Whilst a twenty year ceasefire still holds, there is unlikely to be peace and democracy in Burma without a political settlement that addresses ethnic minority needs and goals.
Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu used the term 'Palestinian state' to pacify Obama, but his vision of the state amounts to a flag and an anthem, with no concessions from the Israeli side.
The reality of power – that the U.S. is still the financial, military, diplomatic and political superpower patron on which Israel depends – was not reflected in the press conference that followed the meeting.
This policy paper examines the lessons from and for Afghanistan, arguing for an "overall strategy", a primarily political solution to the conflict, an emphasis on state-building, and addressing the real (and not distorted) linkages between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Scarce attention to poverty alleviation and blind reliance on military might has brought the western forces in Afghanistan to a standstill. Putting Pakistan into the equation is a key to any solution in Afghanistan.
We can expect the traditional US policy of support for Israeli repression to continue also in 2008, with predictable results: more repression generates more deadly radicalism. The similar pattern can be seen also in Pakistan.
