Political risk must-reads

Eurasia Group’s weekly selection of essential reading for the political risk junkie — presented in no particular order. As always, feel free to give us your feedback or selections @EurasiaGroup or @IanBremmer.

Must-Reads

"How Israel beat the drought"

David Horowitz, The Times of Israel

Israel’s quantity of natural water per capita is the lowest in its entire region. But it seems Israel’s water crisis may be a thing of the past. Why? More than 80 percent of Israel’s purified sewage is reused for agriculture. The next best in the OECD? Spain, at 18 percent.

"Germany relaxes immigration rules to attract skilled labour"

Stephen Brown and Holger Hansen, Reuters

Yes, Spain’s unemployment rate is over 26 percent. But elsewhere in the Eurozone, it’s a different story. Germany’s unemployment rate is at its lowest since reunification in 1990 — and Berlin is actively recruiting certain skilled labor.

"Send in the clowns"

The Economist

In Italian elections this week, voters set a post-war record … for lowest turnout.

"Putin’s Ph.D: Can a Plagiarism Probe Upend Russian Politics?"

Simon Shuster, TIME

In a recent study, a group of academics analyzed a random sampling of 25 dissertations from the history department of Moscow Pedagogical State University. They found that all but one had been "at least 50 percent plagiarized." So how high up the ranks does plagiarism go? Perhaps more to the point, how high up the ranks will Medvedev’s campaign to weed out plagiarism be permitted to go?

Cybersecurity

"Cybersecurity and China"

Kenneth G. Lieberthal, Brookings

This piece takes a realistic approach to highlighting potential common ground on cybersecurity between the United States and China.

"The New Westphalian Web"

Katherine Maher, Foreign Policy

Have you ever thought of the internet as unclaimed territory, awaiting a basic framework for division of sovereignty? You’re not the only one — a lot of nations have, too.