Jordan seeks China's help for nascent nuke program...;
...and opens a long-closed door to Hamas;
Extremists unite in Lebanon;
Syria's quest for long-range missiles denied;
Through Venezuela, Iran enters America's backyard
Waiting for the Mahdi;
Band-aids over bleeding economic wounds;
More nuclear movement in Tehran;
Bad behavior in Iraq
Romantic nationalism has been a curse in many countries in the past century, notably in 1990s Serbia. Now, Georgia pays the price. Most commentaries on the South Ossetia conflict describe this dispute as starting in 1992, with the Russian-imposed no-war, no-peace status quo destroyed by the recent fighting. This is comparable to discussing the Cyprus problem only from the 1974 Turkish invasion. History matters, and nowhere more so than in ethnic disputes.
Khodorkovsky denied early parole;
Russia rethinks the WTO
Beijing tightens noose around Uighurs ahead of Games;
Chinese interest in Burmese islands spooks India