September 12, 2022 Eurasia, Middle Orient, Turkey
A Turkish court decided to arrest senior Islamic State figure Bashar Hattab Ghazal Al Sumaidai, who wascaptured by the police, the state-owned Anadolu news agency reported on Friday. The militant, code-named Abu Zeyd, was captured in Istanbul in an operation carried out by police and Turkey’s intelligence agency, Anadolu said.
Read More »
September 12, 2022 Balkans, Eurasia, Middle Orient, Turkey
Latest Turkish-Greek war of words linked to electoral campaigns Turkish Greek bickering continued apace this week with Erdogan repeating his stock threats about descending on Turkey’s foes “unexpectedly in the night,” spurring further overwrought takes on how the two NATO allies might slip into war.
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Africa
L’Europe cherchant à diversifier ses sources d’approvisionnement, deux projets de gazoducs concurrents refont surface. Lequel du projet transsaharien porté par l’Algérie ou du gazoduc offshore défendu par le Maroc est le mieux placé ? Dans le désert ou le long des côtes ouest-africaines? Algérie ou Maroc ? 2030 ou plus …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia, Iran, Middle Orient
In spite of the opposition from US allies in the Middle East as well as many US Congressman — both Democrats and Republicans — the Biden administration appeared determined to reward the ruling mullahs of Iran whose policies and ideology are anchored in “Death to America” and “Death to Israel”. …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia
This week we saw the first real challenge to the EU’s ever-growing sanctions regime against Russia. Predictably, it was Hungary who threatened to derail what should have been a standard renewal of the over 1,200 people and 100 companies that the bloc has slapped visa bans and asset freezes on …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia
Global inflation was generally moderating when the pandemic began, and the downward trend continued into the early months of the crisis. But surging prices since late 2020 have pushed inflation steadily higher. The average global cost of living has risen more in the 18 months since the start of 2021 …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia
Russian President Vladimir Putin has inspired civilisationalist leaders to emerge from the woodwork and publicly define their states as civilisational rather than national entities. These leaders speak of civilisational or ethnic worlds with borders that transcend national frontiers, not nation-states. How far they may wish to push claims that challenge …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia
The Wisdom of Rummy Almost 20 years ago, in the early days of Operation Iraqi Freedom, I had the opportunity to meet the late Donald Rumsfeld. Say about him what you will, but he was great with the troops and, despite being the US Secretary of Defense, spoke to us …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia, South East Asia
As the ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) marks the 46th anniversary of the death of its late leader Mao Zedong, concerns are being raised in some quarters that current leader Xi Jinping is hoping to emulate the “Great Helmsman’s” supreme status in the party hierarchy. At the CCP’s 20th National …
Read More »
September 11, 2022 Eurasia
Russia clearly started the war in Ukraine but from the Russian point of view this has become a NATO proxy war against Russia in Ukraine. And this is seen from this perspective as the continuation of Washington’s war against Moscow that started in 1918, paused for World War II, paused …
Read More »