And the Abuse Keeps Coming

Interpol Abuse By Palestinian Authority And Others Shows Strengths And Weaknesses Of The System, Forbes, May 31, 2019. "Over the past few days, four cases of Interpol abuse, or attempted abuse, have demonstrated several of the weaknesses, and strengths, of the Interpol system. Interpol is supposed to be limited to ordinary crime. Interpol abuse happens when it is used for political, racial, religious, or military purposes."

Yet Again, No Definitions . . . .

Alleged Russian Violations Of Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty Make New Case For U.S. Withdrawal, Forbes, May 30, 2019. "It is impossible to say for certain whether or not Russia is violating the CTBT because while the CTBT bans explosive nuclear testing, it does not define that term. The U.S. interpretation is that the CTBT bans testing to a “zero yield” standard – because the CTBT bans “any nuclear weapon test explosion or any other nuclear explosion” -- but that is only the U.S. interpretation."

The Dull Side of International Relations

Treaties in the Age of Donald Trump, Newsday, May 28, 2019. "When President Donald Trump said last month that the United States was dropping out of the arms trade treaty, The Washington Post sighed that it was “the latest illustration of his aversion to international agreements and world governance.” Obviously, Trump doesn’t like some treaties. But would it surprise you to learn that he’s approved only one fewer treaty in his first two years than President Barack Obama did in his last two?"

Good Riddance

Prime Minister Theresa May to Resign, Daily Signal, May 24, 2019. "The reason for May’s fall is simple. She was given responsibility for negotiating Britain’s exit from the European Union, and she made a mess of it by arriving at an agreement that virtually no one in Britain likes. Her efforts to pass the agreement ended up trying to cut a deal with Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of the Labour Party and deeply despised by Conservative voters."

Bound to Vagueness

Trump’s Rejection of the Arms Trade Treaty is Based on Reality, The Hill, May 23,2019. "Why is the treaty so vague? The ATT’s negotiators wanted to get all the world’s nations on board. The only way to do this was to make the treaty as vague as possible. But treaties are contracts that bind the United States. Being bound to vagueness is inherently dangerous."

A Tip For the British Conservatives

In Australia, Conservatives Won A Shock Victory. There’s A Lesson Here for Conservatives Worldwide, Daily Signal, May 22, 2019. "Here’s a tip for our British Conservative friends: Conservative parties that do conservative things win elections. Conservative parties that don’t do them, or don’t know what to do, don’t win elections."

How to Keep Winning on the ATT

Key Steps for the U.S. After the Unsigning of the Arms Trade Treaty, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #4963, May 22, 2019. "President Trump’s decision to unsign the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT) is legal, correct, and wise. The Administration should now take the steps necessary to make this decision fully effective. By following through at the United Nations and in the U.S. Senate, putting financial and diplomatic pressure on the ATT, and withdrawing from the U.N. network of related institutions, the U.S. can put severe pressure on this severely flawed agreement."

Above All, A US-UK FTA

Six Key Priorities for President Trump’s State Visit to the United Kingdom, with Nile Gardiner, Heritage Foundation Issue Brief #4962, May 22, 2019. "President Trump’s state visit to the United Kingdom from June 3 to 5, 2019, offers a vital opportunity to strengthen the Special Relationship and transatlantic alliance, advance U.S. leadership in Europe, reaffirm powerful U.S. backing for Brexit, and underscore that a U.S.–U.K. free trade deal will be a top priority for the U.S. Administration post-Brexit. The President should emphasize plain speaking and serious actions. Above all, he must make it clear to the next British government and to the British people that an independent and sovereign Britain will continue to be the United States’ closest ally."

Cowling Redux

Fearful Levity, review of Robert Crowcroft, The End is Nigh: British Politics, Power, and the Road to the Second World War, Finest Hour, Number 184, Spring 2019.

A Tail Is Not A Leg

Debate: Is An EU Army Possible?, Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies, May 20, 2019. "In 1862, Abraham Lincoln asked, “If I should call a sheep’s tail a leg, how many legs would it have?” His wise answer: the sheep still has only four legs, “for my calling the tail a leg would not make it so.” So yes, Europe can have an army. But calling a thing an army does not make it one."

Step One . . .

Want Populism? Here’s How to Get It, Newsday, May 12, 2019. "Earlier this month, Britain went to the polls in local elections. So far, it’s been immune to the electoral turmoil that has affected Europe from Greece to France. But not this time. The British elections show that a simple way to create a political disaster is for the major parties to not keep their word."

The Facts of the Special Relationship

Pompeo Sends the Message Britain Needs to Hear, Daily Signal, May 9, 2019. "The essence of Pompeo’s remarks was that Britain is a great and global power, with which the United States enjoys a special relationship—and that it needs to remember that. Throughout, the secretary was careful not to fall into the trap of telling Britain what to do. Instead, he reminded it of its strengths, its interests, and its friends, and left Britain to draw the correct conclusions."

Neither the Power Nor the Glory

The End Of The Arms Trade Treaty, An End To Illusion, Forbes, May 7, 2019. "The Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which President Donald Trump announced on April 26 that he would unsigned, is fundamentally unserious. It embodies the fantasy that the path to a better world rests in the piling up of unverifiable promises. Its illusions are a distraction from the problem it purportedly seeks to solve."