July 12, 2012 | 3:03 am

July 12, 2012

Posted by Shmuel Rosner

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Syria President Bashar Assad (Photo: Reuters)

In-depth

Mearsheimer and Zakheim Discuss “Why Iran Should Get the Bomb”

Foreign Affairs presents a debate by John Mearsheimer and Dov Zakheim focusing on a controversial piece by Kenneth Waltz in which he argues that Iran should be allowed to have nuclear weapons.

Waltz wrote:

Most U.S., European, and Israeli commentators and policymakers warn that a nuclear-armed Iran would be the worst possible outcome of the current standoff. In fact, it would probably be the best possible result: the one most likely to restore stability to the Middle East.

The Man Who May Be Libya’s First Elected Leader

Vivienne Walt of TIME profiles Mahmoud Jibril, the former Gadhafi loyalist turned rebel who now leads a coalition of moderates and secularists that looks set to win the most votes in Libya’s first democratic elections in six decades.

“He was instrumental in getting international approval for the rebels, and everyone gives him credit for that,” says Sami Zaptia, managing editor of the Libya Herald, a new English-language online newspaper. Zaptia believes that Jibril’s tribal background makes him ideally suited to drawing Gaddafi’s old loyalists — including many Warfalla — into supporting the new Libya. “I don’t think you will find many people who will dispute Jibril’s skills as a planner, a strategist and a visionary.”

Turkey’s Unending Syria Problem

The crisis in Syria threatens both Turkish stability and Erdogan’s own political ambitions, writes Morton Abramowitz in the National Interest.

Syria is a major political issue, and there is much political grousing about Erdogan’s handling of the war. Turkey does not want to go to war. But Erdogan simply cannot appear weak. He continues to rant about critics of his Syrian policy, often calling the media traitors if they question his efforts. Syria also takes energy, time and resources away from critical domestic problems, notably the Kurdish issue, on which Erdogan, despite some serious effort, has been unable to find a way forward.

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