I'm unlikely to provide much in the way of news aggregation on the South Ossetian conflict tonight, so I wanted to make sure that I mentioned something about the Russian coverage of the conflict. If you're only reading the "western press," you may not be adequately...
As with the USG's interpolation of the term "torture," I am worried about the use of the term "peacekeeper" at foot in the war of words between Georgia and Russia, a misleading use with which the...
[This post includes a quick roundup of events and ends with some analysis; see also Rob Farley's morning summary of developments]Georgia has now declared a "state of war." This seems appropriate, as...
Rob Farley writes a very thoughtful post where he lays out his take, for the moment, on the Russia-Georgia conflict. Indeed, he leaves me feeling a bit embarrassed, as my own writing this afternoon...
The 2008 Summer Olympic games kicked off today in Beijing, on the same day as Russia and Georgia go to war. Correlation? Causation?John Hoberman's "Think Again" article in the most recent issue of Foreign Policy would have us believe that the Olympics are not only irrelevant to, but actually bad for world order and international cooperation: "The real genius of the IOC is its ability to create and sustain the myth that it promotes peace. In reality... trapped by its grandiose goal of embracing the entire 'human family' at whatever cost, the IOC has repeatedly caved in and awarded the games...
This semester, I will be ocassionally cross-posting / guest blogging on laws of war-related topics at Complex Terrain Lab, and wanted to encourage readers of The Duck to take a good hard look at these folks. From the mission statement: "The Complex Terrain Laboratory (CTLab) is an independent, interdisciplinary project focused on problems of international relations, international law, and political violence. Founded in the School of Public Policy at University College London, CTLab concerns itself with the conceptual and social science dimensions of legal and policy challenges in current...
The first official U.S. statement on the escalating conflict backs Georgia and calls for cease fire:"We call on Russia to cease attacks on Georgia by aircraft and missiles, respect Georgia's territorial integrity, and withdraw its ground combat forces from Georgian soil," U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said in a statement.Rice issued her statement as Georgia, a former Soviet state that now wants to join NATO, said it would declare martial law and battled to get control of the rebel enclave, which was fortified by Russian forces.Georgia said Russian fighter jets bombed container...