Obama Shows Leadership on Torture Memos, Ken Gude Europe's Role in Afghanistan, Natalie Ondiak Transcending the Rio Grande, CAP Mexico Working Group Integration of Immigrant and Minority Groups, Spencer Boyer New Era in U.S.-Latin America Relations, Stephanie Miller Lessons of Reconstruction, Stuart W. Bowen, Jr. Iraq’s and America’s Existential Challenge, Spence Spencer Opening Up Bush's Tortured Logic, Ken Gude Global Competition in Green Technology, Ben Furnas Private Contractors and the Pirate Problem, Andy Grotto More U.S. Troops in Pakistan, Lawrence Korb The Wrong Way to Fight Terrorism, Nina Hachigian Iraq's Political Destiny, Brian Katulis President Obama and the Military, P.J. Crowley Bush's Failed Surge in Iraq, Brian Katulis Ken Gude, "Obama Shows Leadership on Torture Memos," Center for American Progress, April 17, 2009 President Barack Obama yesterday released the memos that established the Bush administration’s flawed legal justification for specific types of torture. Obama also made the correct and responsible decision when he simultaneously ruled out prosecution of CIA operatives who acted in good faith on that legal guidance. Those actions may seem at odds with each other, but they reflect this administration’s commitment to the rule of law and transparency, as well as Obama’s commitment to protecting the men and women on the front lines who often risk their lives in secret to protect the United States. Click here to read the full article. Natalie Ondiak, "Interactive Map: Europe's Role in Afghanistan," Center for American Progress, April 22, 2009 President Barack Obama visited Europe recently, where he displayed a renewed pragmatism and commitment to partnerships as he seeks to engage the international community to find solutions to global challenges—the economic crisis, nuclear nonproliferation, and NATO’s role in Afghanistan going forward. The United States has been working with NATO allies in Afghanistan through the International Security Assistance Force made up chiefly of American, European, Canadian, and Australian troops. The United States has sent the bulk of combat troops so far, while European countries have preferred to send military and civilian trainers and aid workers to the mission in Afghanistan.  Click here to read the full article and to view the interactive map. CAP Mexico Working Group, "Transcending the Rio Grande," Center for American Progress, April 16, 2009 Nearly 100 days into his term in office, President Barack Obama faces a myriad of challenges in restoring U.S. leadership in the world, chief among them the renewal of the U.S. relationship with Mexico. Although the U.S.-Mexico relationship exists in a larger context of a global economic recession and spreading drug use and drug-related violence up and down North and South America, understanding the evolving dynamics that make the bilateral relationship unique and complex is essential to formulating a strategic vision for enhanced cooperation. Click here to read the full report. Spencer Boyer, "Learning from Each Other: The Integration of Immigrant and Minority Groups in the United States and Europe," Center for American Progress, April 16, 2009 The United States and the European Union share much in common, including a similar religious and cultural heritage, strong democratic institutions, and a commitment to civil society. One thing they do not share, however, is a common set of political attitudes and attendant policies on how best to integrate immigrant and minority groups into their larger societies. Intriguingly, though, policymakers in the United States and Europe could learn a great deal from each other as they tackle this issue—one of the more important challenges of the 21st century. As this paper will demonstrate, our different views and actions on integration—derived from unique historical experiences—provide lessons for both sides of the Atlantic. Click here to read the full report. Stephanie Miller, "New Era in U.S.-Latin America Relations Requires Actions," Center for American Progress, April 22, 2009 The Summit of the Americas closed this past Sunday with a surprising shared sense of purpose among the 34 heads of state after debate on a range of issues, including the global economic crisis, promoting human security and prosperity, and fostering alternative energy development in the Americas. This degree of unanimity, however, had more to do with the hemisphere’s receptiveness to President Barack Obama’s clear mission at the summit—to listen to and learn from the region’s leaders and explain his administration’s vision for U.S.-Latin America and Caribbean policy moving forward—than it did with concrete agreements among the participants to combat climate change and promote economic development and prosperity. Click here to read the full article. Stuart W. Bowen, Jr., "Lessons from Reconstruction," Interview with Middle East Bulletin, April 16, 2009 "[T]here are tactical and strategic lessons that the Iraq experience has taught us. On the tactical front, it’s important that future U.S. contingency operations carry out reconstruction programs that are well-suited to the capacity of the country that is the target of the operation. That means they have to be scaled. That means not building beyond what the population of the country can operate, and unfortunately in Iraq, that happened and as a result there have been many operations and maintenance issues after projects have been transferred to Iraqi control. "A second lesson is that the United States must improve its contracting capacity… The third lesson learned is to ensure that data is properly managed with respect to reconstruction efforts… Finally, I think, speaking of commonalities between Iraq and Afghanistan, addressing corruption is a big issue, and we did not invest in the capacity of the Iraqi government to fight this battle against corruption and it paid the price in that regard." Click here to read the full interview. Click here to view the full CAP event video with Stuart Bowen. Spence Spencer, "Iraq's - and America's - Existential