The decision to try Khalid Sheik Mohammed and four other alleged 9/11 conspirators in a civilian court in New York City, rather than before a military commission in a far-off place involves a needless risk, writes Clive Crook
As policymakers rush to implement reforms, they are apt to create distortions that pave the way for the next disaster. Gillian Tett warns that the banking sector's balance sheets are increasingly stuffed with government bonds
After the end of the Soviet Union, the US has had no real peers in outer space – India can help Washington pursue its goals at lower cost, write Karl Inderfurth and Raja Mohan
Belgian leadership consists of bringing consensus to a fractious coalition, exactly what the president of the EU has to do, writes Wolfgang Münchau
The appointments of the EU's first full-time president and foreign minister suggest it is not adapting fast enough to profound changes that are eroding its influence, writes Tony Barber
For novelist NDiaye's defenders, it is not enough that politician Eric Raoult be wrong – he must be Hitler, writes Christopher Caldwell
Carin Froehlich of Perkasie (home town of Miss Pennsylvania 1971, apparently) has been warned not to dry her laundry on a clothesline outside, following two complaints from neighbours, writes Matthew Engel
The Taliban leader's actions are often determined by night visions, making the future of fighting in Afghanistan hard to predict, writes Kenneth Ballen
Governments have created a bureaucratic and human rights mess in which asylum seekers can be detained indefinitely, writes Eamonn Butler
Only with proper firewalls between them can banks and capital markets function as two engines of economic growth. If one fails, the other can still carry on, writes Liu Mingkang
Supervision must be free of regulatory and administrative conflicts in order to ensure the safety and soundness of the financial system, write William Donaldson and Arthur Levitt
The case for generous subventions to banks is to restore the financial system to health. It is not to enrich bankers, particularly not those engaged in the sorts of trading that destroyed the system in the first place, writes Martin Wolf
Governments far beyond Yemen's borders should also be alarmed at the deteriorating security in a country that has long been a breeding ground for the religious extremists of al-Qaeda, writes Roula Khalaf
Britain's embarrassing record on corruption is the target of planned legislation, writes Will Kenyon. Companies need to start preparing their defences now
Europe needs less bargaining and more sobriety as it prepares to choose the new leadership of the European Union, writes Jacques Delors
The ex-vice presidential candidate and Prejean both wear their conservatism and religiosity on their well-tailored sleeves, but only one harbours hopes for the Oval Office, writes Michael Fullilove
China faces a complex and perilous transition phase as it tries to transform from a middle-income, high-growth, very big developing economy into an advanced economy with a diversified industrial base writes John Gapper
We need a new understanding – that banking that only works in good times is not competitive, writes Paul Myners
The only way to nudge China towards common goals is to draw it in so that its priorities coalesce with those of other nations, writes David Pilling
New international agreements that put environmental challenges at the centre of the world trading system are long overdue, writes Chandran Nair