In the Issue

• New Chief of IAEA Enters 'Stormy' Times
• The Need for a Copenhagen Consensus
• Radioactive Challenge: A Closer Look at Nuclear Security
• The Complexity of Iran's Green Movement
• Europe Retools Its Leadership in Effort to Boost Global Standing

Features

New Chief of IAEA Enters 'Stormy' Times. The new director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) stepped into the job earlier this month with some big shoes to fill and some immediate crises in Iran and North Korea to deal with. Career Japanese diplomat and attorney Yukiya Amano is the first Asian to lead the agency and faces many difficult issues. Read more about the challenges confronting Amano and the IAEA.

The Need for a Copenhagen Consensus. The UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen is seen by many as one of the last opportunities for the world to lock in a process that reduces greenhouse gases in time to stave off disaster. A total of 192 nations are meeting in Copenhagen to participate in deliberations. This would all be inconsequential if it wasn’t absolutely urgent for the world to enact a climate change treaty soon, says Simeon Talley, University of Iowa student and former Stanley Foundation intern. Read more from Talley who is in Copenhagen as part of a delegation sponsored by the Iowa United Nations Association.

Radioactive Challenge: A Closer Look at Nuclear Security. The Winter 2009 edition of Courier is now available online. In this issue senior associate at the Henry L. Stimson Center Brian Finlay examines how nations can secure nuclear materials and meet developing world needs through a unique mechanism created by the UN Security Council. Kenneth N. Luongo, former Department of Energy official and president of the Partnership for Global Security, offers recommendations for how the Obama administration can meet the global challenge of securing all vulnerable nuclear materials. Finally, Stanley Foundation program officer Sean Harder explores the unique case of Kazakhstan in nuclear security, as well as disarmament and nonproliferation. Read the full issue in HTML or PDF.

Beyond the Headlines

The Complexity of Iran's Green Movement. In a move gone largely unnoticed by Western media, an Iranian cleric issued an unprecedented statement of apology for the taking of American hostages in 1979. Many note that Grand Ayatollah Montazeri is not your average cleric. In the religious ladder of Shia Iran, Ayatollah Montazeri holds higher standing than the Supreme Leader himself. Ayatollah Montazeri's many declarations challenging the legitimacy of the theocracy and the government's handling of the election fallout have led to his role as the spiritual leader of the Green movement.

The denouncement of the Iranian hostage crisis has been just the latest of several efforts seen as Iran's reformist leaders reaching out to the West. With a new wave of multilateral sanctions against Iran looming, such outreach from Iran's Green movement could complicate the Obama administration's handling of the nuclear issue. From the US standpoint, stopping Iran's potential nuclear weapons program takes precedence over supporting grassroots opposition inside Iran, especially since the regime could weaponize nuclear materials long before the opposition movement gains significant traction. Moving forward, it remains to be seen whether the opposition and leaders like Ayatollah Montazeri will morph into a powerful movement for change in Tehran and whether any global support they might receive will be sacrificed in the sophisticated efforts of nonproliferation.
 

Europe Retools Its Leadership in Effort to Boost Global Standing. In an unprecedented development in international politics, the European Union’s political leadership selected its first permanent president, Belgian Prime Minister Herman van Rompuy, and its first foreign minister, Brit Catherine Ashton. This marks the Lisbon Treaty’s entrance into force, giving the EU more stable leadership than previously and thus a stronger, more cohesive voice on the international scene. (Until now, the EU presidency rotated among its member states every six months.) The regional organization is comprised of 27 countries spanning nearly an entire continent and mostly sharing a common currency and enjoying passport-free travel (except the United Kingdom and Ireland, which have not adopted all the standard practices of European integration). Critics point to the behind-closed-doors decision making as contradictory to fundamentals of the EU, including an emphasis on transparency. While the selection of previously little-known figureheads may not affect the daily lives of Europeans, it is the next step in regional integration since van Rompuy and Asthon are meant to give the EU a bigger role on global issues such as climate change, terrorism, and trade amid the rise of global powers such as China, India, and Brazil. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton praised the appointments, stating that the development is a "milestone for Europe and for its role in the world."