FPI Overnight Brief

FPI Overnight Brief

July 30, 2010

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Special Announcements

FPI seeks college juniors or seniors, graduate students, or recent graduates to work as unpaid interns at its office in downtown Washington, DC for the fall semester. For more information, and to apply, please visit FPI’s employment page.

A summary of FPI's recent young professionals event, "Internet Activists vs. Authoritarian Regimes: Who's Winning?" is available via our website. Photos from the event can also be found there, and on our Facebook page.

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Afghanistan

As part of its attempt to boost Afghanistan's economic and political development, the United States is paying thousands of Afghan contractors and subcontractors to perform much of the work that supports U.S. efforts there. But the "Afghan First" program could be achieving just the opposite of its intended effect, according to officials trying to figure out where the money is going. – Washington Post

Baghlan Province contains two of the crucial north-south routes in Afghanistan…Deprived of jobs and local government services, people here are turning to Taliban courts for speedy justice and drifting toward those who will pay them — either local strongmen or the Taliban. – New York Times

A second U.S. sailor who disappeared in eastern Afghanistan last week has been found dead. – Washington Post

A new set of Afghan counterinsurgency guidelines issued by General David Petraeus includes the instruction to "be a good guest" but urges troops to "fight hard" and get tough on corruption. - AFP

The Dutch troop deployment in Afghanistan, often held up as a model for other peace missions, ends after four years on Aug. 1 amid concerns about the void it will leave. - AFP

It may be one of the more audacious terrorist plots to be hatched in Afghanistan, but it was certainly not the most original. The same al-Qaida masterminds behind 9/11 attacks on New York and Washington planned to commit a similar attack in the capital of the country that once harboured them, according to a file among US military intelligence documents published this week by the WikiLeaks website. - Guardian

Analysis: Al Qaeda operates in conjunction with the Taliban, the Haqqani Network, and the Hizb-i-Islami Guldbuddin network throughout Afghanistan. Al Qaeda operatives often serve as embedded military trainers for Taliban field units and impart tactics and bomb-making skills to these forces. Al Qaeda often supports the Taliban by funding operations and providing weapons and other aid, according to classified military memos released by Wikileaks. This picture is vastly different from the one painted by top Obama administration intelligence officials including CIA Director Leon Panetta and Nation Counterterrorism Center Director Michal Leiter. – Long War Journal
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Wikileaks

Investigators have found concrete evidence on computers used by Pfc. Bradley Manning that link him with the leak of classified Afghanistan war reports, a U.S. defense official said. – Wall Street Journal

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates on Thursday denounced the disclosure this week of 75,000 classified documents about the Afghanistan war by the Web site WikiLeaks, asserting that the security breach had endangered lives and damaged the ability of others to trust the United States government to protect their secrets – New York Times

President Hamid Karzai said on Thursday that the disclosure of the names of Afghan informants in the trove of classified U.S. military documents posted online by the WikiLeaks Web site was "extremely irresponsible and shocking." – Washington Post

A former head of the CIA warned that government secrets pouring through WikiLeaks could sabotage the post 9-11 campaign to break down walls between rival U.S. intelligence agencies. - AFP

The FBI has been called in to help hunt those responsible for leaking tens of thousands of secret documents about the Afghanistan war. - Telegraph
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Defense

Even as political pressure grows to reduce the federal budget deficit, a blue-ribbon board led by former top national security officials called on Thursday for more spending on weapons systems – New York Times

A bipartisan, congressionally mandated defense panel on Thursday challenged the Pentagon to broaden its focus beyond counterinsurgency in Afghanistan and Iraq and expand the Navy to deal with threats from rising powers in Asia. – Washington Times

At a time of record-high military suicides, commanders are ignoring the mental health problems of American soldiers and not winnowing out enough of those with records of substance abuse and crime, a United States Army report has concluded. – New York Times

One of the most powerful panels in the House has slashed the number of pet projects in the annual Pentagon spending bill by more than half. – The Hill

Provisions in the House and Senate 2011 defense authorization bills could inadvertently increase government spending and limit competition for defense contracts, a coalition of eight trade associations warned lawmakers July 28. – Defense News

