Foreign Policy Public Health Blog

Bending to popular anger, Putin installs helipad at Kremlin

Vladimir Putin has finally decided to make a concession to his critics. But he isn't exactly bending over backwards. Instead, he's having a helipad installed at the Kremlin. Sure, it may not be the most meaningful reform. But it does cater to...

Published Thu, May 16 2013 3:30 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Russia

British Foreign Office to drunk Britons everywhere: No, we can't translate that tattoo for you

British consular officials are completely fed up with fielding stupid requests for assistance from Britons abroad. Or, at the very least, that's the clear subtext of a ridiculous press release by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office that lists the...

Published Fri, May 17 2013 10:00 AM by FP Passport

Things Donald Rumsfeld actually said this week

Donald Rumsfeld has never had a reputation for being particularly tactful or articulate (let's all take a moment to remember how Saturday Night Live portrayed him , even before the invasion of Iraq), but he's demonstrated a habit of owning his...

Published Fri, May 17 2013 3:00 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Security, Politics, Afghanistan, Intelligence, U.S. Foreign Policy, Bush's Legacy, Iraq, Bush Administration

Morning Brief: Exposed Chinese hacking unit resumes attacks

Exposed Chinese hacking unit resumes attacks Top news: The Chinese army unit identified as the central player in China's cyberattacks on foreign governments and businesses has resumed operations after being exposed earlier this year. According to...

Published Mon, May 20 2013 5:50 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

Does North Korea have a pirate problem?

At 7 a.m. on May 6, Yu Xuejun received a phone call from the captain of a fishing boat he owns. "I asked him what the problem was," Yu told state broadcaster China Central Television in an interview broadcast Monday, "and he said one of...

Published Mon, May 20 2013 1:53 PM by FP Passport

GeoGuessr: Where in the (Googleable) world are you?

I'm one of the millions of people who have recently become absolutely, incurably addicted to the new online game GeoGuessr. If you're a regular reader of this blog, you probably will be too. Here's how it works: GeoGuessr drops you in a randomly...

Published Tue, May 21 2013 10:20 AM by FP Passport

Morning Brief: Rafsanjani, Mashaei banned from presidential bid in Iran

Rafsanjani, Mashaei banned from presidential bid in Iran Top news: A governing body of the Iranian government issued its list of approved presidential candidates and excluded two leading contenders -- Ali Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani and Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei...

Published Wed, May 22 2013 5:50 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Morning Brief

U.S. admits droning four Americans (but just one deliberately)

Ahead of President Obama's big counterterrorism speech tomorrow, Attorney General Eric Holder has written a letter , obtained by the New York Times , to the Senate Judiciary Committee disclosing the four American citizens killed by targeted strikes...

Published Wed, May 22 2013 3:00 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Terrorism, al Qaeda, Security, Justice, Law, Obama Administration, Intelligence, U.S. Foreign Policy, Military, Bush Administration

Syrian opposition leader proposes peace deal

After more than 80,000 dead and millions driven from their homes, can Syria's opposition and President Bashar al-Assad's regime really negotiate a political settlement? At least one opposition leader is willing to give it a try. Former Syrian...

Published Thu, May 23 2013 8:50 AM by FP Passport

U.S. politicians reach bipartisan consensus: shwarma is delicious

When it comes to U.S. foreign policy in the Arab world, Democrats and Republicans don't agree on much -- be it arming the Syrian rebels or brokering Israeli-Palestinian peace. But the shwarma -- shaved, spit-roasted meat wrapped in doughy pita and...

Published Thu, May 23 2013 12:00 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Culture, Middle East, Fun Stuff, Israel/Palestine, Food/Agriculture

Is Assad really winning?

After two years of crowing that the end of Bashar al-Assad was nigh, the official and popular perceptions in the United States and Europe of the Syrian president's staying power have shifted dramatically. There's a new narrative taking hold, fueled...

Published Fri, May 24 2013 4:46 AM by FP Passport

The NSA's PRISM slides get a makeover

When the Washington Post and the Guardian revealed the existence of the NSA intelligence-gathering program PRISM last week, they both relied on a set of horrifically bad slides reportedly prepared by the agency and presented to a group of senior analysts...

Published Tue, Jun 11 2013 8:09 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Intelligence

Do Europeans really care more about privacy than Americans?

Reports about the National Security Agency's PRISM program -- through which U.S. intelligence officials have access to the private communications of technology users -- have sparked fierce outrage in Europe, where leaders have long butted heads with...

Published Tue, Jun 11 2013 2:30 PM by FP Passport

Filed under: Europe, Culture, Obama Administration, Intelligence

Putin speaks English!

This week, Russian President Vladimir Putin made waves in the United States by offering NSA leaker Edward Snowden asylum and ragging on the Obama administration for its out-of-control surveillance programs. But today he's gotten our attention for...

Published Wed, Jun 12 2013 9:30 AM by FP Passport

Filed under: Russia, Fun Stuff

Bill Burns honored as Diplomat of the Year

Last night, Foreign Policy played host to ambassadors, think tankers, corporate executives, and State Department personnel for the magazine's annual Diplomat of the Year dinner, hosted at Washington's Ronald Reagan Building and emceed by FP CEO...

Published Wed, Jun 12 2013 2:38 PM by FP Passport