In the last week, Colombia recalled its Venezuelan envoy because a spokeswoman for a left-wing guerrilla group was invited to speak to the Venezuelan Congress. Recently, Venezuela protested an American warship's intrusion into its waters, allegedly chasing drug smugglers. All the ingredients of conflict are in place. Good morning, Vietnam. Pakistan sides with Kashmir.
China sides with Pakistan.
India and Pakistan are now, through the inattention of both the Bush Sr. and Clinton administrations, nuclear powers, albeit without the technology for efficient safeguards. This is the black hole of American foreign policy. New Delhi is one of the most nastily polluted cities in the world, and the courts were acting against the worst polluters. Not with a stale-mated U.S. Congress and a beleaguered presidency, and not with a president like George W., who is still skeptical about the seriousness of global warming. European leaders are reported to be salivating at America's political crisis, expecting to use this window of opportunity to assert themselves against a weakened, hobbled American government.