Geostrategic Media Political Commentary, Analysis, Security, Defense
The confluence of two accelerating trends augurs poorly for critical mineral-rich economies in the Global South: the rise of economic nationalism in advanced economies and the return of territorial conquest as a normalized—if not yet fully legitimized—tool of statecraft. The United States and the European Union are aggressively …
August, 2025
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6 August
Why is the UAE Positioning Itself as a Hub for International Diplomacy?
On July 2nd 2025, the London-based online news outlet Middle East Eye reported that the heads of state of arch-foes Armenia and Azerbaijan were set to meet each other imminently in Dubai for normalization talks. Sure enough, this came to pass a mere eight days later – albeit …
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6 August
When Silence Becomes Complicity: Europe, Israel, and the Gaza Dilemma
Brian Hudson In a world where the foundations of international law are being eroded under the weight of geopolitical interests and strategic calculations, the European Union finds itself at a historic crossroads: Are the values it claims to champion—human rights, justice, and multilateralism—truly guiding its foreign policy, or …
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6 August
Redrawing the Middle East: Scenarios for 2026
By Dr. Shehab Al-Makahleh In a private meeting with geopolitical analyst George Friedman in 2022, and during an earlier conversation with the late Henry Kissinger in 2021, both thinkers alluded to the strategic inevitabilities of conflict in the Middle East. Strategist Friedman warned that the region was heading …
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2 August
What Will Syria Do with Its Foreign Militants?
Rany Ballout Unifying and deradicalizing Syria’s armed forces will be the regime’s most formidable challenge. The United States has now lifted all sanctions on Syria, except on some individuals and entities associated with the former Assad regime. Additionally, the United States has revoked the foreign terrorist organization designation …
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2 August
Central Asia: The Great Game 2.0
A new “Great Game” is unfolding in the Caucasus and Central Asia, echoing the nineteenth-century rivalry between empires, with a modern, multipolar twist. The term “Great Game” refers to the nineteenth-century strategic rivalry between the British and Russian Empires over influence in Central Asia, particularly in Afghanistan, Persia, …
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2 August
It’s Time for the Semiconductor Industry to Step Up
Semiconductor firms have a lot to learn from America’s banks; investing in compliance is the price of entry in a critical industry. Earlier this week, the Trump administration narrowed export controls on advanced semiconductors ahead of US-China trade negotiations. The administration is increasingly relying on export licenses to …
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2 August
Europe’s Turkey Dilemma
Robert Ellis Europe needs Turkey to shore up its defense. But is Ankara committed to European security? The European Union is caught between a rock and a hard place. On the one hand, it faces an onslaught from Vladimir Putin’s Russia, which is determined to overturn the rules-based …
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2 August
The Gulf States’ Middle Power Ascent
John Calabrese The recent Israel-Iran crisis could catalyze an expanded role for the Gulf states in maintaining regional security. The June eruption of hostilities between Israel and Iran once again exposed the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to the acute dangers of regional instability. Yet it also raises …
