Middle Orient

President Putin has been making some astonishing demands, including: NATO mustn’t admit additional countries near Russia, such as Ukraine and Georgia. NATO must cease military activity in non-NATO territories: Georgia, Ukraine, the Caucasus, Central Asia, and parts of eastern Europe. Yet, incredibly, Putin has himself been enabling a NATO member’s …

A series of deadly explosions in Abu Dhabi, the normally placid capital of the United Arab Emirates, has created a strategic quandary for the UAE government. Its leaders are in the midst of a major diplomatic reinvention, seeking to develop good relations with all of their regional neighbors, including, notably, …

Recent airstrikes on areas close to the Iraqi capital as well as the killing of Islamic State fighters there have received scant attention as Iran-linked groups continue to carry out persistent attacks. Tarmiya, roughly 50 kilometers north of the Iraqi capital, has in recent weeks been the scene of suicide …

Ebrahim Raisi’s trip to Moscow is unlikely to further elevate relations between the two countries. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi arrived today in Moscow where he held talks with his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin. “We want our relations with Russia to be strong and comprehensive. These relations will not be short …

The pro-government business association MUSIAD has stood behind Erdogan’s controversial economic policies but appears concerned that both borrowing costs and foreign exchange prices remain above the desired levels. The Independent Industrialists and Businessmen Association (MUSIAD), founded in 1990 as an ally of Turkey’s political Islam movement, has stood behind President …

Armenia has always made far more devastating claims against Turkey, such as genocide committed against them in 1915, than against Azerbaijan and yet, there would seem to be on the horizon a breakthrough in Armenia’s relations with Turkey while the same is not true in Armenia’s relations with Azerbaijan. Armenians …

Iraqi security authorities have announced a state of maximum alert as they anticipate armed attacks in Baghdad and other cities. Hours after the visit of the commander of the Iranian “Quds Force,” Ismail Qaani, armed factions held several meetings to discuss “mechanisms to stop Muqtada al-Sadr’s project of forming a …

The formal proceedings began 14 months after the Sweden-based dissident was lured into a “honeytrap” in Turkey before being smuggled home by Iran-assigned operatives. A “Revolutionary” court in Tehran opened the trial of Habib Chaab, the leader of a foreign-based pan-Arab movement, on terror-related charges. Reading out the indictment in …

The Biden administration on Tuesday issued sanctions against a Lebanese travel company and three businessmen for financially supporting Hezbollah, the U.S.-designated terrorist organization based in Lebanon. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said the sanctions designation was carried out “in solidarity with the Lebanese people, whose security and sovereignty remains threatened …

In a new attempt to improve the image of Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the group’s leader appeared in public in modern clothing to inaugurate a new road linking Aleppo to Bab al-Hawa. Unlike all other leaders of extremist organizations, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) leader Abu Mohammed al-Golani attended a public event …