More than a year after the US and the Taliban signed an agreement in Doha to pave the way for a reduction in both Taliban violence and the American troop presence, progress on intra-Afghan talks remains limited and the security situation remains fragile. The agreement called for a phased reduction …

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has travelled to Tehran for talks with senior Iranian officials. The Chinese top diplomat arrived here in the Iranian capital on Friday afternoon. He is scheduled to meet with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, and Ali Larijani, an adviser to the …

The grounding of the Ever Given mega-container ship in the Suez Canal has clogged a major global trade artery. The giant vessel has a capacity of 20,000 containers and was en route from Yantian, in China, to the Port of Rotterdam in the Netherlands when it ran aground and blocked …

On the first day of Persian New Year of 1400 (March 21st), the Supreme Leader of the Iranian regime, Ali Khamenei, devoted the most important part of his Nowruz speech to Iran’s presidential elections scheduled to be held in June. During the last 32 years that Khamenei has ruled Iran …

Mohammed bin Salman discussed strengthening ties and the controversial detention of Muslims in China’s Xinjiang region. China-Saudi relations have strengthened in recent years, despite opposition from the United States. China’s foreign minister met with Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday. The two sides discussed China’s ties with …

Iranian authorities continue to cast doubt on the latest Saudi peace proposal for Yemen, where Tehran and Riyadh have been locking horns for more than six years in a deadly proxy war. “The Saudi initiative for Yemen is a project to perpetuate the war, and to continue the occupation and …

The predicaments of Turkey’s cash-strapped central bank augur a highly challenging period for Erdogan while reducing the visibility range in Turkey’s economy to almost zero. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s shocking decision to appoint a new central bank governor — the fourth in 20 months — has plunged Turkey’s ailing economy …

While Moscow realizes that it cannot replace the US role in the region, it’s hoping a cooling of ties between Washington and Riyadh will help bolster its own influence. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov paid a visit to Saudi Arabia earlier this month as part of his tour of the …

Ongoing tensions due to regional interference to settle scores among rivals threaten new acts of violence, menacing the Yazidi minority concentrated in the area. More than 40 Yazidi community leaders from Sinjar signed a petition on March 13, demanding self-rule in Sinjar, the addition of the Ezidxane Asayish (Security Forces …

Intense fighting in northwest Syria left several people dead on Sunday as the battle continues over the last rebel stronghold in the country. Russian airstrikes killed one and injured two others near the town of Sarmada in the northwest Idlib province. The strikes hit an industrial facility as well as …