BLOG… Post #83: Saving the Iran Nuclear Deal 7 Jul 201527 Feb 2017 A US-Iran agreement on Iran’s nuclear program and US sanctions appears to be slowly nearing completion. President Obama wants to add to his legacy of engaging adversaries with an agreement…
BLOG… Post #80: The Looming US-China Crisis in the South China Sea 10 Jun 201527 Feb 2017 The long-running, multi-party dispute over control of islets in the South China Sea (SCS) is worsening both in rhetoric and provocative activity. (For background, see my posts #23 and 41.)…
American Politics and the World… Post #79: The Pentagon Slush Fund 1 Jun 201527 Feb 2017 Back in 1959, President Eisenhower and Soviet Premier Khrushchev took a break from their summit and walked in the woods around Camp David. Khrushchev, in his memoirs, relates a conversation…
BLOG… Post #78: The Middle East Quagmire: Give Peacemaking a Chance 23 May 201527 Feb 2017 The desperate state of US policy in the Middle East became apparent once again with the ISIS rout of the Iraqi army at Ramadi. It was another setback for US-supported…
American Politics and the World… Post #76 – TPP: A Deeply Flawed Partnership 4 May 201527 Feb 2017 (Note: A longer version of this post was subsequently published at http://japanfocus.org/-Mel-Gurtov/4318/article.html.) The American people have become used to government trickery in foreign affairs—wars and interventions based on lies and…
BLOG… Post #74 – After Cuba: Will Obama Follow Up with Venezuela? 14 Apr 201527 Feb 2017 A year ago mainstream news reports out of Venezuela suggested that the post-Hugo Chàvez era was going badly for his successor, Nicolás Maduro. The US media painted a picture of…
BLOG… Post #73 – The Iran Framework: A Case Study in Engagement 8 Apr 201527 Feb 2017 We have every reason to celebrate the so-called framework agreement with Iran. It exemplifies the best of President Obama’s foreign policy, namely, engaging adversaries. Remember when candidate Obama’s argument for…
BLOG… Post #72 – An Enemy of Peace 30 Mar 201527 Feb 2017 Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has established himself as the biggest enemy of peace in the Middle East. His thoroughly unwelcome and error-marred speech to Congress on Iran, his last-minute…
BLOG… Post #70 – When It Comes to Foreign Policy, Obama Has the Upper Hand 13 Mar 201527 Feb 2017 The President and quite a few members of Congress are at a standoff over two important issues of foreign-policy process. Many in Congress, from both parties, dislike his proposal for…
BLOG… Post #67 – Presidents and War 14 Feb 201527 Feb 2017 President Obama has submitted a request to Congress for authorization—actually, reauthorization—of wars the United States has been fighting for many years. Though he considered the initial authorization in 2001 to…
BLOG… Post #66 – Playing “Chicken” in Ukraine 6 Feb 201527 Feb 2017 Should the US dramatically increase military support to Ukraine as it faces defiant separatists in the east who are backed by Russian intelligence, advisers, and heavy weapons? Key members of…
BLOG… Post #59 – What Works: Engaging Cuba 17 Dec 201427 Feb 2017 President Obama has finally reversed what he called the “failed policy” of isolating Cuba, announcing today (December 17) the start of normal relations. “These 50 years [without official relations] have…
In the Human Interest - Mel Gurtov 
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