Aid convoy stops short of border as Russian military vehicles enter Ukraine
Shaun Walker /the Guardian
Armored personnel carriers and support vehicles cross the border, while the 280-truck convoy comes to a halt separately.
Maliki Agrees to Relinquish Power in Iraq
The New York Times
Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Maliki said Thursday night that he had agreed to relinquish power, a move that came after days of crisis in which his deployment of extra security forces around the capital had raised worries of a military coup.
Rosneft requests $42bn loan from Russian government
BBC
Russia’s state-controlled energy giant Rosneft has asked the Russian government for a $42bn (£25.2bn) loan, as it feels the impact of Western sanctions.
U.S. energy agency jumps into fusion funding
Science
ARPA-E, the U.S. government agency for funding innovative energy technologies, is preparing to launch a program to support alternative approaches to fusion energy that have the potential to steal a march on existing mainstream projects. The news will come as a relief to some fusion researchers at government labs, who had their funding cut completely in this fiscal year because of the ballooning cost of the U.S. contribution to the international ITER fusion reactor project in France.
Iraq crisis: Arming Kurds on EU agenda in Brussels
BBC
EU foreign ministers are holding an emergency meeting in Brussels to discuss plans to arm Iraq’s Kurds against an extremist insurgency.
Dust from beyond our solar system fell to Earth from space probe
Ian Sample / the Guardian
It could be the most exotic material on the planet. Seven particles of dust brought back to Earth by a spacecraft nearly a decade ago appear to have come from beyond our solar system.
U.N. nuclear chief Amano to visit Iran on Sunday
Reuters
U.N. nuclear agency chief Yukiya Amano will visit Iran on Sunday in an effort to advance cooperation in the agency’s long-running dispute with Iran over its nuclear activities, the IAEA said on Friday.
ASP Recent Reports
Alexander Gupta
Central Asia has been the intersection between Europe and Asia for over 3000 years. Civilizations from India to the Caspian Sea have risen and fallen. The rugged landscape has been the setting of brutal and destructive warfare as well as for the flow of goods, ideas, and people across Eurasia.
American Security Quarterly – August 2014
Adin Dobkin
The Russian annexation of Crimea and the scores of pro-Russia militants taking up arms in Eastern Ukraine — before it physically happened, you would be hard-pressed to find someone who labeled it a likelihood.
On Our Flashpoint Blog
What the Fight for Foreign Aid Funding is Really About
Maggie Feldman-Piltch
Each year, foreign aid spending comes under fire during the budget negotiation process. Those in favor of cutting spending argue development and assistance programs are ineffective and the funds too often fall fuel corruption rather than work to eliminate it.
Upcoming Events
INVITE – Under Secretary Richard Stengel: American Public Diplomacy in 2014 and Beyond
September 16 @12:30 PM – 1:30 PM
Join us at ASP as we host Richard Stengel, Under Secretary for Public Diplomacy and Public Affairs, as he discusses his plans for America’s public diplomacy.
What’s Next? Fostering the Next Generation of Energy Security Conference
September 30 @ 9:00 AM – 4:30 PM
The next steps in building a cleaner, more resilient energy system and economy will not be easy. The American Security Project intends to build on its years of research into energy security and climate policy by initiating a study into the next generation of energy policy. Join ASP and our panelists as we discuss the next generation of energy technology and climate policy.
Employment Opportunities at ASP
ASP is looking for current or recently graduated students interested in hands-on public policy experience for full and part-time internships. Interns will support ASP researchers and staff in multiple areas including communications, development, programming and research. Applicants for the 2014 Fall semester (September through December) should send a cover letter, resume, references and a short writing sample to Maggie Feldman-Piltch at mfeldmanpiltch@americansecurityproject.org no later than August 25, 2014.
The post What We Are Reading…August 15, 2014 appeared first on American Security Project.
