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Creative diplomacy needed as conflict in Syria threatens its neighbors

A rebel fighter fires an anti-aircraft gun during a regime airstrike on Tel Rafat, a village north of Aleppo.  /Reuters

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Decrying a rising death toll and an escalation of violence, the UN General Assembly overwhelmingly called yet again for progress towards a political transition to defuse Syria’s civil war, now in its third year. Though the resolution strongly condemns the Syrian government of Bashar Assad for its increased use [...]

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Bamboozled: Getting to the foggy bottom of Benghazi

U.S. Foreign Service officer Gregory Hicks.

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Speaking before delegates at last Autumn’s General Assembly, President Barack Obama eloquently stated “I would like to begin today by telling you about an American named Chris Stevens.” The President passionately described the unfailing commitment, selfless sacrifice and sense of duty of the fallen Ambassador Chris Stevens who along [...]

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What will Obama, the ‘peace candidate’, do about Syria?

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John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Has Syria crossed the “red line” which the Obama administration warned about should there be any use of chemical weapons in the conflict? Yes, No, Maybe so. But even if there was an apparently limited albeit brutal use of the nerve agents, does this automatically justify the “game changer” [...]

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Asia joins world economy’s new normal as China loses its edge

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John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — “Asia Pacific economic economies will see subdued growth in 2013 after last year’s sharp slowdown caused by external factors,” is the prognosis from a recent UN survey. “Economic growth in the developing countries of Asia and the Pacific slowed to 5.5 percent in 2012 as a result of the [...]

Posted in BB Columnists,BB NORTH EAST ASIA,China,Columnists,COMMENTARY,Exclusives,Indonesia,John Metzler,NE Asia,Newsletter,Philippines,Stateside,Top Stories,U.S. Economy,United Nations | Read More »

Transatlantic trade called win-win growth formula for USA and Europe

Jose Manuel Barroso.

John J. Metzler NEW YORK — “Trade is the cheapest way to produce growth,” exclaimed European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso before an executive audience adding, that a planned Transatlantic trade pact between the USA and Europe Union would produce a “win-win solution in trade” for both sides of the Atlantic. “Our partnership,” stated President [...]

Posted in Africa / Europe,Columnists,COMMENTARY,Exclusives,Germany,John Metzler,Life,Newsletter,Stateside,Top Stories,U.S. Economy | Read More »

Margaret Thatcher actually stood for something

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John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — Margaret Thatcher, the British Conservative Prime Minister, between 1979-1990, was a Revolutionary. As the first female Prime Minister she emerged as a truly transformational figure both on the domestic and foreign front and soon challenged the entrenched interests with a stance that promoted freedom and economic liberty. She stood [...]

Posted in Africa / Europe,Columnists,COMMENTARY,England,Exclusives,John Metzler,Life,Newsletter,Stateside,Top Stories,U.S. Politics | Read More »

Korean Vortex: Reading the tea leaves

Uneasy times for all Koreans, South and North (above in Pyongyang).  /David Guttenfelder/AP

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The increasingly ballistic bluster pouring out from Pyongyang and threatening South Korea, Japan and the USA, with nuclear attacks has jolted East Asia into “paying attention.” Perhaps that’s the real intent of Kim Jong-Un, the new and untested Marxist monarch of the quaintly titled “Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.” [...]

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After Arab Spring, Easter hope but mainly fear

Coptic Christians protest in Cairo, Egypt.  /Tahsin Bakr/Demotix

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — The winds of change continue to swirl throughout the Middle East as the region enters the third year of the socio/political phenomenon optimistically dubbed as the Arab Spring. While political scientists debate the ebb and flow of freedoms and anarchy in the region ranging from Egypt to Libya and [...]

Posted in Columnists,COMMENTARY,Egypt,Exclusives,John Metzler,Life,Mideast,Newsletter,Syria,Top Stories,United Nations | Read More »

UN survey cites rise of the Global South

Brazil's economy is now bigger than Great Britain's.  /Felipe Dana/AP

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — “The rise of the South is unprecedented in its speed and scale…when dozens of countries and billions of people move up the development ladder as they are doing today, it has a direct impact on wealth creation and broader human progress,” cites the glowing introduction to the UN Development [...]

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Pyongyang’s communist prince plays with fire while his people endure a totalitarian hell

Dennis Rodman hugs "awesome guy" Kim Jong Un.  /KCNA/Reuters

John J. Metzler UNITED NATIONS — When the Security Council passed a package of uncharacteristically tough sanctions on North Korea over the communist regime’s nuclear weapons tests and missile proliferation, the Pyongyang leadership went rhetorically ballistic. Pyongyang’s pro forma rants and raves towards South Korea and the United States were notched up to include scrapping [...]

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