International Affairs

There's a buzz about Vietnam, and I'm not talking about the 24 million moped engines. Vietnam is hot, and the word is spreading fast. Continuing my tour of Southeast Asia en route to the Olympics, I see a country that's vibrant and pushing itself to become an open-market economy. Ho Chi Minh wouldn't recognize it.

Three decades ago, devastated by war, it was one of the world's poorest countries. Today, it's one of the biggest exporters of farm produce and the site of a flood of foreign investment — Intel will soon be opening a $1 billion microchip factory here. Read more...

Thailand and Cambodia are once again disputing 1.8 square miles of land that surround the Preah Vihear temple, a spectacular Hindu shrine that was built in the 11th century. The conflict has been all over the news, and it got so serious at one point that the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) stepped in to try to cool things down.

It's a good thing that Condoleezza Rice was on hand to inject some sense into the discussions. Cambodia wanted to get the U.N. involved, but she insisted that there was no need to bring in a third party. The leaders at the ASEAN summit listened to her. They respect her and trust her judgment. The U.N. issues a lot of nice rhetoric but rarely gets the job done when it comes to defending peace and security. Cambodia's no longer appealing to the U.N., and it looks like the border dispute may begin to cool down a little bit. Read more...

The more time I spend in Asia, the more I come to respect its people. They get what America's about — we're not perfect, but we're the best hope for the world. They want us to lead.

The United States doesn't have too many friends these days, in large part because the burdens that it shoulders aren't appreciated. This is particularly true of the Europeans — they bash us when we take steps that they don't like, and then they beg us to assume leadership roles when they can't. When I talked with Condoleezza Rice a few weeks ago, she told me, "Not a day goes by that I'm not asked to take a leadership role in everything from development aid to microfinance to education for women." If we're so bad, and Bush has done so much damage, why is she constantly being asked to have us lead? Read more...

I'm taking a breathtaking tour of Southeast Asia en route to Beijing for the upcoming Olympic Games. The Thais and Laotians are in awe of the United States. They want to emulate us in all respects — fashion, movies, trade, you name it — and be a player on the global stage. They may not support the war in Iraq or other foreign policies of ours, but they look to us for leadership.

That's why they care so much about our elections — their economic future, in large part, rests on what our next president does or doesn't do. Everyone here knows who Obama and McCain are. When we go out to eat, our waiters ask in halting English — but English nonetheless — what we think about the candidates. They like Obama, but worry that he's inexperienced. They like McCain, and it seems like they feel some sort of kinship with him because he has spent so much time in this part of the world. Read more...

I can’t get over the media circus surrounding Sen. Barack Obama’s (D-Ill.) trip to Afghanistan and Iraq. Never mind that Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) didn’t even whiff the rarified air of the network anchors on his multiple trips overseas. We’ll just chalk that up to another instance of media bias. But something deeper is being established here.

Apparently, Obama’s handlers have deluded themselves into believing their guy can transform into some über-diplomat simply by visiting the country for a few hours. Need to burnish some foreign policy credentials for your presidential campaign? No problem, just hit the road to the remotest regions of the world and voilà — instant international policy expert. Read more...

As I have said so many times you are already bored by it, Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) is one lucky dog.

Surviving four airplane crashes, one could argue, might be a sign that luck may soon run out. But as he continues his unlikely quest for the White House, the candidate left for dead a year ago and hampered anew with campaign troubles managed to catch a break overseas. McCain, lucky coins in his pockets to be sure, happened to be in Colombia when hostages captured by the FARC were rescued by the government. Read more...

PARIS — The Europeans are having trouble integrating their minority immigrant population.

It varies from country to country, but they don't seem to do nearly as well as the U.S., and their explanation is that, of course, we are a country of immigrants. However, the issue is more complex than that — for example, the French phrase for “affirmative action” is “positive discrimination.” This description provides an illustration of their attitude toward their minority population.

Ironically, the European elite would like nothing more than the defeat of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) in November. The reason being, no black politician could ever be so fortunate in any European country. An Obama victory would seriously force these hypocrites to re-examine their immigrant policies and give rise to stronger minority demands and movements throughout Europe. Read more...

Can someone tell me why the United States is providing Iraq with its national defense and not seeking compensation for these services from the country’s sizable oil profits?

The United States has gone into deep debt to provide Iraq with a military police and with instructors to its own local defense mechanisms. At the same time, I understand Iraq is making many millions of dollars of profit each month from its oil sales. Read more...

As I sat watching the kids from the Catholic school and the kids from the mostly Protestant public school sing together today in East Belfast, Northern Ireland, I was struck by how they pretty much all looked to be brothers and sisters. They all had the same freckle-faced fair complexion. “I bet their parents and grandparents pretty much looked the same as well when they were that age,” I thought to myself as the Protestant kids beat on some drums at the end of the recital.

I am in Belfast today as a member of the Board of Cooperation Ireland (CI for short). CI funds projects dedicated to building a sustainable peace between the nationalist and loyalist communities in the north of Ireland. Belfast is a far different community than it was in 1985, when I first visited the city torn asunder by religious hatred.

The scars seem, from the outside, to be mostly healed. The politicians have declared that peace has arrived. For the sake of the fine people of this lovely province, I certainly hope they are right. Read more...

My friend Jack Cafferty is up to his ears in hassle from China. As we know, he called that nation's leaders "a bunch goons and thugs,” which has caused all manner of outrage, real or contrived. It has come from citizens of that communist country and others who have been recruited to apply as much intimidation as they can. After all, they have the Olympics coming up. Any dissent must be eliminated at home or abroad. Beijing cannot tolerate any such impudence; nor can the trembling corporations in this country, which want to keep the profits flowing when they look the other way.

Jack cited a number of reasons for his provocative-as-always tirade — from deadly products China has imported to the United States to the brutally repressive actions taken by the iron rulers in Beijing. Read more...