Eurasia

Russian ‘Murder Plot’ Strains Czech Diplomatic Ties

A briefcase stuffed with ricin… Mayors under police protection… An alleged Russian assassination plot has thrown Czech foreign policy into turmoil. Reports that Russian assassins are targeting Czechs politicians may sound like the plot of a classic Cold War thriller, but they are the product of a very contemporary tussle.

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Poland Postpones Presidential Election

After weeks of infighting and controversial efforts to organise a postal ballot during the pandemic, Poland’s ruling coalition has agreed not to hold the vote this Sunday.

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Analysis: The Islamic State’s ideological campaign against al-Qaeda

The Islamic State used this banner in a recent issue of its Al-Naba newsletter, as well as online, to advertise its latest attack on Al-Qaeda. On April 29, the Islamic State’s “province” (wilayah) in Yemen released a lengthy video that is intended to undermine al-Qaeda’s ideological legitimacy within the jihadists’ …

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Collecting and analyzing Shiite militia attacks against the U.S. presence in Iraq

There is a growing consensus that attacks against U.S. facilities and personnel in Iraq by Iran-backed Shiite Militia Groups (SMGs) are increasingly becoming a “new normal.” These attacks ebb and flow pursuant to several political conditions, some of which remain outside the control of the U.S. Having both quantitative and …

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Trump Nominee to Lead US Intelligence Promises 'Unvarnished Truth'

More than eight months after he was first tapped to lead U.S. intelligence efforts, Congressman John Ratcliffe repeatedly pledged to skeptical lawmakers that he would abandon partisan politics and provide the president and top policymakers the “unvarnished truth,” no matter what they wanted to hear.

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