Tom Mahnken writes: The Independent Panel's report represents a striking bipartisan consensus that the United States must do more when it comes to national defense if we are to continue to play the international role we have and pursue the interests that have animated American grand strategy since the end of World War II. – Shadow Government

Max Boot writes: Defense spending is less than 4 percent of gross domestic product and less than 20 percent of the federal budget. That means our armed forces are much less costly in relative terms than they were throughout much of the 20th century. Even at roughly $549 billion, our core defense budget is eminently affordable. It is, in fact, a bargain considering the historic consequences of letting our guard down. – Washington Post
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Ideas/The War

Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich on Thursday said the greatest threat to national security is radical Islam, but the greatest battlefront for that threat is at home. – Washington Times

Emily Esfahani Smith writes: [T]here is an undeniable sexism that gnaws away at many Muslim communities—communities that center around the social space of the mosques. Whether the pray-in movement will encourage mosques to grant women more rights is yet to be determined. Until then, Ms. Thompson and Ms. Nomani are initiating a much-needed debate about the status of women in Islam. – Wall Street Journal
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New START

FPI Director Robert Kagan writes: Senators have an obligation to block a treaty that they believe may damage the national interest. And Democrats certainly have no right to lecture Republicans about supporting the president, since many of them just voted against his funding request for Afghanistan. But on this issue, Republicans can and should take the high ground and set a better standard. The treaty has its problems -- in verification, where the Russians seem never to be entirely trustworthy, as well as in counting mechanisms -- and so did the treaties negotiated by the two Bush administrations. But New START is not so badly flawed as to warrant rejection. – Washington Post
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Middle East

Gunmen launched a rare, coordinated attack on Iraqi soldiers Thursday in a predominantly Sunni neighborhood of the capital and briefly erected the flag of the insurgent group al-Qaeda in Iraq near a smoldering army checkpoint. – Washington Post

The Yemen summer has seethed with pitched battles and bloodshed, raising fears that the country will tumble into further disarray even as Washington has more than doubled its military and security aid. – Los Angeles Times

[T]he Turkish Parliament, in an attempt to alleviate rising tensions with the Kurdish minority here in the southeast, passed a bill this month reducing the sentences of hundreds of youths, 18 and younger, who had been put on trial and nicknamed the “stone-throwing kids.” – New York Times

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was expected on Friday to make his first visit to Lebanon since he pulled back his country's forces from a decadeslong occupation of the country five years ago. – Wall Street Journal

The Arabic-language newspaper Arrouiah published its last edition yesterday, becoming Kuwait’s third newspaper to close for economic reasons over the past 18 months. – The National

The Arab League on Thursday gave tentative approval for the Palestinians to begin direct peace negotiations with Israel, a decision that appeared to surprise some Palestinian leaders and boost Washington's bid to renew face-to-face talks. – Wall Street Journal

Mahmoud Abbas, the leader of the Palestinian Authority, is expected to bow to intense US pressure by agreeing to hold direct peace talks with Israel within weeks, according to western officials. - Telegraph

Gamal Mubarak, who was once considered the heir apparent to Hosni Mubarak, is seen as an increasingly unpopular choice, even by the ruling party. There is a belief that those who are of Hosni Mubarak’s generation are opposed to Gamal succeeding his father. Senior members in the army and the intelligence service do not want a non-military man in office, analysts have said. – The National
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Russia

Russia has broadened the authority of the Federal Security Service, the KGB's main successor agency, giving it Soviet-style repressive powers in a move critics say could be used to stifle protests and intimidate government opponents – Associated Press

A Russian newspaper reported July 29 that ex-Soviet Azerbaijan had bought Russian [S=300] anti-aircraft missile systems worth $300 million but Moscow denied the claim. - AFP

Kommersant editor-in-chief Mikhail Mikhailin announced Thursday that he was resigning from the Moscow police's public council because the police have failed to prosecute officers who broke a journalist's arm at an opposition rally. – Moscow Times

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China

The Obama administration has adopted a tougher tone with China in recent weeks as part of a diplomatic balancing act in which the United States welcomes China's rise in some areas but also confronts Beijing when it butts up against American interests. – Washington Post

