Eurasia

Off The MAP: Ukraine And The Problems Of Expanding NATO – Analysis

To join NATO, prospective members typically must follow a MAP, or membership action plan. The MAP has been NATO’s standard bureaucratic procedure to convert applicants into members for over two decades. After Poland, Hungary, and the Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999, this plan was created to streamline the process. …

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After the NATO Summit: Are We Already at War with Russia?

Now that the dust has settled on the recent NATO summit in Vilnius, it is worth considering some of its longer-term implications. One of the most resounding absences from the discussion in Vilnius was what to do about Russia. Although Ukraine’s membership (or lack thereof), Sweden’s accession and debates around …

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The battle for control of Yemen’s ports

Analysis: The maritime objectives of Saudi Arabia and the UAE have played a key role in determining the war’s direction, with control over Yemen’s ports a major driver of the military and diplomatic strategies of all sides involved in the conflict. Despite fighting side by side in Yemen, the United …

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Türkiye’s Syria Policy after Erdoğan’s Win

Since the Syrian uprising began in 2011, Ankara has been drawn ever deeper into the crisis. Its approach will likely hold steady for now. But the choices it makes next matter for the fate of millions of Syrians. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s re-election has allayed fears among many Syrians …

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Montenegro: Spajić’s Dual Citizenship A Serious Problem For NATO? – Analysis

Landslide victory of anti-Đukanović block Early parliamentary elections in Montenegro were held on 11 June 2023. However, the official election results were publicized only on 14 July 2023. The parties that won the largest number of votes from the voters for the Parliament of Montenegro, which has 81 representatives, include …

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Now Is The Time For Gulf Nations To Enhance Ties With Central Asia – Analysis

The leaders of the five Central Asian states — Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, known collectively as the C5 — met their Gulf Cooperation Council counterparts in Jeddah last week for a GCC-C5 summit. This gathering built on the success of a ministerial meeting between the C5 and GCC …

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Brzezinski’s Warning – OpEd

The Vilnius Summit Communique is a crude attempt to NATO-ize Washington’s list of enemies in order to enlist broader support for the impending global conflict. The intended targets of this campaign are Russia and China, the main opponents of the so-called “rules-based order”. Neither of these countries pose a direct …

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The Afghanistan Lithium Great Game

While the United States, along with its allies, left Afghanistan in August 2021 in spectacularly humiliating circumstances, the departure was never entirely complete, nor bound to be permanent. Since then, Washington has led the charge in handicapping those who, with a fraction of the resources, defeated a superpower and prevailed …

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UK sanctions 13 Wagner-linked firms and officials in Sudan, CAR, Mali

The mercenary group has been operating across Africa for many years, exploiting the continent’s natural resources and providing military support for its own financial gain. The United Kingdom on Thursday moved to sanction 13 individuals and businesses in Sudan, Central African Republic (CAR) and Mali with alleged links to the …

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New EU Sanctions against Iran for Military Support to Russia and Syria

The European Union said on Thursday it had established a “new framework for restrictive measures” in view of Iran’s military support of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine and of Syria’s regime. This new framework prohibits the export from the European Union to Iran of components used in the construction …

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