August, 2023

• 3 August

  Beijing’s Wagner Wariness

  

  When the Wagner mutiny first happened in late June, it shocked most strategists and observers in China. To them, it added a whole new layer of uncertainty to their understanding of Russian domestic politics, the Russian-Ukrainian War, and China’s overall external security environment. With Russian President Vladimir Putin now appearing …

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• 3 August

  US, Russia mum as Turkey escalates attacks against Kurdish groups in Syria and Iraq

  

  Both the White House and the State Department remain silent as Turkey’s military campaign against the PKK continues “full blast.” Turkey’s military campaign against alleged Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) targets in Syria and Iraq is continuing full blast with at least four fighters of the US-allied Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) …

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• 3 August

  Berlin’s Delicate Balance With Beijing

  

  Will a Toughened China Strategy Be Enough? In 2020, the European Union’s foreign policy chief, Josep Borrell, called on Europe to forge its “own way” with China and distance itself from the “open confrontation” approach pursued by U.S. President Donald Trump. The goal of Borrell’s “Sinatra doctrine,” so named in …

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• 3 August

  Is the Middle East’s Makeover a Mirage?

  

  Why a Spate of Diplomatic Deals Won’t End Conflict In mid-July, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan completed a high-profile tour of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, a trip that brought tens of billions of dollars in investment deals in Turkey’s struggling economy. The trip was the culmination …

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• 3 August

  Rewriting Russia’s Pursuits in the Middle East

  

  In an interview, Leonid Nersisyan examines Moscow’s stakes in the Levant and North Africa in light of the stalemated war in Ukraine. Leonid Nersisyan is a defense analyst focusing on the foreign and military policy of Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States region. He also follows the defense industry …

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• 3 August

  Contrary Impulses in Iraqi Shiism Today

  

  Is the community a purveyor of revolutionary change, a defender of the status quo, or a combination of both? We are in the Muslim month of Muharram, a time of mourning for Shia Muslims, when they commemorate the martyrdom of Imam Hussein. Over the centuries, rituals during Muharram have been …

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• 3 August

  Gender and Politics

  

  Preface The text has aim to investigate the situation of female representation in politics in the industrialized contemporary Western democracies. Though women are more and more visible in politics, we can not yet say they have taken an equal position compared to men. Of course, they have had to take …

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• 3 August

  Niger Is Fourth Country In Sahel To Experience An Anti-Western Coup – OpEd

  

  At 3 a.m. on July 26, 2023, the presidential guard detained President Mohamed Bazoum in Niamey, the capital of Niger. Troops, led by Brigadier General Abdourahmane Tchiani closed the country’s borders and declared a curfew. The coup d’état was immediately condemned by the Economic Community of West African States, by …

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• 3 August

  A Vision From Vilnius – Angst About China

  

  On the heels of the recent NATO Summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, it has again become clear that this small but ardent Baltic country is emblematic of a restructuring and rebalancing of European relations with the People’s Republic of China (PRC) and its Communist Party leadership. In 2021, Lithuania dared to …

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• 3 August

  Islamic State attack in Syria targets oil convoy, kills 5 soldiers: Monitor

  

  Islamic State sleeper cells have regularly attacked government forces in central and eastern Syria despite losing the last of their territory in 2019. Suspected Islamic State militants attacked a Syrian military convoy in the Syrian desert overnight on Monday, resulting in the death of five government soldiers and the injury …

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