African pirouette, Asian pivot
by Rashmee
Posted on February 1, 2013
Along with the ‘pivot’, the ‘pirouette’. Taken together with ‘lean back’, it constitutes a remarkably energetic and physically engaged foreign policy strategy for President Obama’s America. The pirouette, a mid-17th century word that literally means ‘spinning top’, needs to claim its place in the language of the strategic shimmy. It entered the discussion a few … Continue reading “African pirouette, Asian pivot”
Read MoreChispa or Latin wit can’t disguise conundrum of anti-US body
by Rashmee
Posted on January 31, 2013
A stiff, if substantial ‘family’ photo of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean (CELAC) states when it came to life in Caracas in December 2011. But why aren’t these people smiling a great deal more? CELAC, which is basically the Organization of American States minus the US and Canada, was meant to symbolise Latin … Continue reading “Chispa or Latin wit can’t disguise conundrum of anti-US body”
Read MoreA ‘lean back’ chair for President Obama
by Rashmee
Posted on January 30, 2013
You’ve got to hand it to foreign policy wonks. They’re able to mint new doctrines and phrases despite the decided challenges of having familiar, well-worn world issues to work with. Iraq, Afghanistan, al Qaeda, Mali, Libya. The new is but a re-run of the old. So John Arquilla, professor of defense analysis at the U.S. … Continue reading “A ‘lean back’ chair for President Obama”
Read MoreCould a pirate ever become poster boy for US government?
by Rashmee
Posted on January 29, 2013
Foreign Policy’s daily Situation Report offers a droll story that illustrates the growing respect for communications rules among those who routinely break the law. “Piracy has plummeted off the coast of Somalia,” it reports, extrapolating from the decision of a pirate called “Big Mouth” to quit the business. “Big Mouth” famously held a press conference … Continue reading “Could a pirate ever become poster boy for US government?”
Read MoreAung San Suu Kyi’s iPod playlist? Not really
by Rashmee
Posted on January 27, 2013
It says something about Aung San Suu Kyi’s restraint and self-effacement that she personally picked just one of the eight musical tracks she was allowed to choose for the BBC Radio 4 programme ‘Desert Island Discs’. In a sense then, this was not really a hypothetical playlist from Suu Kyi’s hypothetical iPod. (Does she have an … Continue reading “Aung San Suu Kyi’s iPod playlist? Not really”
Read MoreIndia, China, Bhutan: Himalayan Trio’s Strategic Shimmy
by Rashmee
Posted on January 26, 2013
A busy, mind-bender of a week for the Bhutanese King.Or is it? Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck meets India’s National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon on Monday, January 28 and Indian Army Chief Bikram Singh later that day. The only issue for discussion is China’s new desire to have diplomatic relations with its tiny neighbour. After decades … Continue reading “India, China, Bhutan: Himalayan Trio’s Strategic Shimmy”
Read MoreDrones and UN peacekeeping?
by Rashmee
Posted on January 16, 2013
The excellent Baobab offers prescient insight into the way things might change in the United Nation’s “vast and unwieldy peacekeeping operations”. UN Secretary-General Ban ki-Moon, it seems, has asked the Security Council to approve the use of drones over eastern Congo. International opinion, as always, is mixed with the Chinese and Russians reluctant and Rwanda … Continue reading “Drones and UN peacekeeping?”
Read MoreWhy should Latvia say Hindu prayers?
by Rashmee
Posted on January 9, 2013
The strangest, most self-righteous email in a long time has to be the one about the Latvian parliament denying a request to begin the day with Hindu prayer. Why should it, one might justifiably ask? Latvia’s main religion is Christianity. But such common sense seems to be beyond “Hindu statesman” Rajan Zed. He sent the … Continue reading “Why should Latvia say Hindu prayers?”
Read MorePakistan Needs A Malala Effect From Education To Sex
by Rashmee
Posted on January 4, 2013
Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani teenager who was shot at by the Taliban in October, was discharged from hospital in Birmingham, England just hours before I discussed Pakistan’s desperate need for a “Malala effect” with a journalist from Peshawar. And this extends from education to a healthier view of sex Syed Irfan Ashraf writes for Dawn … Continue reading “Pakistan Needs A Malala Effect From Education To Sex”
Read MoreDon’t ask where best to be born but where best to live?
by Rashmee
Posted on January 2, 2013
One cannot but be struck by title of The Economist blog “Where to be born in 2013”. In a calculation that “links the results of subjective life-satisfaction surveys to objective determinants of the quality of life” across 80 countries, The Economist Intelligence Unit has come up with an entirely subjective list that enshrines Switzerland at … Continue reading “Don’t ask where best to be born but where best to live?”
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Rashmee has lived and worked in several countries in the past decade, including Afghanistan, India, Haiti, Tunisia, the UAE, US and UK