April, 2021

• 5 April

  How the U.S. Should Respond to Russia’s New Escalation in Ukraine

  

  For the better part of six years since Russia and Ukraine signed the Minsk II cease-fire accord for the disputed eastern Ukrainian region of Donbass, one question has loomed: How will the U.S. and NATO respond if Russian troops again cross back over the so-called Line of Contact, dividing Ukrainian …

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• 5 April

  The timing that explains the US-Iran non-negotiation

  

  The timing question is whether the US wants to try to strike a deal with current Iranian President Hassan Rouhani before the June elections. The latest bizarre round of US-Iran non-negotiation through public statements around each other is about one thing: timing.

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• 5 April

  US must rejoin Iran deal ‘as quickly as possible’ – US lawmakers

  

  “Iran had 102 kilograms of enriched uranium when Trump took office; they have 2.5 tons of enriched uranium now.” US Senator Chris Murphy and Rep. Ro Khanna, both Democrats, addressed the stalemate between the US and Iran regarding the return to the 2015 nuclear agreement and urged the administration “to …

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• 5 April

  Iran blinks first, but real challenge still ahead for nuclear talks

  

  Until now, Tehran’s position has been that there is no need for negotiations, rejecting three offers by the US to restart talks. Iran attempted to sound tough even as it buckled under the pressure of US nuclear diplomacy, and agreed to join renegotiations of the 2015 nuclear deal late Thursday.

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• 5 April

  Ex-IDF intel. chief: Israel must continue covert ops in Iran

  

  Maj.-Gen. (ret.) Aharon Ze’evi-Farkash believes that the Biden administration will not rejoin the 2015 nuclear deal before the June Iranian presidential election. “Don’t worry, we are there in Iran; we will make sure they do not cross the line,” said senior Russian officials during a visit to Israel.

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• 5 April

  Syria’s civil war can only end with separation

  

  MIDDLE ISRAEL: There are currently two main blueprints for postwar Syria: Assad’s and Vladimir Putin’s. Bibi Netanyahu can only dream of this: 21 straight years in power, absolute electoral victories, no coalition talks, no judiciary to battle and no media to curse. The side effects of this political monopolism – …

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• 5 April

  Israel should be wary of Turkey – editorial

  

  Turkey’s sole goal under Erdogan over the last decade has been to isolate Israel and empower Hamas terrorists and Israel’s enemies. Turkey is again rolling out media narratives about “reconciliation” with Israel. The latest attempt by Turkey to influence media narratives on this so-called reconciliation were articles that appeared in …

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• 5 April

  How Western Mali Could Become A Gold Mine For Terrorists – Analysis

  A flourishing gold mining economy in Kayes offers violent extremist groups an opportunity to expand their membership and reach. On 9 April 2020, al-Qaeda-affiliated groups operating in the Sahel attacked a security and customs post on the Bamako-Kayes road in Mali’s western Kayes region. Four months later, on 5 August, …

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• 5 April

  Biden’s Afghan Peace Initiative – Analysis

  The Joe Biden administration has chosen to revive the peace process in Afghanistan. However, this involves several political risks and spoilers as there are many elements in the package that are unacceptable to either Kabul or the Taliban, or both. Any change in the political structure of Kabul will have …

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• 5 April

  Clashing With Two Great Powers At Once Is Bad Policy – OpEd

  Right out of the gate, the Biden administration seems to be at loggerheads with both China and Russia. Richard Nixon would be disappointed. Despite his reputation as an anticommunist, Nixon managed to get China and the Soviet Union in a competition to better relations with the United States. His diplomatic …

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