Ye Tan, senior financial columnist for Shanghai’s Meiri jingji xinwen [New Business daily], argues that policies that a “mercantilist” Obama is likely to pressure China to pursue are in fact in line with China’s own best interests.Ye Tan anticipates that, to maintain the interests of America’s middle and low income groups, Obama, under the screen [...]

Chinese analysts are understandably examining how an Obama presidency will affect Sino-American relations.  It is early days as the President-elect held his first press conference only yesterday and has only made one senior appointment.  In his first official appearance since his election win, he said a stimulus package to boost the economy was long overdue [...]

 All eyes remain on Barack Obama, waiting to scrutinise his first senior appointments, waiting for his first press later today in Chicago, and his first policy announcements.  A permanent caveat is essential. Below are what most of us see as the main foreign policy challenges.  However, excluded are the inevitable ‘unknowns’.  Needless to say, Obama will [...]

The President-elect returned calls to nine leaders today, thanking them for having called to express congratulations on his election earlier this week. They were: 1. Prime Minister Rudd of Australia 2. Prime Minister Harper of Canada 3. President Sarkozy of France 4. Chancellor Merkel of Germany 5. Prime Minister Olmert of Israel 6. Prime Minister [...]

Among the thousands of congratulatory messages received by Barack Obama was one from Russian President, Dmitry Medvedev:  “Russian-American relations have historically been an important factor for stability in the world and have great importance and sometimes key significance for resolving many of today’s international and regional problems”, Mr Medvedev said in his telegram.”We in Russia [...]

The ‘audacity of hope’ will replace the ‘climate of fear’ in the White House in January.  It is useful to reflect on the influences behind President Barack Obama’s thinking.  He stated, in his ‘national security strategy’ speech in Washington on 15 July, that his inspiration for the renewal of the global order is George Marshall.  Barack [...]

 The 44th  President of the United States is largely an unknown quantity.  Thousands of words have been and will continue to be devoted to an analysis of his thinking and likely actions.   Obama’s first priorities will necessarily be domestic, and it will take some considerable time to see a coherent foreign policy emerge.  Despite, or [...]

Welcome President Barack Obama!  The world’s spotlight is now on a White House of hope and not one of fear.  But we all have to wait and see.  The biggest doubt remains over Obama’s lack of experience.  Simon Serfaty’s short interview in this week’s Le Point offers, an interesting, and in my view, perceptive perspective.  [...]