International News Coverage
Cuba
US-Cuba deal: a marriage 18 months in the making, blessed by Pope Francis
Dan Roberts | The Guardian
If ever there was a lingering illusion that Barack Obama might have “accidentally” bumped into the president of Cuba at the funeral of Nelson Mandela last December, it will have vanished like a puff of cigar smoke.
U.S. spy freed by Cuba was longtime asset
Adam Goldman | The Washington Post
The Cuban government on Wednesday freed a U.S. spy whom President Obama described as one of the most important intelligence agents that the United States has ever had in the Communist country and who helped unravel several long-running Cuban espionage operations.
Journey to Reconciliation Visited Worlds of Presidents, Popes and Spies
Mark Landler & Michael R. Gordon | The New York Times
The deal that freed an American jailed in Cuba and ended 53 years of diplomatic estrangement between the United States and Cuba was blessed at the highest levels of the Holy See but cut in the shadowy netherworld of espionage.
North Korea
AP source: US probe links NKorea to Sony Hacking
Eric Tucker & Ted Bridis | The Associated Press
Federal investigators have now connected the hacking of Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc. to North Korea, a U.S. official said Wednesday, though it remained unclear how the federal government would respond to a break-in that exposed sensitive documents and ultimately led to terrorist threats against moviegoers.
Video – Sony’s Decision: An Attack on Free Speech or a Matter of Public Safety?
MyFOXDC.com
Paul Hamill, ASP Director of Strategy and Communications appeared on Fox 5 DC to give his analysis on Sony’s decision to not release the movie ‘The Interview’
Middle East & North Africa
Egypt constituency law sets stage for long-awaited elections
Reuters
Egypt on Thursday cleared a final hurdle to long-awaited parliamentary elections seen as decisive in cementing the rule of Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who ousted President Mohamed Mursi, and excluding the banned Muslim Brotherhood from politics.
On Arab uprising anniversary, US back to business as usual with Egypt’s military
Dan Murphy | The Christian Science Monitor
Four years ago today, frustrated Tunisian vegetable seller Mohamed Bouazizi set himself on fire and started a wave of uprisings in the Arab world that continue to reverberate to this day – though not in the way that many expected.
How foreign imams radicalized Syria’s war
Edward Dark | Al Monitor
The war barged into Aleppo city rudely and was an uninvited guest, bringing with it not only death and suffering, but also the dangerous specter of extremist radicalization at the hands of the seasoned fanatics that started pouring into the city almost as soon as its eastern part fell to the rebellion.
Kurdish peshmerga forces launch offensive to retake Isis held areas
The Guardian
Iraqi Kurdish forces launched a broad offensive on Wednesday aimed at recapturing areas near the Syrian border that have been held by Islamic State (Isis) for months, officials said.
After Damascus talks, Moscow pressures Syria
Al Monitor
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Mikhail Bogdanov’s visit to Damascus on Dec. 10-11 drew the attention of many.
UN agencies seeks $9bln for Syria aid
Al Arabiya
The United Nations is seeking more than $8.4 billion for next year to help nearly 18 million people affected by the war in Syria.
Pakistan
Pakistan’s Army chief heads to Kabul as nation mourns slaughter of students
Robert Marquand | The Christian Science Monitor
The systematic murder of more than 130 children by Pakistani Taliban has shocked a nation often thought to be inured to news of violence.
Russia
Putin seeks to ease fears over Russian economic crisis
BBC
President Vladimir Putin has sought to ease fears over Russia’s economy, insisting that the dramatic fall in the ruble will stabilize.
East Asia
U.S. Imposes Steep Tariffs on Chinese Solar Panels
Diane Cardwell | The New York Times
The Commerce Department began closing a chapter in a protracted trade conflict with China over solar equipment Tuesday, approving a collection of steep tariffs on imports from China and Taiwan.
China’s Military is about to Go Global
Oriana Skylar Mastro | The National Interest
The Chinese armed forces are on the move – but to where? For over a decade, academics, policy wonks and government officials have been engaged in a relentless debate about Beijing’s military capabilities and intentions.
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On Our Flashpoint Blog
Alan Gross Press Conference Held at ASP Office
Matthew Wallin
On Wednesday, ASP’s office served as the location of the press conference held by Alan Gross upon his release from imprisonment in Cuba. ASP was asked by Gilbert LLP, the law firm representing Gross, to use its office space for the conference.
Hamill: U.S. Needs to Rethink its Space Business
Giancarlo Lima
In a recent article in National Defense Magazine about the U.S. Air Force’s challenges of efficiently developing and deploying space technology, ASP Director of Strategy and Communications Paul W. Hamill urged the military to rethink its decades old business model.
Porter Brockway
Brigadier General Stephen A. Cheney, USMC (Ret.), CEO of the American Security Project, was recently interviewed in a news segment by Fox 5 News DC.
The Year(s) Ahead in Public Diplomacy
Matthew Wallin
Forget the year ahead. Successful public diplomacy planning for 2015 must take into account 2016, 2017, 2018, and the decades to come.
Disaster Risk and Climate Change: The Frog in the Boiling Pot
Sophia Dahodwala
Join ASP and special guest, Mr. Dante Disparte, for a discussion on disaster risk management in the wake of climate change.
U.S. – Russia Relations – New ISAB Report
BGen Stephen A. Cheney USMC (Ret.)
After over a year’s worth of work by a very distinguished board, you’ll find a report that doesn’t whitewash anything – be it Putin, Ukraine, or nuclear weapons.
GCC starting to create regional security
Fadi Elsalameen
This week saw the Gulf Cooperation Council (the GCC) take major security and political steps together.
Upcoming Events
Economic Diplomacy: How Economic Ties Can Strengthen National Security with Amb. Rivkin
January 15 @ 12:30PM – 1:30PM
Location: American Security Project, 1100 New York Ave. NW – 7th Floor – West Tower, Washington DC, 20005
Join ASP on January 15, 2015 as we welcome Assistant Secretary for Economic and Business Affairs Charles H. Rivkin for Economic Diplomacy: How Economic Ties Can Strengthen National Security.
Deputy Under Secretary of Defense John Conger: DoD Efforts on Climate Adaptation
January 21 @10:00AM – 11:30AM
Join ASP on Wednesday, January 21 as Deputy Under Secretary of Defense John Conger discusses the Department of Defense’s Climate Adaptation Roadmap, its implications, and how the military is planning for climate change.
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