Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 14, 2015

U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry makes a statement after a meeting of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) and regional partners at King Abdulaziz International Airport's Royal Terminal in Jeddah, Sept. 11, 2014. Brendan Smialowski / Reuters

David Remnick, New Yorker: Negotiating the Whirlwind

Can Secretary of State John Kerry break through in Syria?

John Kerry, the sixty-eighth Secretary of State of the United States, was born to a temperament of wintry rectitude. He is descended from the Winthrops, who helped found the Massachusetts Bay Colony, and the Forbeses, a Brahmin clan that made its money in railways and in exporting tea, silver, and opium to China. His father was a diplomat. Kerry attended St. Paul’s and Yale (where he was in Skull and Bones) and, as a naval officer in Vietnam, earned three Purple Hearts, the Bronze Star, and the Silver Star. He dated Jacqueline Kennedy’s half-sister, sailed with J.F.K., and married twice into substantial fortunes. Despite the codes of his class, however, Kerry was never entirely subtle about his ambitions. When he was in prep school, his classmates used to play “Hail to the Chief” to him on the kazoo.

Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- December 14, 2015

Intense Fighting, Other Obstacles Jeopardize Syria Peace Chances -- VOA

Is Rouhani Running Out of Time? -- Kevin Sullivan, Real Clear World

China’s Dangerous Ambiguity in the South China Sea -- Liselotte Odgaard, NYT

The U.S. Navy Wants to Show China Who's Boss -- De Luce, Foreign Policy

Rethinking North Korean Missile Capabilities -- Nah Liang Tuang, The Diplomat

French Voters Want Action on the Economy -- Bloomberg editorial

France staves off National Front in elections, but for how long? -- Sara Miller Llana, CSM

What the French election results mean for the 2017 presidential race -- Alberto Nardelli and Angelique Chrisafis, The Gaurdian

Multiculturalism is a sham, says Angela Merkel -- Rick Noack, Washington Post

Watch What Putin Does to His Top Prosecutor -- Leonid Bershidsky, Bloomberg

Russia's Economy Slows Amid Investment Woes (Op-Ed) -- Sergei Alexashenk, Moscow Times

No, the BRICs Aren’t Overtaking America -- Dr. Alan Riley, Daily Beast

Argentina’s New Leader Needs to Deal With Debt First -- Bob Van Voris and Katia Porzecanski, Bloomberg

Democrats’ Biggest Vulnerability In 2016: National Security -- Josh Kraushaar, National Journal

The Oil-Price Plunge: As the global production glut continues, prices near an 11-year low -- Bourree Lam, The Atlantic

Outlook 2016: Global Crises Spill Into New Year -- Defense News

Why Did the CIA Meet With Michael Bay? -- Asawin Suebsaeng, Daily Beast