PAKISTAN: ‘US Missile Strikes Will Affect War on Terror’

Missile strikes carried out by the United States on Damadola village near the Afghan border, killing 18 people, can fuel religious fanaticism in this country and seriously complicate President George W. Bush's ‘war on terror', say moderate political leaders and security analysts.

DEVELOPMENT-US/IRAQ: Bush’s New Multilateralism

With the billions of dollars appropriated by the United States for Iraqi reconstruction almost spent, Japan, Australia and other nations in U.S. President George W. Bush's "coalition of the willing" are likely to be asked to shoulder much of the burden for funding the large number of unfinished projects.

IRAN: Opens Nuclear Locks and Hornet’s Nest

Now that Iran has broken the seals it put two and a half years ago on an atomic research facility at Natanz, 250 kms south of Tehran, the threat of escalating conflict centred on the Western power's effort to halt its nuclear activities looms large.

IRAQ: US Military Still Runs With Dreaded Wolf Brigade

Despite the U.S. command's announcement last week that it would seek to curb abuses by Iraqi commando units, the U.S. military has been extremely tolerant of the most abusive unit of all - the notorious Wolf Brigade - because it regards it as highly effective against the insurgents.

PAKISTAN: Both Hare and Hound in ‘War on Terror’

After Islamists defied an order by Pakistan President Gen. Pervez Musharraf to expel foreigners enrolled in the madrasas (religious schools) by Dec 31, questions have been raised on the country's future role in the United States-led ‘war on terror'.

POLITICS-US: Anti-Imperialists Beware – Bush Is Reading Again

The Reader-in-Chief is at it again, and anti-imperialists around the world have reason to be concerned.

UAE: Gulf Countries Fail to Censure Iran’s Nuclear Plans

While the build-up to the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) summit, on the weekend, indicated moves to put Iran on notice over its nuclear programme, the final communiqué carried no reference to an issue which dominated the two-day meeting in Abu Dhabi.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: Nuclear Clouds Gather Over Asia

The Asia-Pacific region has not only emerged as one of the main engines of the world economy but it has also taken the global centre-stage in developments pertaining to nuclear weapons and efforts to acquire a capability to make them.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: A “Conservative” Identity Crisis

One of the most misleading U.S. journalistic conventions has been the use of "conservative" to describe right-wing Republicans, like President George W. Bush and the party's leadership in Congress. More than four years into the "war on terrorism", it is clear to all but the blindest observers that they are anything but.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: Scandal Soup Nears Boiling Point

If the fact that millions turned out to vote in the recent elections in Iraq was considered a victory for the George W. Bush administration, the joy was short-lived in Washington, as early election returns showed that the country will likely be in the hands of Shiite and Sunni religious parties for at least the next four years.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: The Fog of GWOT

Recent polling on the views of the U.S. public about the "Global War on Terror" (GWOT) suggests increasing ambivalence, confusion and lack of reliable information.

RIGHTS: Group Exposes CIA’s “Dark Prison” in Afghanistan

Amid efforts by a bipartisan coalition in Congress to ban torture and inhumane treatment of detainees in the "war on terror", a major U.S. human rights groups charged Monday that Washington ran a secret prison in Afghanistan where suspected terrorists were held in total darkness for days and even weeks at a time from 2002 until at least last year.

POLITICS-US: Torture Ban May Include a Backdoor

U.S. President George W. Bush suffered a stinging defeat Thursday when overwhelming congressional support forced him to abandon his opposition to anti-torture legislation and reach an agreement with its sponsor, Sen. John McCain, an Arizona Republican.

POLITICS-US: House Joins Senate in Renouncing Torture

The U.S. House of Representatives yesterday sent a clear signal to the White House that it overwhelmingly supports a proposed ban on prisoner torture and limitations on interrogation tactics in U.S. detention facilities.

POLITICS: East Asia Summit, Another Talk Shop?

The United States, for once, was looking in from the cold, as 16 nations-the 10-member ASEAN, six regional powers plus Russia as observer-held the inaugural East Asia Summit on Wednesday.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: The Condoners vs. the Condemners

As the battle between the White House and a leading Republican senator over U.S. policies on treating terrorist suspects appears headed toward a final showdown, polls suggest that the U.S. public is ambivalent on the issue of torture.

POLITICS: ‘Bright Side to Stormy Sino-Japanese Ties’

Despite the friction between China and Japan, some Asian scholars believe that the two nations are slowly building a framework for economic and political cooperation that could provide the underpinnings for long-term stability in the Asia-Pacific region.

CHALLENGES 2005-2006: The Torture Policy Blowback

As Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice stilettoed her way across Europe last week answering tough questions about Washington's treatment of prisoners in the "global war on terror", 2005 may be remembered as the year "torture" and "rendition" became part of the everyday vocabulary.

POLITICS: Burma, a Burden at ASEAN Summit

Burma’s refusal to provide a timetable for restoration of democracy weighed heavily on the ten-member Association of South-east Asian Nations (ASEAN), as it opened its 11th annual summit here, Monday.

POLITICS: U.S. Losing Clout in South-east Asia to China

The United States is rapidly losing its influence in the South-east Asia region to China, thanks to an overly narrow focus on terrorism and a propensity to place bilateral ties above multilateral relationships, according to U.S. and Chinese analysts.

POLITICS-US: NGOs Urge Rice to Curb Bolton

Concerned about an impending confrontation between the United States and other member states over the U.N.'s budget, a group of 20 non-governmental organisations (NGOS) has appealed to Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice to rein in her ambassador, John Bolton, and take a more conciliatory approach.