Posted in Asia, Indonesia, Southeast Asia, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged Bush, Indonesia, Obama, Obama's Indonesia Policy, Southeast Asia on July 17, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Jakarta Globe, July 17, 2009
Six months into US President Barack Obama’s tenure, his administration has indicated an interest to enter into a “comprehensive partnership” with Indonesia, forge better relations with the Muslim world and reassert America’s commitment to Southeast Asia. The policies — all relevant to Indonesia — appear worthwhile enough, but the Obama administration’s self-adulation in pursuing them is not.
Posted in Asia, China, Democratization, Freedom, Trade and Business, U.S. Foreign Policy, tagged Asia, Bush, China, economic freedom, freedom agenda, Vietnam on August 1, 2008 | Leave a Comment »
Wall Street Journal Asia, August 1-3, 2008
No recent American President has promised to do more to combat repression than President George W. Bush. In his second inaugural address in January 2005, he pledged the United States to the goal of ending tyranny in the 21st century. His freedom agenda, formulated in the wake of the terrorist attacks of 9/11, seeks to combat not just Islamic extremism but also all states that keep their people unfree.
But today, nearing the end of its second and last term, the Bush administration struggles with the promotion of democracy in Iraq and Afghanistan, proud of notable accomplishments but chastened by the tragic sacrifices exacted and the slow and sometimes uneven progress. And the freedom agenda has remained notably hapless before challenges that lie outside the terror orbit, in particular in countries that pursue economic liberalization while stifling political reforms.
