Foreign aid & foreign influence

Upon discovering that Hosni Mubarak is worth $70 billion, or one-third of his country’s GDP, some American citizens may be wondering if their tax dollars in the form of foreign aid wound up in the Egyptian dictator’s personal Swiss bank accounts. I realize this may be upsetting to many hardworking Americans who pay their taxes [...]

Israel’s global reach

Those who have studied the topic know that although Israelis a tiny and relatively new nation-state, it has a global reach in so far as its political, military and economic influence is concerned. It has managed to establish a high tech economy and possess nuclear weapons, and it has the ability to exert far reaching [...]

GCC: Scrambling for Allies

No serious predictive analysis could have ever averred that Morocco and Jordan would be considered for membership in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Not even the amazing astrologer Maguy Farah could have predicted it. The GCC’s invitation for Morocco and Jordan to join its ranks has the subtlety of a Saudi tourist in a Thai [...]

Review of Study – China’s growing influence in international organizations

A new study by The Economic Strategy Institute (ESI), commissioned by the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission, called “The Evolving Role of China in International Institutions”, takes a thorough look into China’s growing influence in international organizations. The report contains two truisms, ten trends, seven recommendations, and a number of case studies on China’s [...]