Reese Erlich

-by Reese ErlichWashington, DC is buzzing with talk of troop withdrawals and the impact on peace talks in  Afghanistan. The U.S.

by Sam HusseiniTwo-time Oscar nominee Keira Knightley is known for being in "period pieces" such as Pride and Prejudice, so her playing the lead in the new film Official Secrets, scheduled to be release in the U.S. this Friday, may seem odd at first. That is until one considers that the time span being depicted-- the early 2003 run-up to the invasion of Iraq-- is one of the most dramatic and consequential periods of modern human history.It is also one of the most poorly understood, in part because the story of Katharine Gun, played by Knightley, is so little known.

by Reese ErlichI first met Jason Lee when he was promoting jazz concerts in his hometown of Hong Kong. More recently, he has been sending me Facebook messages about the Hong Kong protests. You would think that a relatively prosperous, 43-year-old Hong Konger would support the demonstrations that have rocked that city since June.

China has evolved from producing food and toys to creating sophisticated AI machinery and 5G phone networks. Here a Chinese chocolate factory. Photo: Reese Erlich-by Reese Erlich@ReeseErlichChina is coming after us! Time to steel ourselves for battle against the human-rights-violating, currency-manipulating, job-grabbing, intellectual-property-stealing, missile-launching evil doers. Or so Washington, D.C.

-by Reese ErlichIn the last few months Senator Elizabeth Warren has gained ground in public opinion polls tracking the race for the Democratic Party presidential nomination.

-by Reese Erlich@ReeseErlichFor more than three months, people in Hong Kong massed in the streets to protest a proposed extradition law. Critics say it would allow China to extradite dissenting students, journalists, and business people to the mainland, where they could face prison for their views.

U.S. sanctions have caused the cost of some food items to jump 3 times in the last year. Here, bakers in Isfahan. by Reese Erlich

By trying to isolate Russia and Iran, the US is only isolating itself.-by Reese ErlichMOSCOW --President Donald Trump won’t go to war with Iran. That was the prediction of Russian experts I interviewed in Moscow during the height of the US-Iran crisis in May. They were right.To date, Trump has threatened military action against North Korea, Venezuela, and Iran.

Vladimir Pozner by Reese Erlich

Yum?-by Reese Erlich[Reese Erlich is on assignment in Moscow. He offers this humorous memory about a long ago visit to that famed city. His current reporting from Russia will appear in two weeks.]I was only 19 when I visited the USSR with my parents and sister in 1966. It was quite exotic for Americans to visit Moscow in those days and nothing was more exotic than eating at the Peking Restaurant at the Peking Hotel.