Shukriya Bradost Despite their many differences, both Tehran and Jerusalem are finding themselves lonely in the global arena. At this year’s UN General Assembly, two bitter enemies are locked in confrontation. However, Iran and Israel arrived with more in common than either would admit. Both states stand before …
Read More »The Legacy of Afghanistan
Owen Kirby Since the triumph of World War II, the United States has waged two drawn-out, unsuccessful wars halfway around the world. Both were plagued by mission creep, ever-changing objectives, ill-fated and costly attempts at nation-building, a failure to understand the nature of the opponent and local culture, …
Read More »The Politics Behind the Tehran–Islamabad–Istanbul Link
Sahibzada M. Usman The plan to bring back the Tehran–Islamabad–Istanbul rail corridor feels like one of those big regional ideas that’s been floating around for ages but never quite delivered. This time, though, Pakistan, Iran and Turkey are putting actual dates and numbers on the table. Weekly trains …
Read More »Trump’s MAGA Army Takes Its ‘Culture War’ Across the Atlantic to Europe
Martin Banks A major new study claims that Donald Trump and the American MAGA movement have launched a ‘culture war’ on Europe. A major new study claims that Donald Trump and the American MAGA movement have launched a ‘culture war’ on Europe. It goes on to say that …
Read More »France – Is it Time for the Sixth Republic?
Andrew Wolf France is facing a social, economic and political crisis not witnessed in almost seven decades. Under the “autocratic rule” of Emmanuel Macron, the country lies somewhere on a spectrum between “spiraling political crisis”, “big trouble” and yet, another government collapse. France is facing a social, economic …
Read More »America Lost India. Without a Trade Deal, It May Lose Its Next War Too
Pawan Deshpande Weakening America-India ties are not only a diplomatic error, they will likely prevent the country from doing well in the event of a new war. India’s deepening ties with Russia and China are more than a diplomatic setback. They strike at the heart of America’s ability …
Read More »Preparing for the End of the Islamic Republic of Iran
Matt Cookson The United States can’t do much to ensure that democracy will emerge after the potential end of Iran’s theocracy. At the end of July, a broad spectrum of Iranian dissidents gathered in Munich for an event demonstrating a united opposition to the Islamist regime in Tehran. …
Read More »The Franklin Fellowship’s Newest Acolyte
Jacob Heilbrunn The recruitment of Joey R. Hood is a kind of case study of the ability of ambitious government civil servants to reinvent themselves in the image of Trump. The Ben Franklin Fellowship is an organization of US diplomats and foreign policy professionals that was founded in …
Read More »Saudi Arabia and Pakistan Seal Mutual Defence Pact Amid Regional Tensions
Saudi Arabia and nuclear-armed Pakistan signed a landmark mutual defence pact on Wednesday, deepening decades of military cooperation at a time of heightened instability in the Middle East. Background: Gulf Arab states have grown uneasy about U.S. reliability as a security guarantor. Israel’s recent airstrikes on Hamas leaders …
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