UN Special Envoy for Syria Geir Pedersen said Syrian civilians living under a government siege in the southwestern city are suffering from shortages of fuel, food and medicine. The United Nations’ special envoy for Syria on Thursday expressed concern over the “alarming situation” in Daraa, the birthplace of the Syrian …
Read More »Turkey ‘still in lead’ as US surges troops back to Kabul airport for evacuation
The Pentagon is readying as many as 8,000 troops to facilitate the withdrawal of American and Afghan personnel. The Pentagon is deploying an additional 3,000 troops into Afghanistan to assist the evacuation of American and Afghan personnel amid sweeping Taliban advances across the country. Three infantry battalions — two from …
Read More »The Tunisian president’s political capital is finite
President Kais Saied’s July 25 decisions to suspend parliament and the government appear to have been largely popular, despite sharp criticism from those denouncing them as a coup, unconstitutional, or a dangerous overstep of his authority. The mass celebrations in the streets that broke out immediately after his televised announcement …
Read More »Irregular Warfare: A Case Study in CIA and US Army Special Forces Operations in Northern Iraq, 2002-03
Summary Irregular warfare (IW) is increasingly common in the 21st century and the U.S. must learn from its successful experiences with it and apply those lessons to great power competition. For the past two decades the CIA and Army Special Forces have demonstrated how to leverage interagency relationships and apply …
Read More »The two pillars of the Abraham Accords
It has been a year since the August 2020 announcement of the Abraham Accords, which normalized diplomatic relations between the UAE and Israel. The accords were later signed at a White House ceremony attended by President Donald Trump that September. In less than a year the UAE and Israel swiftly …
Read More »Afghan Refugee Wave Sharpens EU-Turkey Migration Crisis
Relations between Brussels and Ankara – already strained by earlier crises over refugees – face an even bigger test as the number of Afghans fleeing westwards rapidly increases. Thousands of refugees, mostly from Afghanistan and some other Asian countries, passing the Turkish-Iranian border, make regular new headlines in Turkey. A …
Read More »New Bosnian Peace Envoy Inherits Mission Impossible
Christian Schmidt will need his wits about him – and the firm backing of Germany, the EU and US – if he is to avert a dangerous escalation in Bosnia. Bosnia’s new international High Representative, German Christian Schmidt, touched down at the beginning of August, but he will have scant …
Read More »Unnerved by Taliban Gains, Central Asia Boosts Ties With Russia and China
The ongoing withdrawal of U.S. troops from Afghanistan is transforming diplomatic and security dynamics in Central Asia, creating opportunities for Russia and China to enhance their engagement with increasingly anxious governments in the region. The resurgence of the Taliban that began in the spring—and their takeover of large swaths of …
Read More »The U.S. Is Leaving Behind a ‘Nightmare’ in Afghanistan
From the moment President Joe Biden announced in April that the United States would withdraw all its military forces from Afghanistan within a few months, the level of violence there intensified, negotiations sputtered and the prospects for the Afghan people—especially Afghan women—became grim. The seeming rashness of the decision and …
Read More »Marines Prepare to Evacuate Kabul Embassy ahead of Possible Taliban Assault
The Pentagon is preparing for a possible evacuation of the U.S. embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan amid fears that the Taliban may overrun the compound in the coming days. As the Islamic terrorist organization makes significant gains, capturing ten provincial capitals across the country, the State Department will reduce embassy staff …
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