China views the military exercises in the Sea of Japan as a threat to its territorial integrity. Beijing's indignation appears calibrated to push back at U.S. dominance in the region. – Los Angeles Times

For China’s investigative journalists, who grapple with heavy-handed censors and accusations of bribe-taking, the case of a Shanghai-based reporter appears to offer a positive turn. – New York Times

Chinese naval forces have carried out a series of drills in the South China Sea, the Defense Ministry said on Thursday, strategic waters which are disputed by a number of Southeast Asia countries - Reuters

Authorities in China's southern city of Guangzhou will punish people who try and organize any more protests in support of the Cantonese dialect, a state-run newspaper said on Friday. - Reuters

In truth, Chinese workers were never as docile as the popular caricature suggested. But the recent strikes have been unusual in their frequency (Guangdong province on China’s south coast suffered at least 36 strikes in the space of 48 days), their longevity and their targets: foreign multinationals. In truth, Chinese workers were never as docile as the popular caricature suggested. But the recent strikes have been unusual in their frequency (Guangdong province on China’s south coast suffered at least 36 strikes in the space of 48 days), their longevity and their targets: foreign multinationals. - Economist
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Koreas

An international investigative team released new details this week to bolster earlier conclusions that the South Korean warship Cheonan was sunk by a high-tech North Korean torpedo that exploded beneath the ship. – Washington Times

North Korean diplomats in Myanmar have confiscated hundreds of copies of a locally published biography on the Stalinist state's reclusive leader, Kim Jong-il, the book's author said Friday. - Reuters
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Iran

The Educational Testing Service, the company that offers the Test of English as a Foreign Language, announced Thursday that it would resume registering students for its tests inside Iran after striking a deal with a bank willing to process payments. – New York Times

Amid reports that water in parts of Tehran may be tainted with high levels of toxic nitrate, the Ministry of Power has handed out free bottles of water to an underprivileged suburb south of the city – Baghdad and Beyond

Charles Krauthammer writes: After 18 months of failed engagement, the administration is hardening its line. The hardening is already having its effect. The Iranian regime is beginning to realize that even President Obama's patience is limited -- and that Iran may actually face a reckoning for its nuclear defiance. – Washington Post

Edward J. Epstein writes: Whether the erroneous conclusions in the 2007 NIE proceeded from Iranian deception or American self-deception, they undercut the case for taking more drastic action against Tehran. To the degree that other countries believed Iran had ended its nuclear program, they had little incentive to join us in imposing further sanctions. To be sure, Iran could not conceal forever the evidence of its massive increase in uranium enrichment capabilities at Natanz, its missile testing, and its preparation of other underground facilities. In the interim, however, Iran managed to upgrade a large portion of its centrifuges and stockpile enough low-enriched uranium gas to manufacture, if it chose to further process it, the fuel for a nuclear bomb. – Wall Street Journal (subscription required)
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Lockerbie Bomber

A US senator examining the early release of the Lockerbie bomber has said he is considering sending investigators to Britain after British officials and BP executives declined to attend a hearing in Washington. - Telegraph
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Obama Administration

Josh Rogin reports: The Senate Intelligence Committee approved the nomination of James Clapper to be the next director of national intelligence by a unanimous 15-0 vote Thursday afternoon – The Cable
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South Asia

U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron wrapped up a visit to India on Thursday with one agreement on expanding cultural ties and a host of initiatives designed to propel the new "special relationship" that Britain seeks with its former colony. – Wall Street Journal

India intensified its attacks on Islamabad for harbouring terrorists as Delhi capitalised on David Cameron's warning that elements of the Pakistani state are promoting the export of terrorism. - Guardian
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Europe

Italy was in political turmoil on Friday after Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi dramatically split with his one-time most powerful center-right ally, putting the country at risk of early elections. - Reuters

British Prime Minister David Cameron has revealed a plain-speaking streak during a tour of Turkey and India that raises questions over whether it is down to youthful inexperience or a bold new approach to diplomacy. - Reuters
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Africa

Robert Mugabe's younger sister and close political ally has died following a long battle with an undisclosed illness. - Telegraph

The death toll in Somalia's long-running conflict rose in the first seven months of this year, driven up by increased shelling and fighting in the central region, a human rights group said Thursday - Reuters
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Americas

