Boston Globe: ‘US, Iran share a common enemy: Heroin’
ACCORDING TO a principle of traditional geopolitics, countries should seek to help their friends and hurt their enemies. This sounds logical. It can also help assure, however, that enemies remain enemies. Sometimes it can lead countries to ignore their own interests as they seek to harm others. Decisions about whether a particular country qualifies as a […]
Boston Globe: ‘Compassion does not necessitate intervention’
Violent upheaval is now afflicting countries in almost every part of the world. Americans are eager to do whatever we can to help calm these crises. After a century of global power, this impulse is embedded in our national psyche. Americans are instinctively compassionate. We hate the thought that people are suffering anywhere. Our leaders […]
Boston Globe: ‘US a full partner in Ukraine debacle’
FROM THE moment the Soviet Union collapsed in 1991, the United States has relentlessly pursued a strategy of encircling Russia, just as it has with other perceived enemies like China and Iran. It has brought 12 countries in central Europe, all of them formerly allied with Moscow, into the NATO alliance. US military power is […]
Are Hillary Clinton’s presidential ambitions clouding her morals?
Whether or not Clinton has formally announced her candidacy, her silence on Iran speaks louder than words. Asked in an interview this week about her presidential ambitions, Hillary Clinton gave an answer that qualified as a howler even by Clinton standards: “I’m not thinking about it.” Clinton is widely considered the presumptive Democratic nominee for […]
Kinzer in Al Jazeera America: US-Iran detente will be biggest geopolitical story of 2014
Predicting which geopolitical events and trends will shape the coming year is a pastime as speculative as it is irresistible.
There is plenty to anticipate: China and Japan may become more aggressive and provocative over the disputed Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands, contributing to instability in East Asia. Radical fundamentalists will wage war from new bases in Mali, Libya and Syria. Turkey may become more polarized and fail to recover the promising role it played in regional politics until a couple of years ago. Nationalist and far-right political parties will gain strength in Europe. President Barack Obama’s decision to approve or reject the massive Keystone oil pipeline from Canada to the Gulf of Mexico will profoundly affect global energy markets. If King Saud dies — he will turn 90 this year — Saudi Arabia will be racked by an intense struggle over succession and the direction of the kingdom.
