This morning I returned from a speech at a highly rated London think tank extremely frustrated at its inability to make the most of a golden situation. The speech was by Dr Danilo Turk, President of Slovenia on reforming the United Nations (‘Which Way To Go: Necessities and Realities of UN Reform’). I came prepared with a question that I felt to be fair, concise, important and very relevant. Here lay a perfect opportunity to question a man who had forced the politics of his nation to the left and who has repeatedly failed to condemn the mass murder of 100,000 people by the previous Communist government. Dr Turk has even gone as far as naming a street after the Communist dictator Tito and awarded a state medal to the former head of the Communist secret police, and yet he spoke about reforming the UN! The inability of this think tank to really push for answers allowed a man who has a lot to answer for walk to away without so much of a mention of his own country.

Following the failed 'Detroit Christmas Day' bomb plot that originated in Yemen, the early weeks of the year saw the full focus of analysts, the media and - most importantly - the Obama Administration on the disturbing threat from 'al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula' (AQAP). However, since then, the spotlight in the 'war on terror' has shifted away from the Gulf back to Afghanistan and Pakistan. The arrests yesterday of over a hundred AQAP members, suspected of planning attacks on major oil installations in the Kingdom, highlight the need for vigilance in the Arabian Peninsula, as well as the urgent requirement to focus on the underlying reasons that propel such groups as AQAP to operate in this territory.
 

Following months of deterioration, it seems that a new day is dawning on relations between Pakistan and the United States. The two nations were certainly in need of a boost given the disagreements and lack of trust that has dogged the relationship recently. However, as Hilary Clinton hailed a rejuvenation of relations following yesterday’s talks with Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi, the question remains how long will this thaw last and will it lead to an improvement in security for the region?

The second instalment of France's regional elections on Sunday produced an expected hammering of President Nicolas Sarkozy's ruling UMP. The opposition Socialist Party and other left-wing parties romped to victory in all but one of France's metropolitan regions, while the UMP managed to cling on in the Alsace region, as well as two overseas regions. Even more worryingly, the far-right Front Nationale scored highly, with Jean-Marie Le Pen winning 23% of the vote in the Provences-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. However, the impact these results will have on French politics in the long-run is less clear.

The British government have taken a risk by earmarking £24m for a new UK Space Agency (UKSA). I am far from being a space sceptic, but in this case I wonder whether the money spent on a new space programme is really money well spent? What about schools, universities, hospitals all in dire need of financial assistance, and all who face massive cuts in the coming years.

The host of the next G8 Summit, Canada, has sparked a massive outcry over its proposed initiative on improving the health of women and children in the world’s poorest regions. Prime Minister Harper has succeeded in sparking a massive outcry over his government's proposed initiative. Contrary to what the critics believe, Harper has made a smart and pragmatic decision. He is bypassing a futile debate and starting negotiations at a point where agreement is actually possible. However, recent news coverage, both domestic and international, has turned their well-meaning intentions into a battle over abortion and a purported flip-flop in the government’s position.

Whether freedom of expression trumps the need to show respect to others is a long-standing and bitter battleground, particularly in matters pertaining to religion. None more so than the propensity of European cartoonists to publish images of the Prophet Mohammed, to the inevitable fury of legions of Muslims both in Europe and across the world. The most recent artiste to land himself in it in the name of striking a blow for free speech is Lars Vilks, a Swedish cartoonist whose 2007 depiction of Mohammed as a dog resulted in a spate of death threats and ultimately a murder plot, only averted thanks to the arrest of the seven would-be assassins in Ireland last week.

Former NATO Secretary-General Lord Robertson delivered a stark warning about the future of NATO's mission in Afghanistan in a lecture at the Atlantic Council in Washington DC. He argued that the alliance was in crisis and "on the edge of a precipice".

