NATO and the EU Should Treat It That Way Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in November 1991, the area that extends from central Europe to Central Asia has been commonly referred to as the “post-Soviet space.” The label has always been problematic—and 30 years after its introduction, the …

Why the Developing World Is Turning Against Free Trade Globalization has lost its shine in wealthy countries, particularly among low-skilled workers. From 2002 to 2018, for instance, support for free trade fell significantly in Japan, the United States, and many European countries, driven largely by rising hostility toward free trade …

Why the United States and Its Allies Must Act Now to Prevent a Humanitarian Disaster On December 1, a United Nations official said that Afghanistan may be facing the most rapid economic collapse in modern history. Since the Taliban takeover in late August, government revenues have all but disappeared and …

Russia has rapidly expanded its influence in the Central African Republic (CAR) in the last few years, using military support to become President Faustin-Archange Touadéra’s closest ally. Prone to coups, rebellions and communal strife, CAR has been engulfed in conflict for over twenty years. While the government wields authority in …

Following the resignation of the finance minister and his replacement by a loyalist on Dec. 2, the Turkish lira continued its steady decline against the dollar, bringing its losses for the year to nearly 50%. The Turkish currency is once again under speculative attack, similar to previous episodes in July …

When President Joe Biden’s White House announced that it had successfully enlisted several major oil-consuming countries in an effort to coordinate releases from strategic petroleum reserves (SPRs) around the world, it looked like this would be the only major factor in oil markets that OPEC+ would need to consider at …

Ahead of the seventh round of the Iran nuclear negotiations that ended on Dec. 3 in Vienna, many observers interpreted Ebrahim Raisi’s election to the presidency and his recent rhetoric as representing a distinct shift in Iran’s nuclear strategy. Indeed, in November, Raisi’s government’s official newspaper Iran explained that Tehran’s …

In the occupied al-Bab countryside, social media users reported the defection of the so-called commander of the al-Sukkaria village’s forces from the pro-Turkish Hamza Division militia. The commander was accompanied by other gunmen and some cars and their arrival in areas of army control. According to reports, gunmen from the …

These days, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) militias have reached a three-way crossroad. The SDF could move towards Damascus, and sit at the table with the legitimate government, it could embrace Moscow and avoid breaking ties with it, or it might maintain its alliance with Washington and the U.S. occupation, …

The Syrian Democratic Council (SDC) has expressed its readiness to participate in a “genuine, constructive dialogue process” with the Damascus government. SDC considers this step to be one of the most important processes for resolving the Syrian crisis through a Russian-American consensus. In remarks quoted by opposition websites, SDC president …