While no one is watching, the social and economic geography in the South Caucasus is continuing swiftly to evolve. Signal among these developments, indeed its driving force, is the rebuilding of the Karabakh region following the expulsion of occupying military forces from the Republic of Armenia, or under its direct …
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Attempt On PM Mustafa Al-Kadhimi’s Life Shows Destructive Effect Of Pro-Iran Factions On Iraqi State – Analysis
In the early hours of Nov. 7, three quadcopter drones armed with explosives detonated inside the grounds of the official residence of Iraq’s prime minister, Mustafa Al-Kadhimi, injuring seven members of his security detail. Al-Kadhimi, who escaped with only light injuries, promptly released a statement appealing for calm. The question …
Read More »Iran On The Go With The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation – Analysis
At its most recent meeting in Tajikistan this September, the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) started a formal process to grant Iran full membership. This will be the second time the organisation expands after accepting India and Pakistan in 2017 — now extending its reach from Central and South Asia to …
Read More »Soaring Metal Prices May Delay Energy Transition – Analysis
The world’s historic pivot toward curbing carbon emissions is likely to spur unprecedented demand for some of the most crucial metals used to generate and store renewable energy in a net-zero emissions by 2050 scenario. A resulting surge in prices for materials such as cobalt and nickel would bring boom …
Read More »Inflation Spike May Sway Biden’s Choice For Next Federal Reserve Chair – Analysis
President Joe Biden and his advisers appear to be nearing a decision on whether to reappoint Federal Reserve Board Chair Jerome Powell when his term ends in February. But public outcry over persistently high inflation may have changed the terms of the discussion. Biden is deciding as inflation climbs to …
Read More »Turkey’s Pragmatic Policy In The Balkans Has Its Limits – OpEd
The recent crisis in Bosnia has highlighted the adaptability – and limitations – of Turkish policy in the Balkans. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently hosted in Ankara Milorad Dodik, the Serbian member of Bosnia’s tripartite presidency, to discuss the political crisis in Bosnia triggered by Dodik’s threat to abandon …
Read More »The Shanghai Cooperation Organization Is No ‘New Warsaw’ or ‘Eastern NATO’
Although the Shanghai Cooperation Organization is a regional organization that is generally externally focused in its declarations and statements, it is internally focused in its practices and actions. Since its establishment in 2001, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) has experienced several horizontal (expansion of members) and vertical (tasks and functions) …
Read More »France: Nationalism Makes a Comeback
Like Macron five years ago, Zemmour is seen as the outsider opposed to incompetent and corrupt insiders. He seems unaware of the difference between American “secularism,” in which the state sees itself as protector of all religions, and the French laïcité in which the state regards all religions as potential …
Read More »What to Expect from the Biden-Xi Meeting – And It’s Not Good
With the U.S. suffering significant inflation, and with supply chain disruptions identified as one of the causes, expect little pressure on China to address intellectual property theft, currency manipulation, unfair Chinese government support in distorting markets, or disruptive Chinese trade barriers. The bias will be to put a happy face …
Read More »Israeli Couple Jailed For Photographing Turkish President’s Palace Could Be Tried as Spies
Israel’s Foreign Minister Yair Lapid and Prime Minister Naftali Bennett are working to “resolve” the issue of the arrest in Turkey of an Israeli couple jailed for taking photographs of the president’s palace in Istanbul. Israeli tourists Mordy and Natali Oknin, who were detained on Thursday, say they did not …
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