Includes bibliographical references.

Diplomacy gone astray : Obama is in eye of storm in volatile Middle East / Edward Cuddy -- Too many overseas bases / David Vine -- Obama's empire / Catherine Lutz -- Cheers for the U.S. empire / Thomas Donnelly -- The American non-empire / Ed Morrissey -- Is Afghanistan the right war? / National Interest -- Editorial: Obama doesn't make a case for more troops / The Orange County Register -- The American awakening / Dexter Filkins -- Obama's surge / Commonweal -- The West can encourage legitimacy and accountability / Aziz Hakimi -- Should Obama send more U.S. troops to fight Afghan War? / Zeb B. Bradford Jr. and Ann Wright -- How deep in after we're out? / Frank Oliveri -- Extending our stay in Iraq / Thomas E. Ricks -- The rationale for keeping U.S. forces in Iraq / Jeremy R. Hammond -- Doomsday in Iraq, is it really just around the corner? / Tom Engelhardt -- Hope and change in Iraq : the elections show a functioning democracy, if they can keep it / Reuel Marc Gerecht -- Long goodbye, but goodbye / Palm Beach Post.

Triumph of the Turks / Newsweek -- The army is beaten / Owen Matthews -- Testy Erdogan : Turkey and the West / The Economist -- The status of U.S. nuclear weapons in Turkey / Alexandra Bell and Benjamin Loehrke -- Unwelcomed missiles / RIA Novosti Russia Profile -- Basics of the U.S. military presence / Reiji Yoshida -- The new battle of Okinawa / The Economist -- Is defense treaty with US set to collapse? / David McNeill -- Japan questions its bill for U.S. bases / Richmond Times Dispatch -- A changed Japanese diplomacy? / Anthony Rowley -- The power of Japan / Karen Sue Smith -- USFK seeks to expand role outside peninsula / Jung Sung-ki -- Letting go / Doug Bandow -- A pragmatic approach to ROK-U.S. ties / The Korea Herald -- S. korea expands modern forces as it seeks great security role / Asia Pulse -- New US command / Korea Times.