The passing of the modern Czech Republic’s first President, Vaclav Havel, will be mourned the world over, for the legendary leader of the Velvet Revolution was no ordinary politician—he was a world statesman. Few others were as passionate or gifted in articulating a vision of a free and open Czechoslovakia throughout the communist years. Havel gave voice to the ideals of individualism, human rights, and democratic accountability. Written in 1978 to inspire fellow freedom fighters across Europe, “The Power of the Powerless” will remain in the annals of literary political …
Spain will have a new government in time for Christmas, and unlike Greece and Italy, Madrid’s government will be a democratically elected one. Mariano Rajoy’s center-right Partido Popular secured an absolute majority in yesterday’s elections and, on December 22, will take 186 out of 350 seats in the lower house of the Spanish parliament. What is less certain, however, is whether Spain can last that long without falling the way of its fellow southern neighbors—Greece and Portugal—and needing a bailout. Spain’s economic position is perilous. Unemployment is at 21.5 percent, …
Ballistic missiles pose an increasing risk to the United States and its allies, particularly as more nations strive to acquire nuclear weapons. The once exclusive nuclear weapons club now has nine members, and Iran is knocking on the clubhouse door. Altogether, at least 32 countries have ballistic missile capabilities. Defending the United States, its forward-deployed troops, and its friends and allies against such threats should be a national security priority for the U.S. president. We have a fledgling missile defense capability. But further investment, research and procurement are needed to …
Iranian Foreign Minister Ali Akbar Salehi visited Turkey over the weekend and met with Turkish foreign minister Ahmet Davuto?lu. On a very broad agenda—which included a formal retraction from Davuto?lu stating that he did, in fact, take seriously U.S. claims that Iran was involved in a plot to kill Saudi Arabia’s ambassador to Washington—was the issue of missile defense. As a NATO member and U.S. ally, Turkey has agreed to host an early warning radar as part of a joint U.S.–NATO missile defense system. However, Iran has repeatedly criticized Turkey’s …
Being a leader often means telling your friends uncomfortable truths. Amid the tentative optimism NATO is now feeling in Libya, Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen has again reminded the alliance’s European members that the mission has only been made possible by strong U.S. support. Equitable burden sharing within NATO has been a perennial concern for Secretary-General’s over the years. However, there now appears to be a tipping point. Americans—worried about their nation’s debt, deficits and unemployment—are growing weary of shouldering a disproportionate share of NATO’s budget. Rasmussen states that NATO’s European …
After three years, British citizen Andrew Symeou has been found not guilty by a Greek jury of fatally attacking another British vacationer on the island of Zante. However, this is no ordinary judicial outcome, for Andrew Symeou has endured injustices far beyond being falsely accused of murder.
The Franco-American-British coalition leading military intervention in Libya has demonstrated the cardinal rule of international security: enduring alliances matter. Ultimately, when the chips were down and the rebel stronghold in Benghazi was under threat, it was a coalition of long-standing allies that rallied behind one another to enforce a no-fly zone over Libya. British Prime Minister David Cameron quickly emerged as Europe’s unofficial leader on the issue of Libya and was among the first to call for Libya to be suspended from the U.N. Human Rights Council. French President Nicolas …
Harvard University’s Niall Ferguson recently criticized the Obama Administration for lacking foresight and planning over the events in Egypt. The point of his criticisms of the Administration—and, by extension, the European Union—was illustrated over a year ago in a Heritage Foundation “war game.” In late 2009, Heritage invited security experts and Washington-based policymakers to “game” a fictional scenario of its own whereby Tunisia was hit with a major earthquake. Significant political and civil unrest followed, accompanied by large numbers of refugees flowing from Tunisia to Italy and Malta. The exercise …
The Wikileaks revelations have been described as the “9/11 of diplomacy”. One not-so-secret revelation, however, is news that the Obama Administration doesn’t hold the transatlantic alliance in particularly high regard. For Obama, America’s European allies are like pawns on a chess board—to be arm twisted into supporting the Democrats political agenda wherever necessary. And nothing is higher on Obama’s agenda right now the New START Treaty. The latest European voice ‘spontaneously’ calling for ratification of the treaty is Anders Fogh Rasmussen, secretary general of NATO. Rasmussen states: “As a former …
Speaking to the media this weekend, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told CBS’s Bob Schieffer that at NATO’s Lisbon Summit this weekend, many European states including Germany, Poland and the Baltic states had pressed the Administration on the ratification of New START. During one of the summit’s many news conferences, President Obama also stated, “Unprompted, I have received overwhelming support from our allies here that Start — the New Start treaty — is a critical component to U.S. and European security.” However, Czech defense minister, Alexandr Vondra revealed that it …
