The shift from a permanent war footing to permanent diplomacy has significant promise for prosperity as well as peace.
A new index from the Institute for Economics and Peace confirms common sense: prosperity follows peace. (Photo: Maxime Bonzi / Flickr)
February 7, 2014 - World news headlines over the last few months have featured more diplomatic initiatives than body counts.
Ongoing conflicts in Syria, Egypt, Central African Republic, and elsewhere still provide violence vultures with ample stories. But high-stakes negotiations with Iran, Israel and Palestine, and even South Sudan have become dramatic, and drama makes news. Furthermore, against the urging of a few hawks, the United States is not sending troops with guns and bombs to intervene whenever and wherever trouble emerges. In his State of the Union address, President Obama spoke of ending wars, not starting new ones, and he insisted on the primacy of diplomacy to avert violence and build a safe and secure future.
Preference for diplomacy over military action should be self-evident, but not for everyone. read more>>>
February 6, 2014 - The Obama administration’s pledge to restrain the global arms trade doesn't square with its aggressive promotion of U.S. arms exports.
The United States is far and away the world’s leading arms trafficking nation, with $60 billion in arms transfer agreements last year alone.
In 2011, the last year for which full global statistics are available, U.S. companies and the U.S. government controlled over three-quarters of the international weapons trade.
The Obama administration is proud of its accomplishments on this front and regularly touts the role of U.S. officials — from embassy personnel on up to the president himself — in promoting U.S. arms sales.
Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Political-Military Affairs Tom Kelly underscored this point in April 2013 testimony to Congress: read more>>>
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