Category Archives: Articles

Merkel’s Folly an Exercise in Germany Neo-Colonialism

My article “Merkel’s Folly an exercise in Germany neo-colonialism” in Studies review, autumn 2011 edition, also deals with German behaviour in the current economic difficulties. Studies is a serious and challenging quarterly review, a recognised forum for serious discussion, published in Ireland by the Jesuit community,www.studiesirishreview.ie.

Although the Studies article and my more comprehensive analysis both consider Germany’s role in the new European order, the articles differ considerably in content and treatment. The Studies article is shorter and deals with the basics as they presented themselves writing to a deadline. The other piece is longer, more fluid in presentation and reflects developments up to mid-September 2011.

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Global Strategic Review

The Global Strategic Review, the annual conference of the International Institute for Strategic Studies, took place in Geneva, Switzerland, on 9 to 11 September 2011.

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German Economic Behaviour, as Illustrated in the Eurozone Crisis, is a Form of Neo-Colonialism, and an Inadvertent “Game” of 10 Little Indians

My article “Merkel’s Folly an exercise in Germany neo-colonialism” in Studies review, autumn 2011 edition, also deals with German behaviour in the current economic difficulties. Studies is a serious and challenging quarterly review, a recognised forum for serious discussion, published in Ireland by the Jesuit community,www.studiesirishreview.ie. Continue reading

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Nuclear Weapons Reality on Iran and North Korea

Just like North Korea, Iran is well down the road to nuclear weaponry

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All You Need to Know About the New Al Qaeda chief, Ayman Al-Zawahiri

The recent statement from Al Qaeda that Ayman al-Zawahiri has taken over as leader after the assassination of Osama bin Laden is not a surprise.

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Danger is Bin Laden’s Ideas Will Survive His Death

This article first appeared in the 3 May 2011 edition of The Irish Times and is reproduced here with their kind permission.

ANALYSIS: The death of the figurehead leader of al-Qaeda does not presage the end of the worldwide campaign of terror he inspired

OSAMA BIN Laden’s legacy is that the ideology of al-Qaeda will endure. Al-Qaeda is a group of like-minded people, not a global military structure directed from a notional centre. In fact, the “Arab spring” we are witnessing is a much greater threat to al-Qaeda than the loss of its figurehead, iconic though he may have been.

To understand the significance of bin Laden’s death, we need to take a few steps back.

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Is this really an Arab Spring and if so what does it mean?

The latest issue of Survival (April – May 2011), the bimonthly journal of The International Institute for Strategic Studies, has a cluster of interesting articles addressing this question. Continue reading

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Al Qaeda Absent from Popular Uprisings in Middle East, Gulf, and North Africa: Why Did This Particular Dog Not Bite or Even Bark?

Al Qaeda’s “home-ground” is the Middle East, Gulf and North Africa, the location of the recent popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt, Bahrain, Yemen, Libya, and now Syria. Despite all its terrorist activities and its endless propaganda, it has been effectively “missing in action” in all the popular uprisings in these countries over the last three months.

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A Key Omission in the Israeli Gaza Flotilla Report

The Israeli inquiry commission report issued Sunday 23rd January 2011 defended Israel’s actions when Israeli marines boarded the large Turkish cruise ship, the Mavi Marmara, in the early hours of 31 May 2010. Continue reading

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