The war in Afghanistan is at a critical point as it enters its tenth year – and the view that it is unwinnable can be glimpsed in unexpected places.
A United Nations summit in New York on 20-22 September 2010 is measuring progress in the fulfilment of global commitments to improving human security by 2015 - the Millennium Development Goals. But the focus should be on the instruments of delivery as much as the objectives, says Stephen Browne.
A revisionist reading of the Rwanda genocide of 1994 endorsed by Noam Chomsky confirms the moral blindness of the denialist left, says Martin Shaw.
The severe cuts facing Britain’s armed forces are also an opportunity to embrace the new thinking they and the country need.
China is a favoured stopover for a former prime minister with money on his mind. But this is a game that his hosts too are playing, says Kerry Brown.
Brazil's presidential election is moving to a climax. A victory for the favourite candidate Dilma Rousseff would also be President Lula's, says Arthur Ituassu in Rio de Janeiro.
The annual report for 2010 of the International Institute of Strategic Studies, a leading establishment think-tank, raises the prospect of a shift in western policy in Afghanistan.
The zealous attitudes and fevered misjudgments that drove United States policy towards Iraq in 2003 could yet have a second life over Iran.
The prospects for progress in the direct Israeli-Palestinian talks in Washington are meagre. But breakthrough is essential if Israel is to be saved from itself.
Juan Manuel Santos has made a refreshing start as Colombia’s president by departing from the policies of his predecessor, Álvaro Uribe. But to map a new political direction he will need support from uncertain allies, says Adam Isacson.
The United States and Israel see the next generation of armed drones as a potent reinforcement of their military capacity against insurgents and rogue states. But Iran and Hizbollah too are in the race.
