Stories about International Relations from August, 2006
South Korea: relation with U.S
Robert Koehler in Marmot's Hole has two posts on Korea-U.S relation regarding the withdrawal of U.S troop or the flexible military strategy in South Korea. The first one is a comment on an opinion piece written in Chosun Ilbo. The second one is a summary of varous reactions towards the...
Jamaica: White martyrs, Black savages
Having watched the trailer for a newly released film set in Uganda, Jamaican novelist Marlon James announces that he's sick and tired of “stories of a white man trapped in black (and sometimes yellow) hell where in the midst of all this inhumanity he discovers what it means to be...
Serbia: Collective Guilt
Srdjan Cvijic of The TransAtlantic Assembly a translates an article by a renowned Serbian political analyst on Kosovo, the West and the feeling of collective guilt.
Serbia: Attack on Israeli
Eric Gordy of East Ethnia writes about a recent attack on an Israeli in Belgrade and the hype it caused.
Venezuela, Syria: Chavez's New Friends
Steven Taylor astounded by Chavez's newly declared solidarity with Syria. Erwin Cifuentes does the media roundup.
Turkmenistan: Islam & Diplomacy
Peter of neweurasia discusses the start of construction on the enormous new Saudi embassy in Turkmenistan. Many Turkmen officials were on hand for the laying of foundation stone, and Peter argues that this enthusiasm likely has to do with Turkmenistan concluding that the international legitimacy it seeks will most likely...
Jamaica: In-house terrorist
A Jamaica-born Muslim cleric who has been convicted in the UK for incitement to murder is about to be deported back to his homeland. “As if our gun-toting criminals aren't enough, now we have to worry about terrorist threats because we'll have our own soon to arrive, fresh from England,...
Poland: On Migrant Labor, Again
The beatroot writes about “free movement of labour” and responds to a “deranged” commenter who, among other things, is “favorably comparing the Nazi invasion and the Holocaust to the influx of a few hundred thousand Poles and others to the UK.”
South Africa: Cape Town's Somali Genocide
Mike Golby, a South African blogger, struggles to understand the situation in Cape Town, where, as cosmopolitan as it seems, refugees find it difficult if not entirely impossible to integrate fully. For the Somali refugees, as he particularly notes, it’s hell on earth. “That they might be, but it seems...
Cuba: Between the lines
The Cuban news daily Granma reports that a Syrian ministerial delegation has been received in Cuba by Raul Castro — and Luis M. Garcia (and, presumably, other watchers of the Castro regime) try to figure out what it means: “We are a sad, pathetic bunch, I know … A bit...
Kazakhstan: US Relations
Sean Roberts details the tensions and issues in US-Kazakhstan relations.
Albania: Greater, or Natural, Albania
Our Man in Tirana writes about ‘Greater Albania’ or, as it was called in a recent interview by the political adviser to the Albanian Prime Minister, the ‘Natural Albania': “Citing the example of Montenegro which chose to split from Serbia, Danaj suggested that Albanians in Macedonia and Montenegro should also...
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Karadzic Sightings
Balkan Ghost of Finding Karadzic visits Trebinje and Lastva in the Republika Srpska to investigate Radovan Karadzic sightings there: “While in the west we treat Karadzic sightings with alarm, they are commonplace around Trebinje. And even if the locals wanted to talk about it, the western press and local EUFOR...
Russian-Language Blogs: Miscellanea (3)
Israeli blogger pilka writes (RUS) about a surreal experience of eating next to three clowns at a hospital in the wartime Haifa: […] I had breakfast with clowns today. I work at the children's department, okay? So strange, a clown on the right, a clown on the left, a vegetable...
Cuba, Bahamas, USA: Moral authority
Rick Lowe takes issue with the Cuban ambassador to the Bahamas's declaration that the US lacks the moral authority to criticise Cuba.
Bahamas: Not so far from the Middle East
Nicolette Bethel's analysis of an African-American commentator's views on white guilt and anti-Semitism prompts her to think about Israel's position in the Middle East: “We Bahamians should take heed. After all, there is not a huge difference between the plight of the Palestinian Arab or the young men who identify...
Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan: Japan Visit
Registan.net and neweurasia both comment on Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's visit to Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan.
Kyrgyzstan: Afterthoughts on US Relations
Yulia has thoughts on Kyrgyzstan's relations with the United States and President Kurmanbek Bakiev's foreign policy tendencies after an eventful summer in the bilateral relations between the US and Kyrgyzstan.
Lebanon: Blogging Back to Normality
This week the Lebanese blogosphere witnessed a sluggish move away from posts about destruction and death caused by the war to posts that reflect patriotic passions, politics and personal accounts. Photos of how ads, weddings and cartoons were affected by the war can also be found. Life in the blogosphere seems to be trying hard to go back to the way it was.
Bosnia & Herzegovina: Conflict With Gazprom
Adrian J. Erlinger of Leopolis writes that the Russian Gazprom is now exerting pressure on Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Hungary: Bridge-Naming Vote
Henrik of Hungarian Accent writes about Stephen Colbert and the bridge-naming affair – and summarizes what Hungarian bloggers think about it.