March, 2023

• 25 March

  China’s Shifting Middle East Policy – OpEd

  

  Chinese President Xi Jinping this week traveled to Moscow to meet with his friend and ally, Vladimir Putin. It was the 40th time that the two have met since Xi took office more than a decade ago. The visit not only solidified China’s strategic partnership with Russia, but Xi also …

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• 25 March

  Why Saudi And Iranian Diplomatic Deal Is A Big Deal For Multipolar World Order – OpEd

  

  Something astonishing happened on March 10 in Beijing. After years of vindictive antagonism, mistrust and bloody proxy wars in the West Asia, Iran and Saudi Arabia finally reached an agreement to re-establish diplomatic relations and to reopen the embassies. According to a tripartite joint statement of the countries released by …

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• 25 March

  Bulgaria Refuses To Send Soviet-Era Fighter Jets And Tanks To Ukraine

  

  With its stockpile of Soviet-era weapons, Bulgaria, home to a thriving arms industry, could be a key ally of Ukraine, which is trained on and equipped with such arms, in its war against invading Russian forces. But with parliament now dissolved ahead of elections on April 2, the fifth snap …

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• 25 March

  Going Beyond Mercenaries: Is Prigozhin Preparing For A Power Struggle In Russia? (Part I) – Analysis

  

  Moscow’s war of aggression against Ukraine has caused a proliferation in the “privatization of force” in Russia (see EDM, February 27; February 28), with Yevgeny Prigozhin, the sponsor and founder of the notorious Wagner Group, enjoying unprecedented publicity. While some commentators and experts (both in Russia and abroad) argue that …

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• 25 March

  Free Will Trumps Determinism In Gulf Politics – OpEd

  

  China’s mediation to normalise Saudi-Iranian diplomatic ties has been widely welcomed internationally, especially in the West Asian region. A clutch of unhappy states that do not want to see China stealing a march on any front, even if it advances the cause of world peace, mutely watched. The US led …

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• 25 March

  Georgia’s Slide to Authoritarianism

  

  Georgia’s European future is falling victim to the country’s domestic power struggle. The EU’s delay in granting Georgia candidate status could strengthen the pull of Russia and silence pro-reform actors. Often considered a beacon of democracy in the post-Soviet space, Georgia faces a major turn toward authoritarianism. Located on the …

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• 25 March

  Judy Asks: Is the EU Doing Enough for Eastern Europe?

  

  Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the EU has stepped up its engagement in Eastern Europe. But it must now go beyond providing soft power support and become a security player in the region. Since Russia’s war in Ukraine began in February 2022, we have seen a different EU in …

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• 25 March

  The Iraq Invasion’s Long Shadow

  

  The United States and its European allies are still grappling with the consequences of their invasion of Iraq. As Russia continues its invasion of Ukraine, it is time to understand the lessons from 2003.A large majority of Europeans knew that the invasion of Iraq in March 2003 was wrong. Its …

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• 25 March

  Putin and Xi Are Making the War in Ukraine a Global Contest

  

  The outcome of Russia’s war on Ukraine will determine who sets the political and economic rules for the coming decades. At stake is the rules-based international order. Ron DeSantis is off target. The Republican governor of Florida who has presidential ambitions recently said the war in Ukraine was not in …

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• 25 March

  Algeria’s Gas Vs. Rightwing Ideology: Will Italy Change Its Position On Jerusalem? – OpEd

  

  When Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu left Tel Aviv for Rome on March 9, he was flown to Ben Gurion airport in Tel Aviv by a helicopter because anti-government protesters blocked all the roads around it. Netanyahu’s visit was not met with much enthusiasm in Italy, either. A sit-in was …

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