CENTRAL ASIA
March 30, 2007
"Why Victory Became Defeat in Iraq"
Op-Ed, Nieman Watchdog
By Ivan Arreguin-Toft, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program, 2002-2009
As long as there was an army to fight, the U.S. was unstoppable, writes a Harvard scholar who studies asymmetric conflicts. But once we lost the Iraqi people, all the power in the world wasn’t enough to achieve victory. (Second of two parts.)
March 23, 2007
"How a Superpower Can End Up Losing to the Little Guys"
Op-Ed, Nieman Watchdog
By Ivan Arreguin-Toft, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program, 2002-2009
A Harvard scholar explores the implications of his recent research on asymmetric conflicts, which shows that strong actors are losing to the weak more and more often over time, and gleans some important lessons about the United States and Iraq. (First of two parts.)
March 2007
Book Review: Islam After Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia
Journal Article, Far Eastern Economic Review
By Susan Sypko, Former Research Assistant to Graham Allison, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
Islam After Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia by Adeeb Khalid
Isolated for decades behind the Iron Curtain, the Central Asian states are an enigma to many. As the role of Islam in world politics has grown, government officials and observers around the world continue to lump their understanding of Pakistan and Afghanistan with that of unknown "stans." This is a grave mistake, with far-reaching consequences. Adeeb Khalid's new book, Islam after Communism: Religion and Politics in Central Asia, is a welcome rebuttal to ongoing misunderstanding of the region. In this overview of the history and current role of Islam in Central Asia, Mr. Khalid's theme is that there is no necessary relationship between Islam and politics in Central Asia.
March 2007
"The Belfer Center and Nuclear Weapons Policy: Security in the Post-Cold War Era"
Summary, Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs
By Steven E. Miller, Director, International Security Program; Editor-in-Chief, International Security; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom
"The efforts that the Center has made in addressing the nuclear challenges of the post-Cold War era are anchored in the books that it has produced on the major dimensions of the problem."
2007
Understanding Victory and Defeat in Contemporary War
Book
By Jan Angstrom and Isabelle Duyvesteyn
Bringing together leading contributors in the field, this volume analyses how victory and defeat in modern war can be understood and explained.
2007
"How to Lose a War on Terror: A Comparative Analysis of a Counterinsurgency Success and Failure"
Book Chapter
By Ivan Arreguin-Toft, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program, 2002-2009
"If it is true that every strategy has an ideal counterstrategy, then understanding how to counter terrorism demands some understanding of terrorism as a strategy."
Associated Press
February 20, 2007
"Opium Wars"
Op-Ed, Wall Street Journal
By Vanda Felbab-Brown, Former Research Fellow, International Security Program/Program on Intrastate Conflict, 2005–2007
As NATO braces for a spring Taliban offensive in Afghanistan, many in the Bush administration, the Congress and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime are calling for it to take on a prominent role in combating the narcotics trade....
February 12, 2007
Russia's Fragile Power
Op-Ed, Zaman, (Turkey)
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
February 2007
"Funding for U.S. Efforts to Improve Controls Over Nuclear Weapons, Materials, and Expertise Overseas: Recent Developments and Trends"
Paper
By Anthony Wier, Former Research Associate, Project on Managing the Atom/Science, Technology, and Public Policy Program, 2002-2007 and Matthew Bunn, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom; Co-Principal Investigator, Energy Research, Development, Demonstration, and Deployment (ERD3) Policy Project
Matthew Bunn and Anthony Wier find that although threat reduction funding has had dramatic effects in reducing the risk of nuclear terrorism, the Bush administration’s proposed FY 2008 budget for cooperative threat reduction would reduce the overall funds available. They propose a number of remedies, some of which have been taken up by congress in the appropriations process.
