Palestine & UN bidPalestine state?Arab spring
  • The US and the EU should support the Palestinian bid for UN membership
    Insight by Clara Marina O'Donnell, 25 August 2011
    The US and the EU should support the Palestinian bid for UN membership
  • Palestinian reconciliation is an opportunity for peace
    Bulletin article by Clara Marina O'Donnell, 01 June 2011
    Palestinian reconciliation is an opportunity for peace
  • Can the Arab spring bring peace to the Middle East?
    Insight by Clara Marina O'Donnell, 21 April 2011
  • Europe's External Action Service: Ten steps towards a credible EU foreign policy
    Policy brief by Edward Burke, 04 July 2012

    The EU's new diplomatic service has been widely criticised. Although the EEAS has achieved more than many acknowledge, it can still do a lot better.
  • 'One blood and one destiny?' Yemen's relations with the Gulf Co-operation Council
    Opinion piece by Edward Burke
    London School of Economics & Political Science, 20 June 2012

    For years Yemen has been the poor, neglected relation of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). Long-promised aid commitments from the GCC have not materialized because of concerns over Yemeni absorption capacity.

  • Let Russia show the way on Syria
    Opinion piece by Edward Burke
    The New York Times, 11 June 2012

    Like him or loathe him over his stance on Syria, Russia’s foreign minister, Sergey Lavrov, is a better diplomat than most. Experience counts, and Lavrov has spent almost three decades at the United Nations.
  • Time for France to take the lead on Syria
    Bulletin article by Edward Burke, 25 May 2012

    Western policy towards Syria is a mess and needs to be rethought before it is too late. Lebanon is sliding into conflict and jihadist and other extremist groups have increased their presence in both countries.
  • Why closing the Irish embassy in Tehran is a mistake
    Opinion piece by Edward Burke
    Politico, 24 April 2012

    The recent furore over the closure of closure of the Irish Embassy to the Vatican drowned out any discussion over the withdrawal of other embassies, including that in Tehran last month. Almost unnoticed, Iran has been lumped in with Timor Leste as one of two other Irish diplomatic missions that is surplus to requirements.
  • A new political bargain in Afghanistan
    Bulletin article by Edward Burke, 26 March 2012

    Reports by official US agencies, such as the Government Accountability Office, make it crystal clear: the Afghan government is stealing money from the international community and from the Afghan people, on an alarming scale. US and European officials in Kabul are dismayed but seem paralysed: their response is to vow to ‘stay the course’.
  • The power balance in Afghanistan
    Opinion piece by Edward Burke
    The Times, 09 March 2012

    Letter to the editor (The Times)Sir, You say that the situation in Afghanistan is "not chaos" [see leading article 8 March 2012]. This assertion does not ring true.
  • Le veto russe sur la Syrie n’est pas injustifié
    Opinion piece by Edward Burke
    Le Temps, 28 February 2012

    Sans doute Moscou fait-il de la realpolitik en s’opposant à un projet de résolution du Conseil de sécurité exigeant le départ de Bachar el-Assad. Toutefois, la diplomatie russe a raison de penser qu’un tel texte serait intenable.