U.S. food aid system antiquated and inefficient

The United States, a country with so much abundance, cannot sit back as impoverished nations suffer from high food prices, said John Hamre, President and CEO of The Center for Strategic and International Studies.

J. Stephen Morrison, Co-Director of the CSIS Task Force on the Global Food Crisis, listed several steps to a pragmatic policy for bipartisan efforts against poverty. He said the emergency response system must be modernized, and monetary commitments doubled. He said rural agriculture must be supported as well. Also, approaches to fuel security must be clarified as well as U.S. trade policy adjusted to support third world capabilities.

Senator Robert Casey (D-Pa.) said the gravity of the world food crisis cannot be overstated. He said the current U.S. food assistance program is antiquated, costly, and inefficient, sometimes taking as long as six months for aid delivery. He plans to work on new development legislation to double the U.S. food assistance commitment. Senator Richard Lugar (R-Ind.) emphasized the potential of genetically modified foods in the fight against rising food costs. He said undeveloped countries are starved of both food and science. The 40countries threatened by food shortages do not use genetically modified foods, and in some cases reject genetically modified food aid.

The "poorly understood" religious leader Muqtada

At the Center for Strategic and International Studies Nadia Bilbassy-Charters held a discussion with Patrick Cockburn, the author of “Muqtada: Muqtada al-Sadr, the Shia Revival, and the Struggle for Iraq.” Bilbassy-Charters is the Senior Correspondent for Middle East Broadcasting Centre (MBC) TV, and has been with the 101st Marines Division in Kuwait as well as The Sudan People’s Liberation Army. She talked with Cockburn about his new book and the power that the “poorly understood religious leader” Muqtada holds over Iraq.

Cockburn explained that Muqtada came from a family of martyrs which gained him the empathy of most Iraqis from the streets. He quickly gained political advantage and started an enormous uprising within the Shia community of Iraq. With his help the Shia’s gained about 80 percent of Baghdad in a huge blood bath.

Cockburn also said that Muqtada could be compared to the likes of Sudam Hussein. He was so influential that Iraqis knew him by his first name, just like Sudam Hussein was simply known as Sudam. Unfortunately, Cockburn explained that when someone tries to be a “top dog” all the other “dogs” turn on him. Even Sudam had trouble ruling Iraq for long.

Cockburn also explained that there is always a doubt about the legitimacy of the state in Iraq and even men like Muqtada don’t have total control of the country. Many times the state looks powerful, but it is hard to tell if the power is really there. Cockburn said that there is also wide spread paranoia in Iraq; the Iraqis are paranoid about the Shia’s dominance and also about the ever present threat from Iran. However, Cockburn explained that Iraq has no need to fear Iran because even if there is a war between the two countries, it won’t change the political dominance that has been present for three thousand years.

Forecasting the Future: What Will Take Place When Bush Attends NATO Summit?

The Center for Strategic International Studies (CSIS) held a press briefing discussing President Bush’s upcoming trip to the NATO summit. The panel leading the hearing investigated the effectiveness NATO, soon to celebrate its sixtieth anniversary, has had in policing the world, American involvement in Afghanistan, European involvement in Kosovo, missile defense, and the possible admittance of new nations into NATO.

Janusz Bugajski, director of the CSIS New European Democracies Project, emphasized how Membership Action Plans (MAPS) are sometimes successful, but limited, guidelines for the three nations trying to become allied with NATO to follow. As Bugajski cautioned, MAPS is not always effective for hopeful nations trying to gain admittance into the alliance.

Bugajski noted that US and Russian tension might “reach a head” over Ukraine’s possible admission into NATO. While President Bush is seen as a strong supporter of NATO enlargement, Vladimir Putin’s Russia, Bugajski explained, sees Ukraine’s entrance as an undercut in their strategy to influence Ukrainians.