Major developments in the oil sector are decisively undermining the once-defining role of the Middle East in the global energy market. The region’s potency in global affairs is on the wane, making Obama’s pivot to East Asia well-timed.
The re-emergence of the ancient Silk Road provides Central Asia with a promising alternative to another reincarnation of great power conquest in the region.
Britain is dithering about whether to join the European Monetary Union or to go it alone. But it should explore the much better option of becoming a member of an expanded NAFTA--an arrangement more in accord with its traditions and interests.
