The 2013 Resource Nationalism Checklist

The list is our attempt to respond to what we see as a relatively underdeveloped marketplace of ideas when it comes to scenario planning for expropriation, unfair regulatory intervention, nationalizations, and resource nationalism events that have an impact on foreign investors in emerging markets.

The Unreasonable Expectations of Democracy

There’s a few interesting comments on Arab Spring pessimism on the interwebs today. Here, writing in Foreign Affairs (stifle that yawn), Sheri Berman makes some interesting historical comparisons of political transformations, and points toward the unreasonable expectations many critics have placed on the world’s most recent democracy newborns. In addition to blaming new democratic regimes […]

Former Prime Minister of Thailand Abhisit Vejjajiva Charged with Murder

Thai authorities charged former Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva on Thursday with giving orders to use live ammunition that led to civilian deaths during a military crackdown on an anti-government protest in May 2010. A successful conviction would mean the first time in Thailand’s history that someone was held accountable for a massacre.

Japan’s Misplaced Nationalism

Prof. Joseph Nye is not just an interesting guy because of that whole “soft power” thing he pioneered, but because when he talks about Asia, we are treated to a glimpse of insider thinking in Washington, given the broad, informal mandate extended to him by State Department demonstrated by his recent visit to the region […]

Obama in Thailand – Time to Look Beyond the Asia Pivot

President Obama needs to look at relations with ASEAN countries on their own merit, not just in relation to Washington’s China strategy. Thailand, in particularly, offers important opportunities.

Obama’s Tertiary Strategy in Asia

The United States, thank goodness, appears willing to recognize that there are more than just China and Japan in Asia. Let’s hope they keep up, and can develop relations in Southeast Asia that aren’t just designed to thumb the nose at Beijing.  From Bloomberg: The most remarkable thing about Obama’s first trip abroad since his […]

Answering the Call of History in Thailand

Unlike the massacres of 1973, 1976, and 1992, there is now a real possibility that the deadly government crackdowns of April and May 2010 will be properly investigated, and that those responsible for committing crimes will be held to account.

Wen Jiabao and the Authoritarian Defamation Defense

It’s not often these days that one item of investigative journalism can cause giants to stumble. Moisés Naím has described it as “an article of immense importance” which “could not have been produced by a blogger, by social media activists or by a journalistic organization that merely “aggregates” – that is, reproduces on the web – the original contents of others.” But is this kind of journalism in danger?

How Western Media Gets Thailand Wrong

In this interview with Forbes magazine, the former Prime Minister of Thailand Thaksin Shinawatra comments on how the international media has been influenced by a skewed, one-sided presentation of current events by the country’s main two English-language newspapers, The Bangkok Post and The Nation.

RA’s Daily Russia News Blast – Sept 13, 2012

TODAY: Medvedev calls for release of imprisoned Pussy Riot members, Berezovsky denies funding the group; Lavrov expresses shock over Libya deaths; Russia pressures Moldova over Europe gas plans; Dvorkovich opposes Rosneft-BP tie-up; Ukraine introduces car recycling fee. At a meeting with activists yesterday, Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev called for the early release of the jailed […]