Azeem Ibrahim

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July 28, 2009

"Cuts to Our Defence Budget Deserve a Full and Open Debate"

Op-Ed, The Scotsman

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"...[W]e cannot base security on the assumption we will not face a threat from states. Excessive cuts would mean an inability to continue our current naval deterrence missions in the Far East, as China plans unprecedented increases in its military spending. They would ignore warnings by outgoing International Atomic Energy Agency chief, Mohammad AlBaradei, that up to 20 countries could soon develop technology to manufacture nuclear weapons. And they would ignore lessons of history, which teaches that threats come from unexpected sources."

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July 27, 2009

"A Way To Resolve The Jerusalem Impasse"

Op-Ed, CBSNews.com

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"...[T]he best solution is a federal system of boroughs similar to the states of the US, and a unified Jerusalem authority, similar to the US federal government.

The borders of the municipality of Jerusalem would include everything that it does now and also nearby Palestinian cities such as Abu Dis. Some boroughs would naturally be majority Palestinian, others naturally majority Jewish, but free and fair borough elections would ensure proportionate representation on each."

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July 26, 2009

"Working-Class Kids Need Help to Help Themselves"

Op-Ed, Sunday Herald

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"We have offered ideas to introduce more young people to internship opportunities, help them find affordable accommodation if they live far from the city and use student loans to help pay for the period of unpaid internship. If our ideas are successful, the best and most talented will be able to compete for internship places based solely on intellect, talent and potential. These ideas won't solve all the inequalities in the country, but they will be a step in the right direction.

However, while the government and society can support aspiration, it is individuals themselves who hold the key. Fostering a culture of aspiration requires, in many cases, individuals and families to change their attitudes."

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July 24, 2009

"Prospects for a New Reformist Party in Iran"

Op-Ed, Trend News

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"Former two-time President and chairman of the powerful Assembly of Experts President Akbar Hashemi-Rafsanjani began to openly criticise the line being taken by the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khameini. Khameini had said that discussion about the legitimacy of the election result should stop, as the result had been blessed by God. This week Rafsanjani said that discussion about the legitimacy of the election result should continue. He said that both words in the 'Islamic Republic' were important, and doubts had not yet been satisfied. He quoted Ayatollah Khomeini in ways that seemed to support the opposition's right to demonstrate. And he said that protesters who have been arrested should be released from prison. He supported greater media freedom."

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July 23, 2009

"How Can We Make Britain More Equal?"

Op-Ed, politics.co.uk

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"Despite a council estate upbringing, I was lucky enough to be the first one in my family to go to university....But I was particularly pleased to be asked to join the government panel on social mobility, because however much we would like to think that work and talent should determine a child's destiny, that's not true for most people. Hopefully the policy ideas we have come up with will begin to change that for the majority."

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July 14, 2009

"Islamic Law Enhances Rather than Threatens the UK Legal System"

Op-Ed, The Scotsman

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"People who think that Sharia law threatens UK law tend to confuse UK law and non-legally binding arbitration, which settle disputes outside the legal system....We live under the rule of law, there can only be one set of laws, and that is British law. Not least because our experience with Unity Family has shown that incorrect rulings by some of these so-called Sharia councils go against the fundamental ethos of Islam, and are often more suitable to Pakistani mores. We must reject calls to allow Sharia rulings to be formally recognised in British law under the 1996 Arbitration Act."

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July 10, 2009

"Politicians are Demolishing the Reputation of the British Military"

Op-Ed, politics.co.uk

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"In 2006, British and Canadian forces arrived in Helmand province. We were to hold and secure it. But our forces did not receive the support they needed. Resources were split between Afghanistan and Iraq, and the government repeatedly turned down requests to spend more on equipment, particularly helicopters.

The results speak for themselves. Firstly, Taliban fighters have been able to tap into opium revenues. They have increased their areas of drug cultivation from 71 square milles in 2001 to 400 square miles in 2008. This would not have been possible if our strategy to make the area unsafe for Taliban had been adequately supported."

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June 18, 2009

"Foreign Students are an Opportunity, Not a Threat"

Op-Ed, politics.co.uk

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"...[W]e should resist the temptation to react to the fear of terrorism by turning inwards, reducing ties to foreign countries, and denying more students entry. Reducing the number of foreign student Visas would be counterproductive. The US tried it after September 11th, but has now reversed its approach, realising the harm it is doing. To do the same would be to be cowed into becoming a more closed society. We must remain open, outward-looking and vibrant. It is precisely many of these foreign students who will help their countries to reduce terrorism over the long run."

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June 15, 2009

"The Media Must Take Some Responsibility"

Op-Ed, politics.co.uk

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"The first responsibility is to tell the whole truth. In this scandal, too many commentators have seemed to think that the public interest is best served by their all jumping onto the same bandwagon to tell us the same story: politicians are the bad guys. They are wrong. The public interest is best served by their actually doing what they are paid to do — to report fairly who did what. And that involves admitting that not only did a few MPs make honest mistakes, but that some have come out of these revelations with their reputations actually improved, by claiming little or nothing."

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June 4, 2009

"We Need a Debate on Europe"

Op-Ed, politics.co.uk

By Azeem Ibrahim, Research Fellow, International Security Program

"...[M]ore of us want to leave than ever before. More than half want the UK to leave the EU but keep trading links, according to a recent BBC survey. More authoritative polling from the Economist still shows that over the last fourteen years, the number of us wanting to loosen the UK's ties to the EU has also risen to over 50 per cent. In the BBC's survey, a full 84 per cent agreed that Britain should vote before transferring any more power to the EU....nobody born after 1957 has ever been able to vote on it. Even those who voted to stay in in 1975 did not realise just how many regulations we would subsequently have to follow, and how much they would cost British business."