http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/rss/16 This feed contains all new The World Today articles on the Chatham House website. http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1845/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1845/ While scholars, journalists and policy-makers in Europe and America invariably describe Al Qaeda as a foreign, exotic threat that is difficult to understand, militants who identify with it routinely view their enemies in the most familiar of terms. Whether or not they really understand the west, these men's professions of intimacy with it hint at a more complex relationship. How does the radical Muslim's closeness to his enemy help us understand the character of globalised militancy today? And is it possible to find a global project to replace the murderous mayhem? Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:25:21 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1844/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1844/ How is a country rated in the democracy stakes? Freely-cast votes are one crucial sign, in the case of Iraq official language may be another. Iraqis have voted several times since the end of Saddam Hussein's regime and provincial elections are on course for January 31. But have the ingrained habits of dictatorship really been erased? Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:22:56 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1843/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1843/ After eight years of misguided Middle East policy from President George Bush's administration, an enlightened strategy to tackle the region's plight is overdue. This must include an approach that will bring change to an area consumed by conflict and division and filled with disdain toward the United States. Although the massive economic crisis facing America is and should be President-elect Barack Obama's first priority, he must not hesitate to confront the simmering conflicts in the Middle East that cannot be relegated to the back burner without severely undermining the strategic interest and security of the US. Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:20:32 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1842/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1842/ A new climate is likely at the United Nations climate change conference in Poland early this month and not just because of the election of Barack Obama as President of the United States. The international financial crisis has highlighted the cost of poor policies and the scale of banking bailouts has made dealing with climate change seem less formidable. Besides, such schemes could create new jobs and give an edge to the competitive economies of tomorrow. gsb Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:18:35 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1841/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1841/ The White House will soon echo with the sounds of a younger generation. But the new president and many other world leaders will be forced to wrestle with the issue of ageing populations once immediate financial issues are dealt with. Out of work city traders will not be the only ones worrying about funding a long retirement in these difficult times. Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:16:26 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1840/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1840/ Only one African country - South Africa - was invited to the Washington summit in response to the global economic crisis. The continent fears being left out, just as it is growing economically and adjusting its position in world trade. What impact will the crisis have on Africa? Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:12:54 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1839/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1839/ Is the world ready for a new Bretton Woods agreement? As the economic crisis deepened in recent months, a rising chorus of voices began to call for the replacement of the financial architecture put in place in 1944 at a small resort village in New Hampshire. In response, twenty governments hastily gathered in Washington in mid-November hoping to try to replicate the success of the original conference. Should we be surprised that little was achieved beyond the affirmation of a gaggle of lofty principles? Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:11:02 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1838/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1838/ There are only rare opportunities to reform international financial arrangements, the Washington meeting was the first inclusive one for half a century. After this preparatory skirmish, the difficulties are very clear and now the objectives need to be more clearly defined. Wed, 19 Nov 2008 17:03:11 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1837/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1837/ The race is on to ensure that relations between the United States and its European allies are set on the right track from the outset of Barack Obama's presidency. Although they may not like it, the main responsibility for ensuring that the transatlantic relationship does not stumble into a series of disappointed expectations in its first critical year lies more in European capitals than in Washington. Wed, 19 Nov 2008 16:59:49 +0000 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1836/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1836/ More time and money is spent on nuclear power than any other form of energy. Yet its generating capacity - even with new reactors - and potential contribution to cutting greenhouse gasses, is much less than other methods. The funds should follow trieMore time and money is spent on nuclear power than any other form of energy. Yet its generating capacity - even with new reactors - and potential contribution to cutting greenhouse gasses, is much less than other methods. The funds should follow tried technologies offering greater returns. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:04:07 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1835/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1835/ Nuclear power has often been a disappointment: extra safety precautions and officialdom have produced delays and extra expense. Now a new generation of plants seems to offer part of the answer to the urgent need to replace ageing power stations. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:01:51 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1834/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1834/ In September, Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai signed a power-sharing deal with President Robert Mugabe, aimed at ending years of political conflict and economic decline. There have already been problems forming a cabinet, so can such a deal work? An unsettling answer comes from another deeply divided, but once prosperous, African state which should itself be taking a further democratic step this month. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 16:00:19 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1833/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1833/ Ghana's President John Kufuor has successfully promoted his country as a haven of political and economic stability, but as he comes to the end of his two terms in office, the cracks are beginning to appear. Can Ghana escape the election traumas that have been so destructive in Kenya and Zimbabwe? Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:58:38 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1832/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1832/ An air of lassitude pervades the Iranian nuclear talks. Will things look different after the American election? What should be done to raise the chances of a good outcome? Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:56:17 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1831/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1831/ The global economic crisis is accelerating processes of change, whereby economic - and ultimately political - power is shifting away from European and North American states which have dominated the world for most of the past two centuries. These dramatic changes will have significant impacts in many sectors, including on development and humanitarian activity. Any decline in the west's economic and strategic power means that in future there will be less financial and political capital to back international interventions based on human rights. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:54:19 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1830/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1830/ It is an old public policy adage that, before you can decide where you want to go, you first have tounderstand where you have come from. The present crisis - no longer is this too strong a word - might be taken to imply that the matter is too urgent for the luxury of a post mortem; and certainly, it will be decades before a definitive assessment is in. But at the same time, it was the failure of the $700 billion package designed by US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson to address even all the known key issues that led investors to judge it inadequate. Once they had reached that judgement, mistrust of the financial system spread so fast, and sentiment deteriorated so substantially, that a basically unified set of policy actions was urgently needed, across all major countries, to address all the main identified causes of the present situation. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:52:28 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1829/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1829/ Russia is caught in the global crisis and cannot escape its impact. The crucial question is how the Dmitri Medvedev-Vladimir Putin leadership will respond. Putin has presided over a steadily strengthening economy; he now appears ill-equipped to handle crisis and contraction. The signs are not encouraging. Trust and confidence, two essential ingredients vital to resolving any financial crisis, are in short supply. The public could pay a heavy price for the hubris and schadenfreude of their leaders, still 'dizzy with success' from years of economic revival and what they perceive as a successful reaffirmation of the country's great power status. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:50:06 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1828/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1828/ Japan is an abject lesson in how not to handle a major banking crisis. During the 1990s, its banks were technically insolvent following the bursting of the late 1980s bubble and the implosion of land and stock prices. Since land was the collateral for many loans, banks were saddled with massive bad debts. This festered as banks and the government dithered and temporised for nearly a decade when the country was in collective denial about the severity of the bad loan debacle. Myopia was facilitated by fuzzy accounting practices and the government's failure to exercise proper oversight. Sound familiar? Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:45:12 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1827/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1827/ A butterfly flapping its wings in New York may eventually cause a storm in Beijing. Well, how about a devastating tsunami in New York? In the last month, the world has watched the American financial crisis unfolding day-by-day. Ripples from Wall Street spread to each corner of the global economy. When this financial tsunami finally hits China, should we expect the earth to shake and a collapse of the Chinese economy? Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:43:18 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1826/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1826/ The new American president will not be inaugurated until January 20. He will certainly face the most difficult economic conditions since Franklin Roosevelt entered the White House in March 1933. The politics of presidential transition - in this year, as seventy-six years ago - seem likely only to exacerbate the global crisis. Fri, 24 Oct 2008 15:41:35 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1825/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1825/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:19:51 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1824/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1824/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:18:18 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1823/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1823/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:14:50 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1822/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1822/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:13:10 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1821/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1821/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:10:25 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1820/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1820/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:08:38 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1819/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1819/ This is a pdf of the entire magazine. Wed, 22 Oct 2008 12:05:56 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1818/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1818/ Nuclear, biological or chemical weapons and acts of terror may make the headlines, but it is conventional arms that take the lives in large numbers; maybe around a thousand a day. This month, a United Nations committee will try to find a way to limit the arms trade with a new treaty. For those facing the barrel of a gun, it cannot come a moment too soon. Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:49:52 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1817/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1817/ South Africa is suffering a national crisis of leadership, which is steadily undermining popular confidence in the African National Congress, both as a party and a government. The presidency of Thabo Mbeki, which began in a spirit of can do optimism in 1999, has ended in abject failure and humiliation at the hands of his own party. What now for the Rainbow Nation? Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:47:41 +0100 http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1815/ http://www.chathamhouse.org.uk/publications/twt/archive/view/-/id/1815/ With President Thabo Mbeki forced out of office, South Africa is facing a crisis that goes to the heart of its democracy. What is at stake is the question of whether the judiciary is above political interference. Mon, 29 Sep 2008 10:45:26 +0100