September, 2025

• 29 September

  Democracy Digest: Slovak Intelligence Chief Faces Plagiarism Allegations

  

  Slovakia’s intelligence chief, Pavol Gaspar, is facing allegations of academic fraud after an investigation by the daily Sme found that his 2011 law thesis on corruption was largely plagiarised. The thesis, written at the private Pan-European University in Bratislava, lifted about two-thirds of its content verbatim from four published sources, …

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• 29 September

  Captagon Drug Networks Adapt and Survive in Middle East After Assad’s Fall

  

  Syria’s transitional government is cracking down on the production of Captagon — an illicit synthetic stimulant that flourished under the sponsorship of the Bashar al-Assad regime until its fall in December. But production and trade of the drug are continuing, particularly in parts of Syria not yet under the control …

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• 28 September

  Hezbollah’s Margin is Tightening

  

  The Lebanese government’s efforts to secure a monopoly over weapons are advancing, but can it ignore Iran? The decision of the Lebanese government on August 5* to officially endorse the state’s monopoly over weapons was an important milestone. Yet it was also incomplete, because it didn’t really address a dimension …

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• 28 September

  A Second Chance for a Consensual Process in Syria?

  

  Knitting law and politics together into a constitution that serves as a repository of hard-won agreements is a matter of trust and bargaining, rather than foresight. But Syria’s will need both. In March 2025, interim Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa issued a constitutional declaration to govern the country’s transitional phase. The …

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• 28 September

  Why the U.S. Security Stance Is Worse than a Dormant NATO

  

  With the return of U.S. President Donald Trump to the White House, Europeans worried about a dormant NATO or worse, a U.S. withdrawal from the alliance. There is a case to be made that the current situation is even worse than these doomsday scenarios. Trump and his team said enough …

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• 28 September

  Network Diplomacy

  As the forces of globalization and the information revolution transform international relations, U.S. foreign policy institutions remain hunkered down in outmoded approaches and insular institutional cultures. Heavily subsidized, protected from competitive pressures, and guaranteed a market regardless of the quality of output, the U.S. foreign policy apparatus at times seems …

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• 28 September

  In Iraq and Yemen, Climate Activism Requires Both Defiance and Adaptation

  

  In the Middle East, climate activism is often intertwined with public grievances over perceived governance failures and ongoing regional and national conflicts. Not only are Iraq and Yemen among the countries most vulnerable to climate change,1 compounded by apparent endemic state corruption, but they have also become key arenas for …

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• 28 September

  The Widespread Fallout of Israel’s Qatar Strikes

  

  The operation against Hamas in Doha has eliminated the notion that the Middle East can rely on America for protection of its lands. The Gulf States’ Limited Options Israel’s air strike in Doha on Tuesday was a wakeup call for the Gulf states: There are few limits on Israel’s ability …

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• 28 September

  Trump promettait la paix en 24h, il offre la guerre sans fin

  

  Après avoir promis la paix en Ukraine en 24 heures, Donald Trump adopte désormais une posture de chef de guerre par procuration. Dans un revirement spectaculaire, il appelle à une reconquête totale par Kiev, tout en annonçant que les États-Unis continueront à livrer des armes… mais que l’Europe paiera la …

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• 28 September

  Près de 400 000 personnes ont déserté les forces armées ukrainiennes

  Des gilets pare-balles pour femmes enceintes ont été présentés lors d’une exposition militaire ukrainienne afin de les préparer à combattre la Russie. Les gilets pare-balles pour femmes enceintes présentés lors d’un salon militaire ukrainien illustrent une fois de plus la grave pénurie de main-d’œuvre à laquelle l’Ukraine est confrontée, et …

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