After more than three years of downplaying the military option, the Obama Administration has shifted gears and become more hawkish on the Iran nuclear issue in recent weeks. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, in Israel on a Middle East tour, on Wednesday called for international leaders to keep “maximum pressure” …
According to a new study done by PR firm Burson-Marsteller, two-thirds of the world’s leaders have joined Twitter, including 16 members of the G-20. But while Twitter is a powerful tool, it has its limits and will never replace traditional diplomacy. Tweets resonating from world leaders encompass 43 different languages, …
The overwhelming majority of commentary in the United States on the U.N. Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) has focused on the possible risks it poses to rights protected under the Second Amendment. There is nothing wrong with being watchful on this front, but the ATT raises broader concerns for U.S. foreign …
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad was embarrassed at a recent U.N. conference in Rio de Janeiro by perceived snubs by leaders of host country Brazil and other nations. Iran’s blowhard president, who has trumpeted his own role in fostering closer Iranian ties to Latin America, found himself relegated to the sidelines …
Iran once again has refuted optimistic predictions that meaningful progress would be made on the core issues at stake in the on-again, off-again nuclear negotiations. In two days of talks in Baghdad, Tehran rejected the Western proposal for resolving the nuclear impasse and agreed only to continue the talks in …
Iran is resorting to its usual negotiating tactics on the nuclear issue: Slip away from its commitments under the nuclear nonproliferation treaty and slide by international efforts to halt its nuclear weapons program. Yesterday, Iranian negotiators ended two days of talks with officials from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), …
Commentary continues to swirl around human rights advocate Chen Guangcheng’s treatment by the U.S. embassy in Beijing and by Chinese officials. While the future of U.S.–China relations on the matter remains to be seen, international concern for Chen’s plight has refocused attention on the horrific human rights atrocities of China’s …
Human rights activists Bob Fu and Reggie Littlejohn will discuss recent developments in the Chen Guangcheng case at a press conference today at The Heritage Foundation. They do so at the height of tension over the case of Chinese dissident Chen Gaungcheng, who, after leaving the safety of the U.S. …
The long-moribund diplomatic talks on Iran’s nuclear program are slated to resume today in Istanbul between Iran and the P5-plus-1 (the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany). There is little reason to expect a diplomatic breakthrough that will bring Tehran into compliance with U.N. Security Council …
