Citizen Cartwright

When to use military force

Adm. Mike Mullen, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, set out on Wednesday new principles for using the military in meeting threats, saying that overwhelming force can be counterproductive if used recklessly.

Under the Powell Doctrine, the military should be sent to fight only when overhwhelming force is committed to the effort. 

Understanding Iraq's election

It's obvious that the March 7 parliamentary elections in Iraq are crucial not only for Iraqis but for Americans who want their soldiers to come home.

Here are some frequently asked questions on the elections and a primer on the competing groups.

Iraqi election standoff

The country's electoral commission says it's delaying for a week the start of campaigning for next month's parliamentary elections so a dispute can be settled over who will be allowed to run.

A court overturned a ban on candidates allegedly affiliated with Saddam Hussein's Baath party, but the government calls the court's ruling "illegal and unconstitutional."

The United States' exit strategy depends on a peaceful and credible election, the BBC says.

Afghan security

In what's being described as his most optimistic assessment yet, Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal says the security situation in Afghanistan is no longer deteriorating.

Obama's approach to China

In its $6 billion arms sale to Taiwan announced Friday, the administration is seen as pushing back against an increasingly pushy China.

Analysts describe China's attitude as a combination of hubris and insecurity. They say Chinese leaders are drawing the conclusion that their country has come out of the global financial crisis relatively easily because of the superiority of their system. But China's one-party state is shaken by uprisings in Tibet and elsewhere.

Blair testifies on Iraq invasion

The former British prime minister dodged protesters at his long-awaited appearance in London Friday at an inquiry into his decision to join the United States in invading Iraq.

Blair denied that he'd made a "covert" deal with President George W. Bush to invade.

Afghan election postponed

Western diplomats are praising the announcement Sunday by Afghan officials that a parliamentary election would be pushed off from May to September, allowing time to make changes to prevent the kind of fraud seen in last year's presidential election.

Terror group 'syndicate'

Al Qaeda is using Taliban factions and a Kashmir separatist network for attacks in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan in its strategy to destabilize the region, Secretary of Defense Robert Gates said Wednesday during a trip to India.

"It's dangerous to single out any one of these groups and say if we could beat that group that will solve the problem," he said at a press conference. "Because they are, in effect, a syndicate of terrorist operators."

Iraqi election officials bar 500 candidates

Most of those prevented from running in March's parliamentary election are believed to be Sunni. The decision potentially threatens Iraq's fragile security, The Associated Press says, because it risks leaving Sunni voters feeling targeted and disenfranchised.

The Sunni boycott of a January 2005 election is considered a key factor in boosting the insurgency, AP says.

Also on Obama's Copenhagen dance card

A senior U.S. official says President Obama and Russian President Medvedev could reach an agreement in principle in Copenhagen on Friday to cut Cold War arsenals of nuclear weapons.