Articles

How to Play Nice With an Angry Erdogan

How to Play Nice With an Angry Erdogan

The sweeping purges and mass arrests since last month’s failed military coup in Turkey have confirmed many of the worst fears about President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government. They are the most recent in a long history of abuses. Over the last few years, Mr. Erdogan has harshly repressed the Turkish press and civil society, supported […]

The cost of short-sighted missionary zeal in Sudan

The cost of short-sighted missionary zeal in Sudan

FIVE YEARS AGO, pushed by an odd coalition of movie stars and conservative Christians, the United States midwifed the birth of a new African nation, South Sudan. Senior American leaders attended the glittering independence celebration. This was supposed to be a liberation or a human rights project or a return to godliness. Only a few […]

Time to Talk in Syria

Time to Talk in Syria

AS THE HORRIFIC carnage in Syria continues, a depressingly familiar chorus is rising from Washington. The new consensus is the same as it was in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan: Bombing isn’t working, so let’s bomb more. A familiar coalition — generals, defense contractors, and politicians, along with think tanks and much of the press — is […]

Is NATO necessary?

Is NATO necessary?

BRITAIN’S VOTE to quit the European Union was a rude jolt to the encrusted world order. Now that the EU has been shocked into reality, NATO should be next. When NATO leaders convene for a summit in Warsaw on Friday, they will insist that their alliance is still vital because Russian aggression threatens Europe. The opposite […]

Brexit — a stern rebuke to arrogant elites

Brexit — a stern rebuke to arrogant elites

Astonishment, jubilation, and awe seized the hearts of European leaders after they took decisive steps toward uniting their continent in December 1991. By agreeing to accelerate Europe’s progress toward “ever closer union,” they produced far more than simply another treaty. The accord they signed in the Dutch town of Maastricht committed their countries to the […]