Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
President Obama's recent address to the Muslim world dissapointed many democracy promotion supporters, who felt it did not strongly address the issue.
Though Secretary of State-designate Hillary Clinton laid out some basic policy positions in her confirmation hearings – the Obama administration will engage directly with Iran and will close Guantanamo, for example – the details of how the administration will pursue these objectives remain unclear.
Russia’s new strength and its waning dependence on Western financial institutions help explain the Kremlin’s rejection of a unipolar world dominated by the United States. Russia’s actions in Georgia follow through on what Putin has been saying for years–Russia will not allow Georgia or Ukraine to become a member of NATO.
As U.S.-Russia relations continue to sour over the Russia-Georgia conflict, it is unclear how the two nations will be able to rebuild their relationship. Although the conflict led to the current deterioration in relations, problems between the two countries were present before. Despite strong rhetoric from Washington, there is a need for an improved dialogue between the United States and Russia.
Carnegie's Amr Hamzawy appeared on BBC Radio Scotland to discuss President Bush's visit to the Middle East. The poor domestic situation in Israel and Palestine make significant diplomatic gains unrealistic, argued Hamzawy. Mr. Bush is more likely to make progress on his Iran agenda—pulling Gulf countries closer to the American perception of Iran as the main threat to Western and Arab interests.
The U.N. on Thursday adopted a version of a British statement calling for the release of 15 sailors and marines who are being held in Iran, while Iran wants Britain to admit its sailors entered Iranian waters. Karim Sadjadpour, an Iran analyst at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, appeared on The Newshour with Jim Lehrer to discuss the rising tensions.