2011
Hans Blix, the Swedish lawyer and nuclear specialist who led the International Atomic Energy Agency in the 1990s and the U.N. nuclear verification commission a decade ago, was in Seoul Tuesday to meet President Lee Myung-bak and help define the agenda for the 47-nation Nuclear Security Summit to be hosted in Seoul in March.
NATO Mess with Pakistan: What We're Reading Now
Nov 28, 2011
IRAN
Iran builds 3 more submarines for navy
AP - November 27, 2011
Iranian state TV says the country has added three more domestically-built submarines to its naval fleet. The move is seen as part of Iran's effort to upgrade its defense capabilities amid escalating tension over its nuclear program. The West suspects Iran is aiming at developing nuclear weapons, a charge Iran denies.
Oil Soars On Geopolitical Tensions
Sarah Kent, WSJ - November 28, 2011
rude futures took off as investors reacted to the prospect of a European Union ban on Iranian oil imports and renewed optimism that European politicians are making headway in their efforts to contain the region's debt crisis.
Iran's Parliament Orders Ties With Britain Reduced
Nasser Karimi, AP - November 27, 2011
Iran's parliament on Sunday approved a bill requiring both Iran and Britain to withdraw their respective ambassadors from each other's countries, following London's support of recently upgraded U.S. sanctions on Tehran.
NORTH KOREA
N. Korean leader faces challenges in power succession, Yu says
Kim Kwang-tae, Yonhap News - November 26, 2011
North Korean leader Kim Jong-il faces challenges in handing over power to his youngest son, Seoul's top official in charge of relations with Pyongyang said.
Pakistan warns Afghanistan after pact with India: What We're Reading Now
Oct 06, 2011
IRAN
Pressure builds on Iran at nuclear watchdog
Barbara Slavin, Asia Times - October 6, 2011
As Iran continues a slow march toward potential nuclear weapons capability, diplomatic action to contain the program is likely to shift to the United Nations' International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), whose director general, Yukiya Amano, has taken a harder line than his predecessor about alleged military research by Iran's nuclear scientists.
Is Israel Again Weighing an Attack on Iran's Nuclear Facilities?
Tony Karon, TIME (blog) - October 5, 2011
Panetta's comments, coming barely a month after the U.S. reportedly agreed to deliver 55 bunker-busting GBU-28 bombs to Israel, were widely viewed as an "down, boy" message to any adventurist bomb-Iran impulses on the part of Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Ehud Barak.
NORTH & SOUTH KOREA
South Korea’s new nuclear envoy heads to US for talks on North Korea’s atomic program
AFP - October 6, 2011
South Korea’s new chief nuclear envoy is heading to the United States for talks on North Korea’s nuclear ambitions. South Korea’s Foreign Ministry says Lim Sung-nam left on a three-day trip Thursday to meet with State Department and White House officials.
S. Korean Navy Says New Base Will Not Host US Military Vessels
Steve Herman, VoA - October 5, 2011
South Korean defense officials say a controversial proposed naval base, off the southern coast on Jeju island, will not allow permanent stationing of U.S. naval vessels. And, they say the facility, to be completed in 2015, is meant to deter North Korea, not China.
What We’re Reading Now
Aug 03, 2011
PAKISTAN
Pakistan, Afghanistan, U.S. hold meeting on Afghan peace process
Muhammad Tahir, Xinhua- August 3, 2011
Afghan Deputy Foreign Minister Javid Ludin said Tuesday that Pakistan can offer help in engaging the Taliban leadership with a view to bringing them over to the peace process.
The political will for peace in Kashmir
Marie Lall, Al Jazeera- August 2, 2011
The main obstacle to peace between India and Pakistan is a passive acceptance of the status quo.
IRAN
Iran centrifuge news increases risk
Cliff Kupchan, Foreign Policy- August 2, 2011
News that Tehran is reportedly planning to deploy faster centrifuges at a hardened site and intends to triple production of highly enriched uranium increases somewhat the risk of Israeli strikes, if Iran can follow through.
What We’re Reading Now
Aug 01, 2011
PAKISTAN
Getting Bin Laden
Nicholas Schmidle, The New Yorker- August 1, 2011
What happened that night in Abbottabad.
Pakistan says U.S. missiles kill 3 near border
Associated Press- August 1, 2011
American drone-fired missiles slammed into a car near the Afghan border on Monday, killing four suspected Islamist militants, Pakistani intelligence officials said.
UNITED STATES
Obama and leaders reach debt deal
Carl Hulse and Helene Cooper, New York Times - July 31, 2011
President Obama and Congressional leaders of both parties said late Sunday that they had agreed to a framework for a budget deal that would cut trillions of dollars in federal spending over the next decade and clear the way for an increase in the government’s borrowing limit.
What We’re Reading Now
Jul 29, 2011
IRAN
How Iran and America could wind up at war
Ilan Berman, Forbes- July 29, 2011
For much of the past decade, conventional wisdom has held that Iran’s dogged pursuit of a nuclear capability – carried out in spite of mounting pressure from the international community – will ultimately become a casus belli for Washington.
U.S. sees alliance between Iran
Jay Solomon, Wall Street Jounral- July 29, 2011
The U.S. for the first time formally accused Iran of forging an alliance with al Qaeda in a pact that allows the terrorist group to use Iranian soil as a transit point for moving money, arms and fighters to its bases in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
PAKISTAN
Holding Pakistan to account
New York Times- July 29, 2011
The Obama administration’s decision to suspend $800 million of its $2 billion in annual security aid to Pakistan inevitably raises the question of why the United States should continue to give Pakistan any military aid at all.
Pakistan opposes treaty banning production of fissile material for nuclear weapons
APPl- July 29, 2011
Top nuclear envoys from North and South Korea emerged smiling from a face-to-face meeting Friday, saying they were ready to work together to resume stalled disarmament talks.
