In the past nine years, Russian foreign policy has been examined several times in these pages.[1] At no other time, however, has its direction been as troubling as it is today. To understand the causes of this disturbing evolution and to gauge its future course, the changes have to be examined in the context of [...]

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Is a new cold war on the horizon? More than fifteen years after the fall of the Soviet Union, the idea that we have to worry about Russia again seems outdated, ridiculous and hysterical. Yet, the chatter in the news media and in Washington policy circles is eerily similar to what we might have heard [...]

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International consumers used to shun Israeli wines, but Golan Heights Winery managed to create a market for world-class wines — and retool an industry
The Golan Heights Winery vineyards climb from the Sea of Galilee to snow-capped Mount Hermon near Israel’s border with Lebanon and Syria. A picturesque region of rolling hills, waterfalls, and gorges, the [...]

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The U.S. has few friends in Europe more loyal than Poland and the Czech Republic, which may be one reason why Washington chose the former Soviet-captive countries as prospective sites for its new missile-defense shield. Initially, the governments in Warsaw and Prague seemed ready enough to host the U.S. facilities — 10 interceptor missiles in [...]

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Political freedom is retreating in large parts of the world including Russia, Iran, Pakistan, Venezuela, and China, a human rights organisation reported yesterday.
There were reversals in political rights and civil liberties in one-fifth of the world’s countries last year, US-based Freedom House said in its annual global survey.
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The India vs China syndrome is passé. From now, the global idiom for joint collaborative action will be India-China, says India’s Commerce and Industry Minister Kamal Nath, alluding to the growing friendship between the Asian giants.
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But the Indian prime minister, himself a great admirer of China’s success story, insisted he would have no part in [...]

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To begin with, the Bulava is a half-baked product. It was first tested in December 2003 and has since had only six firings, four of which failed and during one, which was reported as successful, not all warheads behaved as they should have. To include such a weapon in the regular inventory in 2008, even [...]

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Abu Dhabi to host naval base.
In a major strategic shift, France is setting up its first permanent naval base in the Persian Gulf, just across from Iran, President Nicolas Sarkozy announced during a visit yesterday to the United Arab Emirates.
The 400-strong military base will be built in Abu Dhabi, the wealthiest and most influential of [...]

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Memory fades quickly. Just shy of 10 years ago, the images of the Balkans filled the front pages and television screens with the horrors of ethnic cleansing. Then those images became dimmer in the public consciousness, until the conflict became frozen in place. No resolution of unresolved problems has been in sight during the intervening [...]

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Pakistan has used funds provided by the United States to cover costs in the campaign against terrorism to help purchase weapons systems directed against India, the New York Times has reported.
The newspaper claimed the US had spent more than $5 billion in a largely failed effort to bolster the Pakistani military effort against the Al [...]

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As violence in Afghanistan continues to rise, NATO is struggling to fill holes in its fighting force. The US announced Tuesday that it would send 3,200 additional troops while Germany is left to replace a departing Norwegian unit. more…

Bundeswehr Under Pressure: Germany Faces Taliban Pincer in Afghanistan
Contention in Afghanistan: Gates Steps up Criticism of European [...]

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A rocket fired at Israel by Palestinians earlier this month was made in Iran, an Israeli lawmaker and security officials said Tuesday.
The origins of the rocket, which hit the Israeli town of Ashkelon on Jan. 3, offered a further indication of ties between Gaza’s militants and Iran’s hard-line Islamic regime.
The military would not comment on [...]

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By clinging to power, the president is making Pakistan fight the wrong battle—against him, rather than the extremists destabilizing the nuclear-armed nation.
Pakistan worries everyone. Commentators talk of rising instability and national peril. Proliferation experts like Mohamed ElBaradei, head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, warn that the country’s nuclear weapons could fall into the wrong [...]

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Czech Foreign Ministry. He said Iran was the third most active country in flight testing missiles last year, behind Russia and China.
«They’re developing ranges of missiles that go far beyond anything they would need in a regional fight, for example, with Israel,» Obering said.
«Why are they developing missiles today that … will be possible to [...]

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