As soon as the People’s Republic of China was established in 1949, China and the Middle East faced a series of challenges. In recent years, China’s influence in the region has expanded due to its economic interests in energy, trade, infrastructure construction, and diplomatic contacts with the region’s countries. This …

The Middle East or West Asia is witnessing increased diplomatic activity in recent months with regional leaders, who were squabbling among themselves not too long ago, engaging each other at various levels and forums. Saudi Arabia and Qatar have buried their four-year altercation, while Turkey and UAE are engaging in …

In terms of GDP, it ranks 22nd out of 27, below Luxemburg, Bulgaria, and Croatia. In terms of per capita income, it ranks 19th, below Estonia, Czech Republic and Portugal. But in terms of taking a moral and spirited stance against the excesses of China, the tiny nation of Lithuania …

The EU expresses its solidarity with Poland as regards the emergency conditions at its borders, but also does not back off from its demand for the rule of law to be respected in Belarus. At best, we view the usefulness of the European family as a given. At worst, we …

Russian military forces have massed on the border with Ukraine as well as in Russian-occupied Crimea. Tens of thousands of Russian troops, armored forces and elite ground units have taken up positions within 140 miles of the Ukrainian border, sometimes doing so at night to conceal their movements. Some experts …

The Kremlin on Monday strongly rejected the U.S. claims of a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine, saying it could be a ruse intended to cover up what it described as Ukrainian leadership’s aggressive intentions. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov dismissed U.S. media allegations of Moscow’s purported plans to invade Ukraine as …

A 21-year-old man is due in court on Tuesday charged with eight terrorism offences. Mohammad Zubair Khan, of west London, was charged on Monday, November 22 with eight counts of dissemination of terrorist material (contrary to Section 2 of the Terrorism Act 2006). He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court …

The Taliban has expanded its shadowy war against the Islamic State branch in Afghanistan, deploying hundreds more fighters to this eastern province in an increasingly violent fight and critical test of the group’s counterterrorism abilities after the U.S. troop withdrawal. More than 1,300 additional Taliban fighters have been deployed to …

The joint forces battling the Iran-backed Houthis in western Yemen have taken full control of key areas between the provinces of Hodeidah and Taez. A large-scale operation that began last Friday has led to big losses in the rebel ranks, said Aseel Assakladi, media centre director of the pro-government Al …

A report in Covert Action Magazine from the self-declared Donetsk People’s Republic in Eastern Ukraine describes grave fears of a new offensive by Ukrainian government forces, after increased shelling, a drone strike by a Turkish-built drone and an attack on Staromaryevka, a village inside the buffer zone established by the …