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Myanmar, Korea stay brothers in arms
US Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's recent demand that Myanmar "sever its ties with North Korea" raises questions about Washington's budding military relations with its newest friend in Asia while it proves resistant to US pressure to end past alliances. Myanmar's generals must also consider China's response if they bend to Washington's will. - Bertil Lintner
(Sep 5, '13)
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Pro-Israel groups mix Iran into Syria debate
The powerful Israel lobby has taken the lead in pressing the United States Congress to authorize military action against Syria. But in addition to saying that Damascus must be punished for alleged violations of international norms against chemical weapons, pro-Israel groups are focusing their appeals on stopping what they say is Iran's nuclear-weapons program. - Jim Lobe
(Sep 5, '13)
REUVEN BRENNER
What does a 'two-state solution' mean?
 As the United States takes pains to work out a "two-state" solution to the Israel-Palestinian conflict, Secretary of State John Kerry, like his predecessors, appears to have overlooked one key question: What is a "state"? Absent an appropriate answer, his efforts, like those that have gone before, are doomed to failure.
(Sep 5, '13)
Sri Lanka cornered over human rights
That United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Navanetham "Navi" Pillay's visit to Sri Lanka would be fraught with diplomatic tension was undoubted. But tensions came to a head when Pillay called for the government to account for continuing abuses and the militarization of the Tamil Tiger's former northern stronghold. - Amantha Perera
(Sep 5, '13)
Azerbaijan, Russia test new pragmatism
Two oil deals between Azerbaijan and Russia signal continued improvement in their relations and exemplify their pragmatic pursuit of bilateral, particularly energy, ties while testy issues are set aside. Notable losers from this "compartmentalized" approach are found in Russia's Caucasus territories, particularly in troubled Chechnya and Daghestan.
(Sep 5, '13)
SPEAKING FREELY
The re-politicization of violent conflict
Violence and conflict in the Cold War era seemed to fit into clear categories of interpretation: East versus West, or imperialist aggression. At first the aftermath saw conflicts involving ethnic groups and the formation of small states, now superseded in a more globalized yet fragmented world with politicized communities seeking influence amid the world order. - Andreas Herberg-Rothe
(Sep 5, '13)
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Obama dips toe in Syrian Rubicon
For the first time through the two-year old Syrian conflict, and against all expectations, the United States has mentioned the necessity of its commander-in-chief having the option to put "boots on the ground". Whether Barack Obama ends up deploying troops in Syria, the demarche that he should have such a choice underscores that iron has entered into the president's soul.
- M K Bhadrakumar
(Sep 4, '13)
Splintered Damascus holds its breath
For some in the concrete-block ringed center of Damascus, the Syrian capital is a golden cage amid tight security and the sound of artillery on the outskirts. By contrast, restive working class suburbs such as Saida Zainb are battlegrounds between the government and the opposition. They are united only by tense anticipation as the US administration intensifies the pressure for an attack that some residents say is unthinkable.
- Karlos Zurutuza
(Sep 4, '13)
CHAN AKYA
Lousy game theory in Syria
Rather than convince tinpot dictators of the West's moral or military superiority, all the mooted attack on Syria will achieve is an acceleration in nuclear weapons programs of countries ranging from Egypt and Iran to Turkey. But for the West this is a Mount Everest moment - for once it must act simply due to expediency rather than strategy or humanitarian aims. - Chan Akya
(Sep 4, '13)
Show of strength in Indonesia
An image of newly inaugurated Indonesian military chief General Moeldoko forms a backdrop during a handover ceremony in eastern Jakarta on September 4. Moeldoko, who takes control of the armed forces from Admiral Agus Suhartono, said wants to form an anti-terror squad for the military similar to the police's Special Detachment 88 (Densus 88).
