Strategic Paradigms by Ehsan Ahrari

ON YOUR MARK, GET SET, RESTART THE BARMY ARMS RACE!   The Cold War in its old form disappeared when the Soviet Union imploded.  But the U.S.-Russian competition did not.  The United States continued a strange policy of expanding the NATO membership and bringing that Alliance all the way to the Russian borders, despite strong [...]

The post-9/11 era popularized the phrases “weak states,” “failing states” and “failed states.”  Those were places where terrorist organizations evolved and eventually took over the country.  Somalia emerged as the archetype (if that is the right adjective) failed state.  Even if the world wanted to forget Somalia, it could not, when that country became a [...]

These are brief comments on stories that caught my attention.  I will attempt to write this series on my website as frequently as I can.  If you would like to see more of these in the future, please drop me a note on my gmail account: ahrarie@gmail.com OPEC AND GOD OPEC is reducing its production [...]

India has always been a bundle of political, social, and economic paradoxes.  In the post-Mumbai terrorist attack days (which Indians refer to as India’s 9/11, or, to be precise, 11/26), it stands at the crossroads of modest economic growth as well as political chaos.  The developmental aspect of this paradox is related to the promise [...]

President-elect Barack Obama’s new national security team comprises strong and highly-qualified individuals.  Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State, Robert Gates as Secretary of Defense, and James Jones as National Security Advisor.  These are good choices, but what are the chances of an impasse on matters of policy stemming from these head-stong persons?  The positive side [...]