As well as the coming Dutch and Canadian withdrawals from Afghanistan, he pointed out that "Public opinion in Germany, in France, in Italy and Spain and even in the UK is all swinging to troop withdrawal and the raising of hands." Robertson argues that this wobbling of commitment is due to a failure of governments to explain with sufficient force and passion why winning in Afghanistan is important, so that "we could lose to the Taliban in Afghanistan and let loose the hosts and apologists of AQ with all that means simply because governments in the NATO countries will not spell out what the high stakes are for all of us – we who will be the next target set of the extremists."

America’s political agenda has been dominated by domestic policies, mainly healthcare reform. However, it looks as if America and Obama’s administration will get its controversial healthcare reform (albeit a watered down version) through Congress. With this load removed from the Presidents shoulders perhaps he can once again turn his attention to foreign affairs. With rising tensions between Hamas and Israel, Iran’s continued nuclear push, and a shattered green policy the President can no longer neglect foreign policy.

Certain things stick in the mind when thinking about the reasons for removing the Taliban from power in 2001-02. Aside from the official rationale - preventing Afghanistan from becoming a 'safe haven' for terrorist groups like al-Qaeda – the sheer odiousness and medieval mentality of the Taliban provide ample justification for the ongoing military involvement in the country. Nowhere was this more clear than in the Taliban's brutal treatment of women before 2001. However, with the West and the Karzai government preparing to begin discussions with 'pragmatic' members of the Taliban, what - if anything - is being done to protect the hard earned rights of Afghanistan's women from a regressive political settlement with the insurgents?

Turkmenistan may be taking a step, a very small step, towards improving the democratic rights of its people. President Gurbanguly Berdymukhammedov has said that he is open to the creation of an opposition party. There is currently only one political party in Turkmenistan and public criticism or opposition towards government and its leader is not permitted.

Barack Obama’s decision to postpone his visit to South East Asia and Australia again, this time until June, means that Chinese Premiere Wen Jiabao will now be preceding the US visit to Indonesia. In real terms this may not have immediate consequences but it is perhaps significant that whilst Obama stays in Washington to focus on his struggling healthcare reform China is able to reassert its presence in Asia.

Last weekend the situation in Mexico took a further turn for the worse, when three people either working for or connected to the US Consulate in Juárez, near the US-Mexico border, were killed by members of the country’s pervasive and dangerous drug cartels.  The increasing escalation of violence in Mexico’s ‘Drug War’ has shown again that the instability on America’s southern border is risking becoming a serious national security problem for Washington, and one that needs to be dealt with sooner rather than later.

It was once written that a man should stand for something, but what does President Lula da Silva of Brazil stand for in the Middle East? Brazil is expected to become the world’s fifth largest economy by 2025, and as such is included as a BRIC economy (a group of major developing countries –Brazil, Russia, India and China). This economic growth has not only led to domestic improvements but has also led to an unprecedented position within the international community. Many countries have realised the growing importance of Brazil, but worryingly in recent weeks it seems to be Iran that Brazil has chosen to ally itself with. Nonetheless, President da Silva’s trip to Israel and the wider Middle East is a perfect opportunity for Israel to impress upon Brazil the importance of its support in curtailing the threat from Iran.

While US officials and their Israeli counterparts are scrambling to calm the “diplomatic fiasco” that is currently plaguing the countries’ typically cosy relationship, op-ed writers are having a field day.  Calling the situation, which began with the Israeli government’s announcement of the construction of 1600 homes in East Jerusalem during US Vice President Joe Biden’s visit last week, anything from the end of the “Jewish love affair with Democrats” to a “train wreck”, the event spurred much journalistic speculation over what’s going on between the two friendly allies.  It’s a worthy enterprise then, to weed through the sensationalism and find genuinely thought-provoking analysis on what the issues actually are in this diplomatic row.  Thus, what follows is a list of a few particularly interesting opinion pieces on the issue:

In the Wall Street Journal, columnist Bret Stephens tackles a core issue of the US-Israeli rift: whether or not settlements are in fact an obstacle to peace.  The Palestinian leadership are said to now have the perfect reason to halt peace talks entirely.  But, as Mr Stephens points out there is one main problem with this argument: “The Israeli-Palestinian conflict isn't territorial. It's existential.”