Challenge," Middle East Bulletin, April 16, 2009 As the Obama Administration begins to move U.S. forces out of Iraq, it should work to revitalize the constitutional review process and use it— among other strategies—to build a functional Iraqi state responsive to the needs of its citizens. It will be much harder for the United States to withdraw if certain state institutions do not exist or function properly… The United States, for better or for worse, maintains strong leverage on all of Iraq’s political factions. It still is in a position to be a voice of moderation and compromise and convince all parties that they need to resolve these matters and that they need to do it now. It should use the tools it has to foster a realistic, practical discussion about how the state will function. Click here to read the full article. Ken Gude, "Opening Up Bush's Tortured Logic," The Guardian, April 17, 2009 Transparency won. The Obama administration's decision to release a group of legal memos discussing specific interrogation techniques used against suspected terrorists was made over the objections of the intelligence community - and the new administration should be commended for standing up for its principles. The accompanying statements from the president and attorney general ruling out the prosecution of intelligence agents who relied on the legal advice contained in these memos should not be a surprise and are completely justified. Click here to read the full article. Ben Furnas, "We must Seize the Energy Opportunity or Slip Further Behind," Center for American Progress, April 20, 2009 China’s leaders are investing $12.6 million every hour to green their economy. Other countries are equally energetic in their embrace of alternative energy technologies; they are setting targets and investing billions of dollars to spur the development of entirely new markets in wind, solar, geothermal, biofuels, energy efficiency, high-speed rail, and other clean and innovative solutions to global warming. Click here to read the full report. Politico - Andrew Grotto assesses the practicality of hiring private citizens to keep international waters safe. “It may work in the sense that if you give people incentives to fight piracy, you’ll see more action taken against it. The ocean is huge and, practically speaking, there’s no way the Navy can prevent piracy; it’s too big. But just given the experience in Iraq with private contractors, that effort showcases the difficulties dealing with folks who aren’t answerable to anyone but shareholders.” Rethink Afghanistan - Lawrence Korb discusses whether sending more U.S. troops will help stabilize Pakistan. “Military force, while necessary, is not sufficient to achieve sustainable security in Afghanistan," Korb states. Radio Free Europe - Nina Hachigian argues the Bush administration would have been better off describing the individuals and groups that commit terrorism as disconnected and acting independently. "It's much easier to recruit when you're engaged in a glorified struggle against an enemy than if you're just branded as a criminal, the way a regular criminal would be," Hachigian says. "We don't want to give our enemies that kind of ammunition for their recruiting." TNRtv - Brian Katulis defends the Presdient's intent to let Iraqi politics run its course. "For far too long, we have held on to the notion...that we can simply change and shape things with our military presence." Katulis argues, "It is important for the United States to let Iraqis control their own destiny." Government Executive.com -  While praising Obama for "quite effectively managing his early relationship with the military and the veterans' community," P.J. Crowley says more than politics is involved. "At some point in a campaign, any candidate has to pass the commander-in-chief test" or he will not win the campaign. But then, in office, inevitably comes "a trial" when a president must flex American military muscle. That trial has not yet come for Obama. TNRtv - Brian Katulis talks about why Bush's surge in Iraq is still a failure. He argues that though the surge significantly reduced violence, it did not bring about the changes that matter most. "The fundamental goal of that surge was to help Iraqis bridge those political divides...that has not happened." Are Activists to Blame for Darfur? April 23, 2009, 6:30pm – 7:30pm In the summer of 2004, the United States Congress unanimously declared the conflict in Darfur, Sudan to be genocide. Following the passage of this historic resolution, a massive grassroots movement formed in the attempt to stop the atrocities in Sudan and influence elected officials to make addressing this situation a top priority. Ever since this anti-genocide movement formed to address these complex foreign policy issues, there has been a debate about how this constituency and others like it can best use their power as citizens to influence foreign policy. With the recent issuing of an arrest warrant for Sudan's President, some commentators have gone so far as to suggest that U.S. activists are making it harder, not easier, to resolve the conflict in Darfur. Does foreign policy "activism" do more harm than good? How can an active and engaged citizen constituency positively influence U.S. foreign policy? Join the Enough Project and the Center for American Progress for a lively dialogue on activism, intervention, and Sudan. John Norris, Executive Director of the Enough Project, and Rebecca Hamilton, author of an upcoming book on the Darfur activism, will share their views and engage in a town hall discussion with the audience. Featured Discussants: John Norris, Executive Director, Enough Project, Center for American Progress Rebecca Hamilton, Fellow, Open Society Institute For more information and to RSVP, click here. Sign up: Policy e-newsletters The Progress Report To unsubscribe, click here Support the Center for American Progress Comments, questions: Email Us National Security Policy Weekly is a product of the Center for American Progress www.americanprogress.org | contact us | unsubscribe