Wednesday, August 1, 2007

A Finer Focus: The Middle East, China and North Korea: An Executive Challenge For the Ages?

Speaking just days ago on the PBS talk program Charlie Rose, ex-Assistant Secretary of State Richard Holbrooke boldly claimed the next President's foreign policy agenda to be the most daunting in the country's history. Holbrooke, the architect of the 1995 Dayton Peace Accords, attributed his stance to the prospect of two on-going wars (Iraq and Afghanistan), (click here for titles by Holbrooke) the lingering question over Palestine and Israel, the specter of a rapidly growing and powerful China, the recalcitrance of Syria and Iran, and the factor of North Korea. While we're 18 months short of a new administration, it's hard to know who will be making decisions and what sort of engagement policy will be used. Based on your knowledge of what sort of foreign policy terrain Presidents Harry Truman, Abraham Lincoln, James Madison, Woodrow Wilson, and L.B. Johnson have had to tread upon, is Holbrooke correct? There are clearly challenges to peace in today's world, and the following list of sources may help you broaden your knowledge base:
  • Books:
  • Web sites:

The Brookings Institute: http://www.brook.edu/

The Rand Corporation: http://www.rand.org/research_areas/international_affairs/

Carnegie Endowment for International Peace: http://www.carnegieendowment.org/

Council for Foreign Relations: http://www.cfr.org/

Heritage Foundation: http://www.heritage.org/

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