As the financial crisis has intensified, Alex has frequently pointed us to the thoughts of NYU's Nouriel Roubini, a long-time prophet of economic doom (see...
Richard Gowan
Richard Gowan coordinates the International Security Institutions program at the Center on International Cooperation, New York University. He is also the UN Policy Fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations and an associate of the Foreign Policy Center (London).
The most useless UN document ever?
I have read some useless UN documents in my time. Few, if any, match "The Crocodile Threat in Timor-Leste", prepared by the Joint Mission Analysis Cell (the...
People whose views we don’t care about, #1
In a new series, I will be introducing a series of commentators on international affairs whose views are (in my opinion) inherently redundant. First up,...
The UN’s NATO mistake (and bigger mistakes about international security)
The UN and NATO have signed a - not very radical - declaration about their cooperation in places like Afghanistan and Darfur, and the Russians are peeved:...
Martti Ahtisaari has an orange juice
After some months of chronicling what one reader describes as "Sarko-bling", it is a pleasure to find that one world leader is keeping it simple, Nobel prize...
Ban raps!
There is much excitement in UN-land at the news that Ban Ki-moon rapped at a recent U.S. UN association gala. Jay-Z described the man we will soon doubtless...
New York Times op-ed page needs new fact-checker, possibly with Balkan experience
In his debate with Sarah Palin on Thursday (which failed to meet the Dan Quayle test), Joe Biden talked about the "Bosniaks" not "Bosnians". Republican...
Governor Palin, you’re no Dan Quayle
As we await the world-historical Palin vs. Biden clash, a quick reminder of the Gold Standard in vice-presidential debates. It's hard to beat "you're no Jack...
Nicolas Sarkozy has a very modern telephone table
This photo of the French presidential office might seem a bit gilded and cluttered. But the style afficiando will spot the ultra-modern styling of Monsieur...
Four helicopters too many?
Readers will know that I have an unhealthy interest in the supply of helicopters for peace operations. There aren't enough of them, and those that do exist...
What’s the Chinese for “Bothered?”
A headline from the BBC: Tories refuse to give China aid
What Gordon didn’t say about Africa (but Gowan did)
Gordon Brown is getting a good write-up for his speech to the UN on Africa and development. It's short, sharp and effective. Here's the essential extract:...
Alaskan and Afghan naming customs compared
In New York, Sarah Palin found something to talk about with Hamid Karzai: While being photographed, they could be overheard discussing the Afghan leader's...
Henry Kissinger keeps a photo of him meeting the Pope
In a new twist in our occasional series of the fashion and gadget choices of the powerful, we are pleased to note that Mr Kissinger gives pride of place to a...
The West versus the Rest: new map
Yesterday, the European Council on Foreign Relations published a report I've co-authored on the EU's influence on human rights issues at the UN. I'll save...
Whoa!
There's brave. Then there's Alaska brave: The boyfriend of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin's unwed, pregnant daughter will join the family of the Republican vice...
Is Alistair Darling ready to play chess with Death?
Having returned from two very pleasant days in Red Neck Pennsylvania, I have only just read Alistair Darling's doom-laden interview with the Guardian about...
Straight Intta Compton: Wu-Tang Clan expand their thinking on the Democratic agenda
Readers have welcomed my decision to eschew the NYT op-ed page in favor of RZA's commentary on the election, but it turns out that the Wu-Tang Clan is a...
Celebrity galas in the McCain White House are going to be awful
Do you know who these people are? You do? OK, get off this blog and play outside. You don't? Then you're over 16. They are the Jonas Brothers, a...
Wu-Tang Clan nail political analysis: “Rambo was crazy!”
Enough with the NYT op-ed page! My main point of reference in the U.S. election will be the Wu-Tang Clan. In an interview with New York magazine's Denver...
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