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Palestine talks doomed to repeat history
That Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas readily returned to peace talks despite a lethal Israeli raid on a Jerusalem refugee camp underlines the asymmetric nature of the current negotiation process. Abbas' acquiescence to sweeping concessions echoes previous attempts to secure peace. - Ramzy Baroud
(Sep 4, '13)
Jihadist books back in Pakistan classrooms
Hard-fought changes to remove Koranic verses preaching holy war from school textbooks in Pakistan's restive northwest are under threat. Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province's newly elected government has announced its intention to restore violent jihadist content in a decision that dismays teachers. - Frud Bezhan
(Sep 4, '13)
SPEAKING FREELY
How Assad keeps the upper hand
Syrian President Bashar Al-Assad is well aware of the post-Iraq syndrome which sees Western powers unable to commit to any serious extent in the Middle East, and knows he can count on Iran, Hezbollah and Russia's support. Since Assad has the strategic upper hand in the conflict, by starting a "limited war" Washington will merely put Israel in the firing line. - Riccardo Dugulin
(Sep 4, '13)
THE BEAR'S LAIR
More glue in the works
Economic extortion by way of regulation will inevitably bring the economic system close to the point where it ceases to work altogether. Contingency fee lawsuits and outsize settlements further weigh down financial efficiency. Without pruning of this dead weight, US economic growth will become ever more sluggish.
- Martin Hutchinson
(Sep 4, '13)
THE ROVING EYE
The indispensable (bombing) nation
The indispensable nation that drenched North Vietnam with napalm and agent orange, showered Fallujah with white phosphorus and large swathes of Iraq with depleted uranium is getting ready to attack Syria based on extremely dodgy evidence and the "moral high-ground". Anyone who believes the White House's pre-bombing maximum spin should rent a condo in Alice in Wonderland. - Pepe Escobar
(Sep 3, '13)
SINOGRAPH
Bo breaks from script,
but sticks to role
By contradicting his wife and top aide's testimonies during his corruption case, former Chongqing party boss Bo Xilai succeeded in disrupting the trial - but only by a half measure. If Bo had politicized the trial he could've reawakened interest in his neo-Maoist vision and undermined the current leadership. His failure to do so suggests a likely forlorn hope of rehabilitation.
- Francesco Sisci
(Sep 3, '13)
Houses of the holy in China and Moscow
Just like the Led Zeppelin track, the song will remain the same in China after the Bo Xilai trial, as the party does whatever it takes to survive so the next generation of leaders can continue to line their pockets. Like Edward Snowden, Bo betrayed his house. But Bo did so for his own enrichment, Snowden fell for a seemingly noble but hopeless cause. - Jonny Connor
(Sep 3, '13)
Manila, Beijing, and UNCLOS: a test case?
Manila's request for international arbitration over competing territorial claims with Beijing in the South China Sea prompts the question of whether right or might will determine their fate. China's refusal to cooperate also makes it a compelling and deeply Asian test of whether the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea or diplomacy will play the lead role in securing a peaceful settlement.
- Alex Calvo
(Sep 3, '13)
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IMF approves $6 bn lifeline for Pakistan
The International Monetary Fund is to increase an earlier loan agreement with Pakistan to US$6.6 billion, which may head off a balance of payments crisis. Repaying an old loan, however, will eat up much of the new cash. - Syed Fazl-e-Haider
Hong Kong eyes with fear
world's largest nuke plant
Hong Kong residents are eyeing with concern completion of a nuclear power plant in neighboring Guangdong province that is to hold a reactor with the biggest capacity in the world. Chinese mainland residents may be less fearful, as they can access no information on the plant. - Lin Jing
CREDIT BUBBLE BULLETIN
Weak links
Fragile economic and financial systems have never been as vulnerable to a meaningful tightening of financial conditions. The leveraged speculating community is now a primary weak link and potential transmission mechanism for emerging market disorder to afflict the developed world. Syria is the lesser evil.
Doug Noland looks at the previous week's events each Monday.
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Syria consensus hard
to find at G20 summit
For those who would have been hoping against hope that the G20 summit meeting at St Petersburg on Thursday might help evolve an international consensus over Syria, which would avert the proposed US intervention, alas, the tidings couldn’t be less positive...
- M K Bhadrakumar
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