US Opinion and Commentary

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The High Price of Rejecting the Iran Deal

Posted August 14th, 2015 at 10:00 am (UTC-4)
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The simple fact is that, after two years of testing Iran in negotiations, the international community does not believe that ramping up sanctions will persuade Iran to eradicate all traces of its hard-won civil nuclear program or sever its ties to its armed proxies in the region.

Are There Really Only Two Options on Iran?

Posted July 29th, 2015 at 9:30 am (UTC-4)
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Plenty of conservatives have proposed alternatives to Obama’s Iran deal — and not just war.

Turkey Grants Access for US Warplanes as Syrian War Escalates

Posted July 28th, 2015 at 5:53 pm (UTC-4)
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By Barbara Slavin After four years of trying to avoid major entanglement in Syria’s multisided civil war, the Obama administration is being pulled deeper into the fight to stem the advances of the group that calls itself the Islamic State (IS). Turkey’s decision at long last to allow the U.S. to fly armed drones and […]

Suspicions Surround Turkey’s Escalation Against Islamic State

Posted July 28th, 2015 at 3:20 pm (UTC-4)
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A day after reaching a deal with the United States to step up its military campaign against ISIS, Turkey pounded Kurdish and Islamic State targets. The move immediately prompted skepticism about Ankara’s true intention in signing the pact, which allows the US to use its bases in Turkey against ISIS in both Iraq and Syria. Critics of Prime Minister Erdogan say it’s all a ruse to conduct raids on Kurdish separatists, who observers agree are critical to ousting IS militants in the region. Obama pushed hard to get Turkish involvement, but it remains to be seen if the new cooperation will bear fruit over the long-term.

John Kerry and Ernest Moniz: The Case for the Nuclear Deal with Iran

Posted July 23rd, 2015 at 9:16 am (UTC-4)
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Without this deal, Iran could double its capacity to enrich uranium in a short time. With it, it must reduce that capacity immediately and sharply.

Containing and Engaging Russia

Posted July 21st, 2015 at 11:43 am (UTC-4)
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Russia is working hard to weaken the European Union, courting the governments of Hungary and Greece, and funding extremist political parties in France, Bulgaria, Austria, Spain, Italy, Germany, and Belgium…. How to respond? The West needs to sharpen its approach.

Formal Restoration of Diplomatic Ties With Cuba Is Just a Beginning

Posted July 21st, 2015 at 7:28 am (UTC-4)
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It would be naïve to expect that the Cuban government, a dynastic police state, will take big steps in the near future to liberalize its centrally planned economy, encourage private enterprise or embrace pluralistic political reforms.

Hope Takes Over Havana

Posted July 20th, 2015 at 9:11 am (UTC-4)
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As a long-time visitor, the first change you notice upon arriving in Havana these days is that the anti-“yanqui” billboards are all but gone. The barrage of outdoor posters lambasting American policy that greeted us in previous trips were nowhere to be seen.

Iran Deal: Victory for Diplomacy or Sign of Shrinking Influence?

Posted July 16th, 2015 at 11:41 am (UTC-4)
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A day after announcing a historic nuclear deal with Iran, President Obama held an hour-long press conference, primarily to lobby for controversial pact, which Congress must approve. While some are hailing the deal as Obama’s crowning diplomatic achievement, his remarks left others with the impression that US global influence is waning.

Americans Mark Independence Day

Posted July 3rd, 2015 at 10:58 am (UTC-4)
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Amid celebrations of our independence from Great Britain this July 4th, Americans are rightly worried about their future in a chaotic world. Between the threat of the Islamic State, containing Iran’s nuclear program and the economic struggles of America’s working poor, it’s easy to be pessimistic. But for many the world over, the promise of the United States remains the hope of the world.

Time to Accept Change in Relations

Posted July 3rd, 2015 at 8:38 am (UTC-4)
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Cuban Americans everywhere, but especially the diaspora in South Florida, have been awakening to the reality that Cuba’s isolation was and is not a sustainable strategy.

Hold Iran Nuclear Negotiators to Their Word

Posted July 1st, 2015 at 9:35 am (UTC-4)
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Two years ago, the Obama administration set out to achieve a deal that would dismantle key elements of Iran’s nuclear program, freeze uranium enrichment for at least a decade, and beef up international inspections to ensure that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon. That was a deal worth pursuing — and it still is.

Can the U.S. Get a Good Iran Deal?

Posted July 1st, 2015 at 8:25 am (UTC-4)
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The deal is coming, veritably doomed to succeed. And that’s because at day’s end, the real threat Iran poses may flow now more from the country’s behavior in the region than from a nuclear weapon it may or may not ever choose to develop.

Deconstructing Syria: A New Strategy for America’s Most Hopeless War

Posted June 30th, 2015 at 9:36 am (UTC-4)
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While the Obama administration’s strategy for Iraq requires substantial upgrading in light of recent Islamic State (or ISIL) successes in and around Ramadi in particular, the plan for Syria is in much worse shape.

Ebola Doesn’t Disappear at Zero and Neither Will We

Posted June 24th, 2015 at 10:42 am (UTC-4)
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US agency remains engaged in Africa’s Ebola-affected countries even as case numbers drop and the story fades from the media. USAID says its goal is getting to zero Ebola cases, and helping governments be better prepared to stop future outbreaks from spiralling into full-fledged epidemics.