The Hagel Nomination and the Dangerous Folly of “Global Zero”
North Korea’s third nuclear test and inflammatory YouTube threats against President Obama and American troops have placed the nuclear debate front and center in the… Read More
Missile Defense Tests Successful, but Future of Program in Doubt
In an area of the Pacific Ocean near Hawaii on February 12, 2013, the Navy and Missile Defense Agency conducted a successful intercept test of… Read More
Russia: Putin Loyalist Going Down in Flames
Vladimir Pekhtin, chairman of the Duma Ethics Committee, hid undisclosed luxury properties in Florida valued at nearly $2 million while proclaiming his anti-American credentials, according… Read More
Declining Economic Freedom and Growing Statism: The BRICs Are Hitting the Wall
Economist Nouriel Roubini warned late last month at the World Economic Forum that economic growth in the so-called BRIC countries (Brazil, Russia, India, and China)… Read More
Russian “Grandma of Human Rights” Nominated for Nobel Prize
This week, Senator Benjamin Cardin (D–MD) nominated the “grandma” of the Russian human rights movement, Lyudmila Alekseeva, for the 2013 Nobel Peace Prize. Cardin’s nomination… Read More
Russia’s Throwback Anti-Americanism
Russian President Vladimir Putin’s approval rating is at 62 percent, its “lowest in more than 12 years,” according to Russian survey group Levada. While 62… Read More
News
John Kerry at State Department: Good for Obama, Not America
The good news for the Obama Administration is that its next Secretary of State, Senator John Kerry (D–MA), had the smoothest of sailing during yesterday’s… Read More
Obama Inauguration Speech: Ignoring Problems Does Not Make Them Go Away
Not to rain on President Obama’s parade, but the world is a dangerous place. America cannot afford to place “hope” above reality when it comes… Read More
Senator Jim DeMint: Missile Defense Works
What do welfare reform and missile defense have in common? Both were gutted under the Obama Administration, says Senator Jim DeMint, who will become Heritage’s… Read More
Russian Orphan Adoption Ban Protests May Be Harbingers of Instability
On Sunday, the Russian New Year’s Eve (in the old-style Julian calendar), tens of thousands of Muscovites poured into the city center to protest the… Read More
Russia Sails New Nuclear Submarine While U.S. Continues Fleet Delays
Last week, after long delays, Russia made operational a new ballistic missile submarine (SSBN), or nuclear submarine, for the first time in over 20 years…. Read More
By Banning U.S. Adoption of Russian Orphans, Russia Shot Itself in the Foot
Last week, the U.S. Senate unanimously condemned Russia’s new draconian law—whose victims are Russian orphans and Russian democracy. Around Christmas last year, the Russian Duma… Read More
President Obama Should Not Unilaterally Reduce U.S. Nuclear Arsenal
Recently, the Obama Administration has come under fire for potentially making unilateral cuts to the United States nuclear arsenal. Such unilateral cuts were proposed in… Read More
Kerry in Spotlight; Hot Issues Remain for Next Secretary of State
Last week, embattled U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice took herself out of the running for Secretary of State as Hillary Clinton’s successor. It did not take… Read More
Pearl Harbor: Lessons for Missile Defense Today
On this day 71 years ago, the U.S. was attacked by the Empire of Japan. At the time, U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared it… Read More
A Rare Showing of Bipartisanship
Yesterday, in a rare showing of bipartisanship, the lame-duck Senate passed the Russia and Moldova Jackson–Vanik Repeal Act of 2012 by a vote of 92–4…. Read More
Crucial Vote Today on Human Rights Bill
Today, the lame-duck Senate is considering the Russia and Moldova Jackson–Vanik Repeal Act of 2012. The bill’s language contains the language known as the Magnitsky… Read More
Normal Trade Relations with Russia: We’re Almost There
On August 22, after almost 20 years of negotiations, Russia became the 156th member of World Trade Organization (WTO). Regrettably for the U.S., Russia has… Read More
EconomyNews
Morning Bell: The Danger of International Internet Regulation
Regulating the Internet is something Americans have resisted here at home. Now that fight is going global. The United Nations—of course—has an agency that oversees… Read More
Magnitsky Act Promises to Punish Human Rights Abuse, Open Trade
Last Thursday, the House of Representatives passed a bill that included language—called the Magnitsky Act—that for the first time punishes Russian officials implicated in serious… Read More
The Sergei Magnitsky Act and Human Rights
Senators Ben Cardin (D–MD) and Jon Kyl (R–AZ) have joined together to sponsor a modern piece of human rights legislation, the Sergei Magnitsky Rule of… Read More
Russia Demands U.S. Flexibility on Missile Defense
Following the U.S. presidential election, Russia’s Deputy Prime Minister Dmitry Rogozin has demanded that President Obama makes good on his “flexibility” comment from March. “We… Read More
Russia Trade Bill Provides Opportunity for Bipartisanship
Elected officials will face many contentious issues affecting economic and foreign policy during the upcoming lame-duck session of Congress and heading into 2013. However, one… Read More
The Downfall of Russia’s Defense Minister
On November 6, Russian President Vladimir Putin sacked Defense Minister Anatoly E. Serdyukov, who has held the post since 2007. Serdyukov had overseen the largest… Read More
New Targeting Missile Would Knock Out Enemy’s Electronics
On October 16, Boeing and the U.S. Air Force made history when they successfully test-launched a new missile with the capability of remotely disrupting or… Read More
Russia Ramps Up Missile Tests
Russian President Vladimir Putin recently oversaw a strategic exercise—including a series of coordinated missile tests—that drew on Russia’s nuclear “triad” (bombers, intercontinental-range ballistic missiles [ICBMs],… Read More
New Georgian PM: Promote Economic Freedom, Not the Statism You Learned in Russia
Former AC Milan star Kakha Kaladze is more than comfortable on the soccer pitch, where he played for 10 years as one of the club’s… Read More
Anti-Terrorism Operation in North Caucasus Exposes Russia’s Vulnerabilities
ST. PETERSBURG, RUSSIA — The Kremlin’s control over the North Caucasus region has come under scrutiny as a massive counterterrorism operation in the area got… Read More
Efforts to Stall Fighting in Syria for Muslim Holiday Implausible
The efforts of United Nations envoy Lakhdar Brahimi to negotiate a ceasefire between the Syrian military and rebels for the Arab holiday Eid al-Adha are… Read More
Russia Draws a Veil over Its Weapons Program
On Wednesday, the Russian government said it will not seek to extend the Nunn–Lugar program after the program expires next year. The Nunn–Lugar program has… Read More
