Foreign Policy Archives - Page 25 of 40

Hillary Clinton’s strident opposition to the International Criminal Court

January 20, 2016 By admin

Supporters of international law have expressed consternation that the leading candidate for the Democratic nomination for president — like most of her potential Republican rivals — strongly supported the illegal U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. Hillary Clinton’s support for the Bush administration’s request for war authorization effectively placed her in opposition to the United Nations Charter and the Nuremberg Principles forbidding such wars of aggression. Ironically, these important international legal standards were in large part designed by officials from administrations of the very political party she hopes to represent in the contest for the White House.

Republican Candidates Defend Killing Civilians to Fight Terrorism—and So Do Democrats

December 23, 2015 By admin

There’s a bipartisan effort to justify the killing of civilians in the “war on terrorism.”

The U.S. and the Rise of ISIS

December 10, 2015 By admin

The rise of ISIS (also known as Daesh, ISIL, or the “Islamic State”) is a direct consequence of the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq. While there are a number of other contributing factors as well, that fateful decision is paramount….

What We Can Expect From Hillary Clinton on Israel/Palestine

December 5, 2015 By admin

Supporters of the international legal framework – which has, with mixed success, governed international affairs since the end of World War II – have long expressed concerns over the prospect of former senator and secretary of state Hillary Clinton becoming president. Her support for the US invasion of Iraq (a flagrant violation of the UN Charter), as well as her hostility toward the International Criminal Court, her support for international recognition of Morocco’s illegal annexation of occupied Western Sahara, and her attacks against the United Nations and a number of its key agencies raise concerns that her election would bring a return to the Bush administration’s neoconservative rejection of longstanding international legal principles.

Obama’s Escalation in Syria

November 5, 2015 By admin

President Obama’s announcement that he would send up to 50 U.S. Special Forces to “train, advise and assist” armed militia fighting forces of the so-called “Islamic State” in Syria marks an escalation in U.S. military involvement in that country.

Bipartisan Attacks Against Anti-occupation Divestment Campaigns

September 14, 2015 By admin

In April, the student senate at Earlham College, a Quaker liberal arts institution in Indiana, approved a resolution by consensus recommending the college endowment divest from three U.S. companies (Motorola, Hewlett Packard and Caterpillar) which are directly supporting the Israeli occupation in violation of international law. The resolution (thus far ignored by the college’s board of trustees) follows decisions by a number of Quaker-affiliated organizations — as well as the Presbyterian Church USA, the United Church of Christ, and other nonprofit groups — to divest from these companies…

Support for Iraq War Still Haunts Hillary Clinton’s Candidacy

August 6, 2015 By admin

More than a dozen years later, Hillary Clinton is still being haunted by her decision to break with the majority of her Congressional Democratic colleagues and vote in favor of President George W. Bush’s call to authorize the U.S. invasion and occupation of Iraq.

The Troubling Implications of Hillary’s Anti-BDS Letter

July 10, 2015 By admin

Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton’s position on the Israeli occupation of the West Bank does not bode well for her future foreign policy.

Hillary Clinton, phosphates, and the Western Sahara

June 20, 2015 By admin

For more than a half-century, a series of United Nations resolutions and rulings by the International Court of Justice have underscored the rights of inhabitants of countries under colonial rule or foreign military occupation. Among these is the right to “freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources,” which “must be based on the principles of equality and of the right of peoples and nations to self-determination.”

How U.S. Contributed to Yemen Crisis

April 20, 2015 By admin

Washington’s support for Yemen’s former dictatorship — and of Saudi efforts to sideline the country’s nonviolent pro-democracy movement — helped create the current crisis.

Obama administration undermines UN disarmament efforts

April 13, 2015 By admin

Though the United States may have taken the lead in the international diplomatic initiative against Iran’s nuclear program, the Obama administration has also taken the lead in undermining the United Nations’ efforts to promote nuclear arms control and disarmament elsewhere.

Hardliners on All Sides Undermining Iran’s Nuclear Talks

April 5, 2015 By admin

Reaching an interim nuclear deal with Iran would have been difficult enough even without hardliners in both Iran and the United States seeking to undermine them.

Straight Talk on the U.S. and Ukraine

March 13, 2014 By admin

Foreign Policy In Focus, March 13, 2014 Given the limits of its power and its own compromised relationship with international law, the U.S. isn’t in a position to do much about Ukraine.

US Invasion of Grenada: A 30-Year Retrospective

October 25, 2013 By admin

On this anniversary, it would be worth looking back at the Grenadian revolution, the U.S. invasion, its aftermath and the important precedent it set for “regime change” through U.S. military intervention.

Maintaining U.S. presence in Afghanistan would bolster Taliban: expert says

October 19, 2013 By admin

On October 12 Washington and Kabul agreed on a draft deal that would keep some U.S. forces in Afghanistan after 2014, but only if political and tribal leaders in Afghanistan agree to a U.S. demand that U.S. troops not be subject to Afghan

The Nobel Committee’s Rebuke to Washington’s Unilateralism

October 11, 2013 By admin

The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), one of the most effective instruments for international arms control, sends an important message to those who have insisted that unilateral military action is the best means to eliminate and prevent the use of these deadly agents.

Interview: Chemical Weapons Watchdog Wins Nobel Peace Prize as U.S. Opposes Calls for WMD-Free Middle East (Video)

October 11, 2013 By admin

Democracy Now!

As the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons wins the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize, we look at international efforts to rid Syria and other countries — including the United States — of chemical weapons.

On Syria, most thoughtful people are torn

October 5, 2013 By admin

openDemocracy

Foreign military intervention would prolong the war and increase the carnage still further. But this does not mean that the US in conjunction with others, including Syrian civil society, cannot do anything to help the situation. Reply to Nader Hashemi.

What Obama Didn’t Say in his UN Speech

September 26, 2013 By admin

In his speech before the United Nations General Assembly, President Obama made important and valid points on the issues of human rights, arms control, and global governance. But note what the president did not say.

Interview: Dr. Stephen Zunes previews Obama’s Speech on Syria (audio)

September 10, 2013 By admin

WTOP Radio

Dr. Stephen Zunes previews the President Obama’s speech on the Syrian dilemma