A student lifts a placard as he and others line up to take part in a march to condemn the recent bomb attacks in the city (Danish Siddiqui/Courtesy Reuters).

As we approach the tenth anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks, many are reflecting on the strides, errors, and excesses in the fight against terrorism. During the Bush presidency, the U.S.-led “Global War on Terrorism” was often caricatured as a unilateral, made-in-the-USA undertaking. But a more positive, if unsung aspect of this struggle has been its multilateral ethos. In the decade since 9/11, the international community has shown remarkable cohesiveness and solidarity in its effort to protect innocent people from terrorist attacks, despite significant challenges that remain. Much of this cooperation has occurred under the radar, through quiet, everyday multilateral and bilateral cooperation among law enforcement agencies, intelligence services, and militaries.

In an interview with CFR.org yesterday, I summed up these bright spots of multilateral cooperation, while identifying several hurdles that continue to bedevil counterterrorism efforts:

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Nation. Meet Susan Rice.

On Monday night, the U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations was on the Colbert Report. She used typical  UN sovereignty-stealing trickery—like logic and nuance—to “explain” why the U.S. has different policies for Libya and Syria, even though, as Stephen Colbert told her, they’re basically the same country. She tried to convince us black helicopters and blue-helmeted paratroopers aren’t poised to invade and conquer the UN’s most powerful member. (That would be us).  Then she even told Mr. Colbert that she wasn’t related to Condoleezza Rice, even though everyone knows they have the same last name. Nation, don’t be fooled by these weasel words.

In all seriousness, though, hats off to Ambassador Rice, who acquitted herself impressively. (Full disclosure: The Internationalist and Susan have been buddies since middle school, and collaborated frequently when she was at the Brookings Institution). Some of her main points: Read more »

People use computers in an internet cafe in Shanghai. (Nir Elias/ Courtesy Reuters).

After the release of a report this week revealing significant gaps in cybersecurity among states, the private sector, and international institutions questions remain about what to do moving forward.  My colleague, Ryan Kaminski, who holds a  B.A. from the University of Chicago and a M.A. from Columbia University, offers his assessment.

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