The Mexican army said Ignacio "Nacho" Coronel, believed to be a key ally of Mexico's powerful Sinaloa drug cartel, was killed Thursday during a raid in the Mexican state of Jalisco. – Wall Street Journal

The U.S. government has shut indefinitely its consulate in Mexico's most violent drug war city Ciudad Juarez, across from El Paso, Texas, to evaluate security conditions. - Reuters
Gustavo A. Flores-Macas writes: Mr. Uribe’s reforms didn’t bring the Colombian drug crisis to an end overnight. But over time, they enabled the government to get the upper hand against the cartels. And for a country as deep in crisis as Mexico, they offer a clear path forward. – New York Times

The top U.S. general in Latin America and the Caribbean said Thursday that he is closely monitoring the activities of Iran, Hezbollah, and Hamas in the region. – Washington Times

This year, U.S. Southern Command has seized 100 metric tons of cocaine, a large figure, but only half of what was captured last year, according to Air Force Gen. Douglas Fraser, who oversees SOUTHCOM. – Defense News

>From the time it goes on the air until it signs off, Globovision lets Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez have it with both barrels.– Los Angeles Times

South American foreign ministers failed to mend broken ties between Venezuela and Colombia at a meeting on Thursday but the countries agreed that irregular armed groups were hurting peace in the region. - Reuters

Cuban dissident Guillermo Farinas, whose long hunger strike helped pressure the Cuban government into releasing political prisoners, left the hospital on Thursday, not fully recovered, but ready to resume his life of opposition. - Reuters

Grammy-award winning singer Wyclef Jean said on Thursday that he has taken legal steps toward running for president in quake-devastated Haiti, but has not made a definite decision to run. - Reuters
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Sunday Shows

As of publication, This Week had announced that Defense Secretary Robert Gates will appear as a guest on the program. Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin will appear on Fox News Sunday.

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Announcements

FPI has developed Foreign Policy 2010, a briefing book available on the FPI website, which pulls together articles and op-eds from leading thinkers in each of the key foreign policy issue areas. FPI will be updating the briefing book on a regular basis throughout 2010. To suggest additional articles or content for the briefing book, please email info@foreignpolicyi.org.

If you believe in our mission and would like to support our activities, please consider making a donation to the Foreign Policy Initiative to ensure our future success.

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Events

Iraq: Current Challenges and Future Prospects
Atlantic Council
July 30

Women in Developing Countries: Sowing the Seeds for the Future
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
July 30

Challenges of Afghan Reintigration and Reconciliation
United States Institute of Peace
August 2

Long-Term Future of US-Chinese Relations (Day One)
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
August 2

Independent Panel Report on the QDR
Senate Armed Services Committee
August 3

Business Meeting - Ambassadorships
Senate Foreign Relations Committee
August 3

Robert O. Work, Undersecretary of the Navy
Center for Strategic and Internaitonal Studies
August 3

Long-Term Future of US-Chinese Relations (Day Two)
Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
August 3

Business Meeting - New START
Senate Foreign Relations Committee
August 4

The Present and Future of Cross-Strait Relations
American Enterprise Institute
August 4

India, China, and Asia's Growing Presence in the Middle East
Middle East Institute
August 4

Kosovo: What Next?
United States Institute of Peace
August 4

Homeland Security 2020: Maritime Security
Heritage Foundation
August 23

Homeland Security 2020: Science and Technology
Heritage Foundation
August 24

The Economic Element of National Power
Institute for National Security Studies
August 24-25

Homeland Security 2020: Working with the Private Sector
Heritage Foundation
August 25

Homeland Security 2020: Cybersecurity
Heritage Foundation
August 26

Previewing the September 26 Venezuelan Elections
Hudson Institute
September 15

Nuclear Terrorism: Strengthening our Domestic Defenses (part II)
Senate Homeland Security and Government Oversight Committee
September 22
The Overnight Brief is a daily product of the Foreign Policy Initiative, which seeks to promote an active U.S. foreign policy committed to robust support for democratic allies, human rights, a strong American military equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century, and strengthening America's global economic competitiveness. To submit comments or suggestions, email overnight@foreignpolicyi.org.

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