International Editions: Highlights and Exclusives, December 8, 2008 Issue

COVER: The Soft Target (All overseas editions). Newsweek International Editor Fareed Zakaria writes that the attacks in Mumbai, which are being calling India's 9/11, should be a call to arms to the region. The terror attacks have highlighted one of modern India's weaknesses -- its public sector. "Government in India is dysfunctional. With the exception of a few elements of the national government -- the armed forces and antiterror commandos, for instance -- the Indian state is simply not up to the challenge that it now faces ... If this is India's 9/11, then it should be a spur to the country to finally get its house in order and reform itself to succeed in an age that requires smart government."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171248

The Problem Is Politics. Contributor Shekhar Gupta writes that given its hapless response to the deadly attacks in Mumbai, India these days is often castigated by critics as a state that has "neither the spine nor the skills to fight threats to its people-or to its very existence." In fact, until recently the opposite was true. For decades it used the strongest of methods to squash internal threats, and terrorists were often met with great resolve, either killed or arrested before they had achieved their objectives. Yet in the past two years, India has lost more lives to terrorism than any other country but Iraq. This is due to the distorted politics of the past decade.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171320

INTERVIEW: German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier. Steinmeier discusses German troop engagements in Afghanistan, Russia's recent aggression and the global financial crisis. He says Germany doesn't aspire to play the role of middleman between Russia and the rest of Europe. "Together with our European partners we showed a strong and outspoken response to Russia's role in the conflict in Georgia. I think Europe's united voice no doubt contributed to the military conflict ending. Now the stabilization of the region as a whole has to continue, and for genuine stability we need Russian cooperation."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171309

Adam Smith's Return. European Economics Correspondent Stefan Theil reports that after decades of American support for the free movement of goods, services and capital around the world, the tables appear to have turned. Nowhere has public backing for free trade been shrinking as rapidly as in the United States. Fears that international trade could be the next casualty of the economic crisis have some of America's closest allies seriously worried. Already, canceled orders have sunk shipping rates to 21-year lows. Now leaders are especially nervous over incoming U.S. President Barack Obama's campaign suggestions that he would review the North American Free Trade Agreement and put America's other trade deals back on the negotiating table.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171314

Rule by The Dead. Tokyo Bureau Chief Christian Caryl and Special Correspondent B.J. Lee report that the uncertainty about the health of North Korea's Kim Jung Il has experts predicting the regime's collapse, saying the end of the Kim dynasty will bring radical change to North Korea. But it turns out that few hardened Korea watchers expect the Hermit Kingdom to transform itself soon, even if Kim dies. Moon Jong In, a former adviser to two South Korean presidents and a professor at Seoul's Yonsei University, is convinced that Kim's underlings will keep the place running smoothly if their boss expires. Moon argues that Kim's confederates are savvy, well informed and entirely capable of adapting.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171307

Sharks in The Water. Chief Foreign Correspondent Rod Nordland reports that in the last year, Somalia's pirates have attacked 120 vessels in the Gulf of Aden, choking commerce in a critical shipping lane (the transit route for 20 percent of the world's oil), blocking aid supplies and driving up transport costs. He reports that one way to stop such attacks is to restore the rule of law to Somalia, which would be hard to implement. The other is to blockade the country. The last few weeks have shown how hard it will be to defeat the pirates on the high seas, which seems like the international community's approach. And Somalia's seaborne bandits are making a mockery of all efforts to stop them.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171315

Wanted: A New Grand Strategy. Fareed Zakaria argues that before last week's terror attacks in India, the subject of foreign policy had disappeared, overshadowed by the economic crisis. For foreign policy to receive the appropriate attention, we must hope that President Obama "does more than select a good team, delegate well and react intelligently to the problems that he will confront. He must have his administration build a broader framework through which to view the world and America's relations with it-a grand strategy." This is a rare moment in history, when a more responsive America could help bring stability, prosperity and dignity to the lives of billions of people.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171249

Why Barriers Don't Matter. Special Correspondent Barrett Sheridan reports that while a clear majority of global leaders, pundits and economists think more free trade is part of the solution to the global crisis, it's not at all clear that a new free-trade pact would make much difference. A growing chorus of economists argues that since trade barriers are already at all-time lows, cutting a few more percentage points from already-low tariff levels won't add much to global prosperity. To many, this is a heretical notion, but the minority are winning converts.

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171310

WORLD VIEW: Dehli's Three Fatal Flaws. Sumit Ganguly, the director of research at the Center on American and Global Security at Indiana University, writes that the tragedy in Mumbai may have finally focused world attention on India's terror problem, but the crisis is nothing new. India's government has expressed sympathy for the victims, but has failed to forge a coherent strategy. "New Delhi's ineptitude has been evident in three key areas. First, Indian authorities have failed to convince the world that their country is a major victim of terror-despite statistics showing that it ranks second only to Iraq in terms of casualties. Second, they haven't made the institutional and organizational changes necessary or expended enough resources to tackle the problem on a war footing. And finally, India's government has (at least until recently) remained in denial about the fact that the terror problem has shifted, become at least partially homegrown." http://www.newsweek.com/id/171318

THE LAST WORD: Al Gore, former vice president of the United States. Gore tells Fareed Zakaria that whatever assistance the auto industry gets "should be focused on speeding the changes that are absolutely essential to ensure that our companies are competitive in the global marketplace."

http://www.newsweek.com/id/171252

SOURCE Newsweek