On Law, Policy, and (Not) Bombing Syria0

• Analysis
• September 3, 2013

Ian Hurd is an Associate Professor of Political Science at Northwestern University

The debate sparked by Syria’s chemical weapons attack includes at least three separate controversies: 1) which (if any) international legal instruments govern Syria’s use of chemical weapons; 2) …

Indecent Proposals: Why the Fraser Institute is Wrong on Immigration0

• Analysis
• September 3, 2013

Published September 9, 2013 on the Broadbent Blog

My best guess is that the Fraser Institute expects no one to read the report behind their newest sensationalist press release, in which they claim that the cost of immigrants to Canada …

Ready for Another Great Season at CIPS0

• Analysis
• September 3, 2013

We’ve been working hard to prepare an excellent series of fall events at CIPS. Here are a few highlights:

• Next week, CIPS will present talks by the celebrated Pakistani journalist and author Ahmed Rashid, and by one of the

Looking Back at Kosovo Can Move the Syria Conflict Forward0

• Analysis
• August 29, 2013

By Allan Rock and Lloyd Axworthy

Published in the Globe and Mail, August 26, 2013

President Obama seems finally ready to engage in Syria with more than hollow rhetoric. Sadly, this comes after more than 100,000 deaths, two million …

The ‘Rouhani Moment’ in Iran0

• Analysis
• August 14, 2013

Published on the IISS blog Politics and Strategy, August 14, 2013

Amid the relief, if not the fanfare, which has greeted Hassan Rouhani’s surprise election as President of the Islamic Republic of Iran, one hears a constant strain of …

There is No ‘Sacred Duty’ to Canada’s Veterans0

• Analysis
• August 6, 2013

Published in the Ottawa Citizen, Aug. 5, 2013

Seriously wounded soldiers should enjoy no special status or privilege with regard to medical care,” writes Michael Gross of Haifa University, who is probably the world’s leading authority on military medical …

‘Shocked and Appalled’: Responses to an Op-Ed0

• Analysis
• August 2, 2013

As a writer of opinion pieces, I am used to receiving messages about them. Most are negative; people who agree with you are less likely to take the time to write something than those who don’t. But that’s OK. The …

Oversell but Underperform? The Increasingly Troubled Legacy of the ICTY0

• Analysis
• July 17, 2013

Once again, transitional justice-watchers are enthralled with the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY). After dishing out one controversial acquittal after another for months, the tribunal is now embroiled in a bona fide scandal.  It involves a major …

Corruption in Africa, Corruption in Canada: Different Scale, Same Problem0

• Analysis
• July 2, 2013

Published in the Globe and Mail, July 1, 2013

The trip to East Africa with an attempt to climb Mount Kilimanjaro was a check off my bucket list. But the professional lessons I learned from that trip were also …

Peace Talks in Doha: A Reality Check0

• Analysis
• July 2, 2013

Last week, White House officials announced that the U.S. and the Taliban would start peace talks in the reopened Doha office of the Taliban. The announcement made headlines around the world, nurturing hopes that the protracted conflict in Afghanistan may …