Roberto Abraham Scaruffi

March 1, 2012 | View Online
	Time for Afghan Political Settlement Talks Reinvigorated Diplomatic Efforts with All Parties to the Conflict Is Needed By Colin Cookman, Caroline Wadhams Violent protests in Afghanistan over the past week in reaction to the burning of Korans at Bagram Air Base have, as of this writing, claimed the lives of more than 30 Afghans and six U.S. military personnel around the country. These protests also exposed the vulnerabilities of the current U.S. and NATO strategy and reinforced the importance of pursuing a political settlement strategy in close synchronization with military and economic efforts. Read more here. Rebuilding the Syrian Economy After Assad Looking Ahead to What Must Be Done By Jordan Bernhardt Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s murderous regime could collapse tomorrow or continue with its violent suppression of its people for months or years to come. Either way, the country’s economy is in shambles and will only get worse as Syrians bravely take to the streets to claim their political rights and as the international community imposes more economic sanctions. The European Union, members of the Arab League, and the United States have all imposed sanctions, with President Barack Obama adding his voice to the growing consensus that the Syrian leader must go. Predicting how quickly pressure on Assad at home and abroad might result in his downfall is a fool’s errand, but it is not too early to start thinking about what might help Syria’s economy recover after Assad.		Can the U.S.-Russia 'Reset' Survive Russia’s Presidential Election? It May Be Hard, but Cooperation With Russia Still Has Its Benefits By Cory Welt Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin is poised to win the Russian presidential election this Sunday despite the rise of an unprecedented protest movement against him. The prospect of Putin’s return to the post he occupied from 2000 to 2008 has already exacerbated emerging strains in the U.S.-Russia relationship. A Putin victory will not necessarily spell an end to the reset in U.S.-Russia relations that began under Presidents Barack Obama and Dmitri Medvedev. Besides strategic benefits, the case for maintaining the reset is bolstered by the rise of a new constituency for democratic change in Russia that also stands to benefit from sustained U.S.-Russia cooperation. Read more here.