Over the past decade the Philippines' sovereign credit rating oscillated between "negative" and "stable", reflecting concern about the ability of the government to collect sufficient tax revenue, manage its budget, and sustain a high rate of GDP growth. Three years ago, President Aquino embarked on a long overdue path to...

Over the past decade the Philippines' sovereign credit rating oscillated between "negative" and "stable," reflecting concern about the ability of the government to collect sufficient tax revenue, manage its budget, and sustain a high rate of GDP growth. Three years ago, President Aquino embarked on a long overdue path to...

As a rising global power, and being the largest and most important economy and military power in Asia, the People's Republic of China (PRC) has had the luxury of being able to do more or less whatever it wants in challenging its neighbors over disputed land and oil and gas...

The U.S. Congress has had the option of waiving the restrictions placed on trade relations with Russia as a result of the Jackson-Vanik Amendment since 1989. Each year since that time, U.S. lawmakers have chosen to waive the trade restrictions. But earlier this year, the U.S. House of Representatives voted...

In July we pondered whether and to what degree former Philippine President Arroyo's release on bail would be indicative of the eventual verdict in the electoral sabotage and plunder charges against her. We also wondered to what extent public perception of the prosecution's evidence in both cases will...

After nearly eight months under hospital arrest, a trial court judge this week ordered former Philippine President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo released on bail, on the grounds that the evidence against her was 'weak.' Having been charged with electoral sabotage and plundering of the national treasury, Arroyo and her husband were arrested...

In December 2011, the World Trade Organization approved Russia's membership, which had been sought since 1993. In April of this year, just three weeks after then-President Medvedev submitted a new draft Civil Code to Parliament, the Duma adopted in its first reading, and virtually verbatim, a new Draft Law which...

Throughout the Cold War the U.S. Congress sought to penalize the Soviet Union for its human rights record. Legislation such as the Jackson-Vanik amendment became a long-term influence on bilateral trade between the two countries. That tradition was reinvigorated this past week, when the House Foreign Affairs Committee unanimously approved...

The Philippines experienced a judicial milestone on Tuesday with the conviction of Renato Corona, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines, for failure to declare several high value assets -- including US$2.4 million in foreign currency deposits -- on his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth (SALN)....

Last week, the USS North Carolina -- a Virginia class fast attack submarine -- took Chinese and Philippine authorities alike by surprise after resurfacing in Philippine waters and docking in Subic Bay -- the economic free port zone in the Philippine province of Zambales. Subic was once the largest U.S....

In bombshell testimony in a packed Senate hall today, the impeachment trial of Philippine Chief Justice Renato C. Corona took a dramatic turn. Citing a 21-page confidential report issued by the Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC), Ombudsman Conchita Carpio-Morales Morales -- an appointee of President Benigno Aquino III -- testified that...

Philippine Chief Justice Renato Corona is the first high court justice to have been impeached by the Philippine House of Representatives on allegations of breach of the public trust, and is currently being tried by the Senate. Corona is the third person in high office to have been impeached by...

The legislative showdown currently underway in the Indian Parliament over the Lokpal bill -- intended to put some boundaries around India's legendary corruption -- is unfortunately not unusual. Political gridlock has gripped nearly every potential significant reform since Prime Minister Singh's reelection in 2009. It is a shame that the...

The impeachment of incumbent Philippine Chief Justice Renato Corona has commenced in the Philippine Senate, with the customary fanfare one would expect in Manila. Consistent with the circus-like atmosphere that has prevailed throughout the course of former President Arroyo's prosecution for alleged corruption and electoral manipulation while she was president,...

Mindful of the stakes involved for Japan, the Japanese government was quick to enhance its attempt at diplomacy with North Korea immediately following news of the death of Kim Jong-Il last month. On Christmas Day, Japanese Prime Minister Noda paid an official visit to China to meet with Prime Minister...

As the birthplace of the Arab Spring and the first country in the Middle East and North Africa to oust its multi-decade dictator, Tunisia has taken the regional lead in reconstituting its government. Last October, Tunisians elected a 217-member assembly with a one-year mandate to draft a constitution, appointed a...

Anyone familiar with the peculiar manner in which Philippine politics sometimes operates will recognize the circus-like atmosphere that can prevail under ordinary circumstances. When high profile dynamics are thrown into the mix, the result can be surreal. Such is the case regarding the corruption charges pending against former President Arroyo,...

In our August article entitled Libya's Post-Conflict Reconstruction: Vengeance or Forgiveness?, we noted that the victors in the Libyan conflict had a choice to make: they could either be vengeful or forgiving toward Qadhafi supporters. Since Qadhafi was killed, the pendulum has swung toward revenge. Indeed, vigilantism, vandalism,...

As Eid al-Fitr draws to a close, the rebel forces that now control Libya are preparing for their final assault on Sirte -- Gadhafi's home town. Sirte's pending fall will have lasting symbolic impact as the final nail in the coffin of the Gadhafi regime, but the assault will also...

In our recent article "China's Imperial Overstretch", we argued that the Spratly island question is ultimately a litmus test for if and when China will cease to act as an unwieldy 800-pound gorilla that does as it pleases and instead act as a responsible member of the international...