Charles G. Cogan
Associate, International Security Program
Contact:
Telephone: 617-864-3959
Email: chuck_cogan@harvard.edu
Website: http://www.drcharlesgcogan.net
AP Photo
May 24, 2011
"The Arab Spring in the Southern Mediterranean"
Op-Ed
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
The violence committed by the security forces—particularly in Egypt by the Mabaheth Amn el Dawlah, the State Security Investigation Service—had a profound effect on the population. The most notorious example was that of the young Khaled Said, who was hauled from an internet cafe and beaten to death. The photograph of his mangled face was put on the web by a Google employee in Cairo, Wael Ghonim, who was in turn arrested and imprisoned for some ten days. On his release, he was to emerge as one of the heroes of the Egyptian revolution.
AP Photo
March 24, 2011
"Exponentially Yours: How Facebook Has Destabilized Arab Potentates"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"Even Morocco, protected to a degree by the aura of a monarchy that claims descent from the Prophet, has not been spared. There is, in fact, an incipient protest movement that has arisen, stimulated in reaction to the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt. The movement, called the 'Movement of 20 February for democracy and liberty now,' has not come out for the removal of the King but rather that the King give up some of his powers and become more of a constitutional monarch...."
AP Photo
March 15, 2011
"Toujours de l'Audace!"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"...M. Sarkozy came up with a proposal to create a no-fly zone over Libya but also to engage in surgical strikes. This he did, with the French penchant for secrecy and for creating a surprise effect, without consulting his European allies (except, perhaps, David Cameron), and even, it seems, his new foreign minister, Alain Juppé. M. Sarkozy may not be on the wrong side of history, but he seems to be on the wrong side of the tactical situation. Muammar Gadhafi, with his superiority in equipment and in trained forces, seems to be wrapping up the opposition to his regime."
AP Photo
March 7, 2011
"Curb Your Messianism"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
In a more pragmatic vein, there is the view of Robert Gates, who seems to have acquired a touch of iconoclasm as he nears the end of a highly-regarded term as Secretary of Defense. He had this to say about the no-fly zone last week: "Let's just call a spade a spade. A no-fly zone begins with an attack on Libya to destroy the air defenses. That's the way you do a no-fly zone. And then you can fly planes around the country and not worry about our guys being shot down. But that's the way it starts."
AP Photo
February 22, 2011
"It Ain't Cricket: World 130, United States 1"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"...[T]he formulaic call for 'direct negotiations between the parties' is another way of saying that the Israelis can remain in control, they being by far the strongest party. No, it ain't cricket. But the game isn't over. The next scene will be in September with a proposal that Palestine be admitted to the United Nations."
AP Photo
February 10, 2011
"In the Name of God, Go!"
Op-Ed
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
Hosni Mubarak has become a liability for stability. Extreme wealth in the midst of extreme poverty is a shame. Now, every day that goes on, the revelations of the Mubarak family's extreme wealth in the Guardian and other media are a constant repudiation of democratic ideals in a country of (mostly poor) 80 million Egyptians. How can Egyptians achieve democracy with this living counter-example sitting before them?
AP Photo
February 1, 2011
"The One-and-a-Half-State Solution"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"Instead of a two-state solution, which Mr. Netanyahu has only reluctantly endorsed, a one-and-a-half state solution, if you will, may well be the Israeli end-game, in that it may be as far as Israel would be prepared to go. However, it would not give Israel the international legitimacy it seeks."
AP Photo
January 18, 2010
"Facts and Perceptions in Tunisia: Offering Legitimate Technical Assistance (But Not to Put Down a Revolution!)"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
There was also a factual basis for what the French Minister said, in particular the phrase, "to act in order that the right to demonstrate can take place at the same time that security is assured." In the matter of protecting the lives of its own citizens, France, a country that tolerates demonstrations as part of its revolutionary ethos, seems to have found the way to manage these two opposites. In the great demonstrations of May 1968, followed by those of 1986, 1995, and 2010, one astonishing fact emerges: hardly anyone was killed.
AP Photo
January 13, 2011
"Pakistan: A Two-Speed Society, Destination Unclear"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
The vision of Pakistan's founder, Mohammed Ali Jinnah, that of a liberal, democratic society tolerant of religious minorities, has largely gone away. What can take its place is uncertain....Since its origins, Pakistan has been a frustrated state, trumped repeatedly by its more powerful neighbor, India, and frequently channeling its sorrow against the United States, all the more so since the spectacular rapprochement between India and the U.S. initiated by the Administration of George W. Bush.
AP Photo
January 4, 2011
"90 May Be the New 50—But it Doesn't Matter in the Long Run"
Op-Ed, The Huffington Post
By Charles G. Cogan, Associate, International Security Program
"For those of us not on a nine-to-five schedule, there is a world of choice before us. We are masters of our own agendas. And last but not least, in the age of the Internet, and in the insouciance of advancing years, one need no longer be inclined to keep one's thoughts to oneself."
