U.S.: Libya Splitting Republicans in 1990s Redux

In something of a replay of the infighting among Republicans over Washington's military interventions in the Balkans in the 1990s, U.S. involvement in the civil war in Libya is exposing serious splits among self-described conservatives.

MIDEAST: Goldstone’s Volte-Face Gladdens Israelis, Angers Palestinians

Israelis have breathed a national sigh of relief following the publication of an absolutely unexpected article in last Friday's Washington Post. The column's title and author said it all.

Violence Threatens Nigerian Elections

As Nigerians go to the polls on Apr. 2, pre-election violence has raised fears the elections will not be free and fair. The campaign period has featured bombings and gun attacks on campaign rallies, politically-motivated assassinations and violent clashes between members of rival parties.

JAPAN: Disaster Highlights Economic Vulnerability

As authorities struggle to control dangerous radioactive material spilling from the quake ravaged Fukushima nuclear power reactors, a more difficult question has begun to unsettle Japan: is the country’s post-war prosperity as invincible as was believed till now?

Libya Uprising Hits West’s Dinner Tables

Linkages between the Libyan uprising and shelling out more money than usual at a local market in the West may not at first seem apparent but the common denominator is oil.

SYRIA: The Second “Damascus Spring” a Long Way Off

Caught in a wave of pro-democracy and pro-government protests, the Syrian political landscape seems far more complex than its Tunisian and Egyptian counterparts, where demonstrations ousted decades' old regimes. President Bashar al-Assad’s speech today may however give new momentum to pro-democracy protests.

TURKEY-SYRIA: Why Erdogan Can’t Let Assad Down

A new week, a new campaign for Ankara's diplomacy. After a victorious arm-twisting on Saturday with the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation to divert the leadership of the aerial war against Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi from France to NATO, Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has turned his attention to trouble closer to home, Syria.

LEBANON: Hezbollah Treads a Narrowing Path

In spite of its recent successes, Hezbollah seems to be experiencing increasing difficulty in harmonising the interests of its Shiite constituency and those of its Iranian patrons as it delves into the chaos of Lebanese politics.

Netanyahu Caught Between Status Quo And Power Vacuum

Disregarding the old adage that politics like nature abhors a vacuum, Benjamin Netanyahu could until now sing his own praise and declare that Israel under his premiership was an anchor of political stability whereas the wider Middle East was fast sinking into a power vacuum.

TURKEY: Old Colonial Rivalries Revive over Libya

Turkey's volte-face Thursday evening to make a sizeable military contribution to NATO's intervention in the Libyan crisis, after two weeks of fierce opposition to the Alliance's mingling with Arab affairs, has further blurred Ankara's position in the North African conflict.

OP-ED: Libya Intervention Threatens the Arab Spring

Despite its official U.N.-granted legality, the credibility of Western military action in Libya is rapidly dwindling. Within just 48 hours of the start of the bombing campaign, the U.S. and its allies lost the support of the Arab League.

African Union at a Loss Over Libya

On Saturday, the U.S., France and the UK launched attacks on Libya's air defences and other targets following U.N. Resolution 1973. The three African members of the Security Council voted for the resolution, but a chorus of criticism has greeted the air strikes.

LIBYA: Conflicting Interests Cloud Military Intervention’s Objectives

Conflicting national and electoral interests as well as clashing military and political objectives and potential are jeopardising the U.S.-Europe led military mission to implement the no-fly zone over Libyan territory, as stipulated by U.N. Security Council resolution 1973.

MIDEAST: Obama Besieged by Policy Challenges

Rarely, if ever, has a post-World War II U.S. president been beset by so many foreign policy challenges and uncertainties in one key geo-strategic region at the same time.

COTE D’IVOIRE: Still Stuck in Stalemate

The past-due leader of this resource-rich African nation remains bent on clinging to power, despite calls by his opposition and the wider international community to leave office immediately.

IBSA Together in Resisting No-fly Zone

India has found backing at this week's India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) ministers meeting for its stance that a no-fly zone over Libya must follow multilateral consultations.

Will the Libya Syndrome Spread in OPEC?

The combination of a leader in power for 42 years, underground political forces bursting on the scene with violence, fractured armed forces and a fast-developing civil war would appear to be a specifically Libyan phenomenon that is unlikely to expand to the rest of OPEC.

SOMALIA: Rising Human Cost of AU Mission

On Feb. 19, the morning after Uganda's presidential elections, Michael Muhamuza called home and spoke to his cousin and his brother; a regular check-in with the family.

DISARMAMENT: Bridges Could Become Barricades

Although the ratification of a new strategic arms reduction treaty (START) with the United States is considered a top priority for the Medvedev administration, experts are debating whether such an agreement could threaten to reduce Russian military power in the future.

Libyan Leader Arab World’s Perennial Gadfly

The irrepressible Hollywood comedian and celebrated movie director Woody Allen once jokingly remarked that the 1917 Russian Revolution erupted when the serfs discovered that "czar" and "tsar" were one and the same autocratic monarch they hated.

Turkey Gets the Worst of Two Worlds

Turkey's foreign policy is undergoing an acid test as the political turmoil continues in the Arab World. The fragile situation in Tripoli, in particular, is giving the jitters to government and businesses alike, with billions of dollars of Turkish investment and trade at risk.