May, 2021

• 23 May

  Finding Common Ground on U.S. International Religious Freedom Policy

  

  Overcoming partisan mistrust through a focus on bipartisan priorities. On May 12, Secretary of State Antony Blinken issued the Biden administration’s first annual religious freedom report. It was accompanied by a strong speech, highlighting the importance of the issue and singling out countries such as Saudi Arabia, Iran, Russia and …

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• 23 May

  Despite the Sham, Syria’s Election is Still Significant

  

  The presidential poll significantly undermines international efforts to resolve the conflict. In the face of international pushback, the Assad regime is going forward with plans for a presidential election on May 26. While the outcome is in no way uncertain — Assad will win amid deeply unfair election practices — …

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• 23 May

  How Missing Data Can Make the Global Fragility Strategy Work

  

  The United States should use a capacity-based approach to select priority countries for security sector reform. As glaring inequalities in the global recovery from COVID-19 become clearer, the U.N. has warned of growing risks of political tensions and conflict in many countries. This poses a daunting challenge to U.S. foreign …

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• 23 May

  10 Steps Washington Can Take After the De-escalation of the War on Gaza

  

  As violence rages on, the Biden administration should reexamine and reprioritize its approach to the conflict. In a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu yesterday, President Biden said he was supportive of a cease-fire amid the continued violence in Israel and the Palestinian territories. As ongoing Hamas rocket barrages …

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• 23 May

  What Brought Saudi Arabia and Iran to the Negotiating Table

  

  Saudi Arabia and Iran recently confirmed that they are engaging in direct negotiations to lower tensions between the two rivals and eventually normalize diplomatic relations. Officials from both sides are sounding cautiously optimistic about the endeavor. “We have initiated some exploratory talks. They are at a very early stage but …

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• 23 May

  Amid U.S.-China Tensions, ‘Dual Loyalty’ Rears Its Ugly Head

  

  On March 16, a 21-year-old white man allegedly went on a violent rampage at three spas in the Atlanta area, fatally shooting eight people—six of them Asian women. Law enforcement officials and some news outlets initially said the motive was “uncertain,” but the Asian American community in Georgia immediately recognized …

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• 23 May

  Three Myths About the Laws of War and the Israel-Hamas Conflict

  

  After 11 days of rocket fire and air strikes, a tenuous cease-fire has brought to a close, at least for now, the latest outbreak of violence between the Israeli government and the armed group Hamas in Gaza. As in previous rounds of fighting between them, narratives about which side was …

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• 23 May

  The Palestinian National Resistance has won yet again! Israel faces both a military & political defeat

  

  Celebrations have broken out across Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem, across all of historic Palestine. Clearly after the 11-day war, the Palestinian Resistance has emerged stronger, with more widespread & greater global support. The struggle of the Palestinian people to safeguard the neighbourhood of Sheikh Jarrah from ethnic …

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• 23 May

  Middle East Peace Plan – Justice to Palestinians and Security for Israel

  

  Letter to President Joseph BidenVice-President Kamala HarrisSecretary of State Tony BlinkenSenate Majority Leader Chuck SchumerSenator Minority leader Mitch McConnelCongressional Majority leader Nancy PelosiCongressional Minority leader Kevin McCarthy It is time we work for the security of Israel and Justice to the Palestinians. We have to take bold steps to bring …

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• 23 May

  China blocks US bases in Central Asia

  

  Photo taken on May 9, 2021 shows the books of students who were killed in a car bomb attack in Kabul, capital of Afghanistan. (Photo by Rahmatullah Alizadah/Xinhua). Over 80 people were killed in successive explosions outside a girls’ high school in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, most of the …

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