United States
United States
Fair Observer provides inclusive, insightful and non-partisan analysis of important American issues, events and trends.
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360° Analysis / Barack Obama / China / Foreign Policy / obama / Politics / Romney / United States / AsiaBy Jeffrey ChenUS-China relations are complicated and expansive, characterized by unprecedented interdependence and potential for both deepening cooperation and intensifying competition. The question is: will Barack Obama's China policy continue to serve American interests? Despite the shortcomings of his foreign policy with regards to China, President Obama has recognized this complex reality from the start, avoided any serious diplomatic crises, and succeeded in preserving regional stability. In 1972, US President Nixon took the big step that opened China to the world after decades of isolation. Chinese scholars of American politics are fond of pointing out that rapprochement during the...
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360° Analysis / Barack Obama / Clinton / economy / Elections / Mitt Romney / obama / President / presidential elections / Reagan / Romney / United States / US / Finance & EconomicsAs the US election day dawns, history suggests that the issues debated in a presidential campaign will not be ones that are most important to the next president. As US Secretary of Defense, Donald Rumsfeld famously identified one category of risks in Iraq as "unknown unknowns" – those things that "we do not know we don't know." Nassim Nicholas Taleb developed the black swan theory, dealing with the occurrence of highly unlikely, nearly unpredictable and critically important events. History suggests that these are ways to look at the new presidential administration, too. Much has been made of the economy during this 2012 campaign, and rightly so. Unemployment...
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360° Analysis / Hamas / Israel / Orientalism / Palestine / Politics / United States / Middle EastDespite his promise of change, Obama's approach to US-Israeli relations and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is influenced by a persisting American Orientalism, which has its roots in the rhetoric of the first settlers. This is the final part. To fully understand the Obama Administration's discourse and its practice, it is crucial to establish when the terminology for Israel/Jews and Arabs emerged. Possible answers could be the creation of Israel and its subsequent victories over Arab states during the Cold War era, or when considering the language of terrorism, the 9/11 attacks. Significantly however, a basis for the double-standards in Barack Obama's discourse and practice,...
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360° Analysis / Barack Obama / Indonesia / Mitt Romney / obama / Politics / President / presidential elections / Romney / United States / US / US elections / AsiaBy Jarno LangFor Indonesia, the outcome of the American presidential election in November 2012 will be of great importance. This article will outline the most important contemporary matters of interest in the Indonesian-American relationship from a pre-election perspective. On November 6th 2012, the people of the USA will either grant President Barack Obama a second term in office or they will make Governor Mitt Romney the new president of the US. This election is of special relevance to Indonesia as the two candidates have very different perspectives on how American foreign policy of the near future should be. This article is the first of two installments on the relevance of the US presidential...
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360° Analysis / Gaza / Hamas / Israel / Palestine / Politics / United States / Middle EastDespite his promise of change, Obama´s approach to US-Israeli relations and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is influenced by a persisting American Orientalism, which has its roots in the rhetoric of the first settlers. This is the first of two parts. Before US President Barack Obama faces a tough election night, it is crucial to examine whether he has brought the “change we can believe in” to Americans and — to be scrutinized here — the Middle East and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Beyond a factual check, it is necessary to explain the implemented policies in their historical context. The Cairo Speech One of Obama´s promises as a candidate,...
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360° Analysis / Barack Obama / Elections / Europe / Israel / Mitt Romney / NATO / obama / Politics / presidential elections / Romney / Russia / UN / United States / US / EuropeA Romney presidency will signal a re-evaluation of the relationship between Moscow and Washington, a strong commitment to Israel and a continuing push for the European powers to increase NATO’s defense spending. The final countdown to the US presidential election has started and with it has come the unthinkable for many Europeans: a potential victory for Mitt Romney. The Republican challenger is no longer his party’s hopeless second- or third-tier choice. He may remain that among Europeans, but their overwhelming support for Barack Obama cannot blind them from seeing reality. Instead, they need to consider the consequences of a Romney victory. Unfortunately, Romney’s...
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360° Analysis / Bahrain / Egypt / Israel / Pakistan / Politics / United States / US elections / Middle East / Africa / AsiaMany approach the US presidential elections seeking to choose between the "lesser of two evils". But does voting the passive voice have serious implications for American foreign policy in the Arab and Muslim world? For liberal America, it is becoming harder and harder to sell the almost painfully trite and stale cliché that one must pick “the lesser of two evils.” The simple fact is that, for advocates of human rights and equality, a vote for Barack Obama requires a number of back-peddling explanations and heartfelt apologies, not least of which regarding the broader Arab and Muslim world. In a widely-praised address from Cairo in 2009, Obama stated that the...
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360° Analysis / Israel / Palestine / Politics / United States / US elections / Middle EastShould Obama win re-election, the United States is likely to embark upon a new serious strategy to achieve peace in the Middle East. Rajai Masri illustrates a possible scenario to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Despite all appearances to the contrary, should Barack Obama get re-elected for a second term as president, the United States in tandem with Europe, is likely to embark upon a new serious initiative to impose a "a peaceful solution" to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.For some time, the European Union (EU) has appeared to have developed a consensus and a clear vision, or rather a blueprint to solve the so-called Middle East crisis. Indeed, the EU has long waited for...
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360° Analysis / Elections / obama / Politics / presidential elections / Putin / Romney / Russia / United States / WTO / EuropeA re-elected Barack Obama, despite his support for Russia's WTO membership, the signing of the new Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) and his overlooking of the Kremlin’s crackdown on the opposition, may not really be preferred by Russia's leaders over Mitt Romney. By Lilia Shevtsova and David J. Kramer In his speech accepting the Republican nomination for president, Mitt Romney vowed to take a hard line in dealing with Russia. “Under my administration,” he said, “our friends will see more loyalty, and Mr. Putin will see a little less flexibility and more backbone.” Earlier in the campaign, Romney had cited Russia as “our number one...