Global Security

The night before last I was privy to a sneak preview of an ambitious foreign policy manifesto that is being rolled out on Capitol Hill today. The plan, Forging a World of Liberty Under Law: U.S. National Security in the 21st Century, is the product of a two-year long series of meetings of a bi-partisan brain trust of foreign policy and national security experts convened at the Woodrow Wilson school. Under the steering of Anne-Marie Slaughter and G. John Ickenberry, the Princeton Project on National Security has attempted to comprehensively outline a sustainable 21st Century American foreign policy. As Dr. Slaughter put it last night, the group's inspiration was to create the intellectual equivalent to George Kennan's famous X Article in Foreign Affairs, but updated for our time. They may have come close.

"The United Nations atomic watchdog agency has called on all Member States to provide political, financial, and technical support to prevent nuclear and radiological terrorism. The call, which also seeks necessary funds for the Nuclear Security Fund, came in a resolution passed by the UN International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) General Conference, which was attended by more than 100 Member States and ended last week." More

"In an effort to further thwart terrorist plots to blow up airliners, the United Nations aviation agency will this week move ahead on producing a new list of prohibited items that passengers cannot bring on board, such as liquid, gel and aerosol products capable of being used in improvised explosive devices. On 27 and 28 September, the International Explosives Technical Commission of the UN International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO ) will take up the work of a panel that met earlier this month following the thwarted terrorist plot in August in the United Kingdom to blow up some 10 trans-Atlantic flights." More

Washington Post: "U.N. inspectors investigating Iran's nuclear program angrily complained to the Bush administration and to a Republican congressman yesterday about a recent House committee report on Iran's capabilities, calling parts of the document "outrageous and dishonest" and offering evidence to refute its central claims."

Last Friday, after more than a year of tense negotiations, the United Nations General Assembly formally adopted a Global Counter Terrorism Strategy. The strategy is as ambitious as it sounds, and the fact that it passed at all is a huge accomplishment. For the better part of the year, it seemed that the Assembly would not be able to generate this kind of document as there were deep divisions among member states over how to classify terrorism and terrorist acts. But in the end, it was another feather in the cap for General Assembly President Jan Elliason who oversaw the unanimous passage of the resolution.

"Marking five years since the September 11 attacks on the United States, Secretary-General Kofi Annan today said they were directed against "humanity itself," as he urged all Member States to honour the victims of terrorism everywhere by implementing a new strategy that the world body adopted last week to fight the global scourge. "The attacks of 11 September 2001 cut us all to the core, for they were an attack on humanity itself. Today, our thoughts and prayers are with the victims, and with all those who lost loved ones in the tragedy ... And we remember all those who have fallen victim to other acts of terrorism around the world," Mr. Annan said in a statement." More

IHT: "Afghanistan's opium harvest this year has reached the highest levels ever recorded, showing an increase of almost 50 percent from last year, the head of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, Antonio Maria Costa, said in Kabul."

Reuters: "Iran, set to reply on Tuesday to an offer by world powers aimed at defusing a nuclear standoff, has insisted it would not stop enriching uranium as they demand by an August 31 deadline to avoid possible sanctions. But a rebuff would not yet trigger immediate action by the U.N. Security Council, which passed a resolution on July 31 giving Iran a month to halt enrichment or risk sanctions."

"The Secretary-General stressed that in a time of acute crisis in the Middle East, progress on the nuclear issue was essential for the stability not only of the region, but the international system itself. "It is time to take steps in the right direction," Mr. Annan said. "I am convinced that a way is now open for setting a milestone for international non-proliferation efforts." Noting that the EU3 plus 3 had reaffirmed Iran's right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful purposes, the Secretary-General said it was important for Iran to assure the world that its intentions are peaceful, and that it re-builds confidence in its nuclear programme, as both the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) and the Security Council had called for." [More]