By Shehab Al-Makahleh To vote for independence or not, that is the question in Kurdistan and Scotland. Both cases are loaded with huge geopolitical implications. In Iraqi Kurdistan a non-binding referendum was held on the 25th of September, in which the Kurds were asked to decide whether to …
Read More »Alliances shift in the Middle East as all roads lead to Moscow
ANALYSIS / By Firas Al-Atraqchi As US media continues to speculate on the motives behind the tragic mass shooting in Las Vegas and the press in the UK critique Prime Minister Theresa May’s latest policy speech, there have been significant changes in Middle Eastern alliances. On Friday, Saudi Arabia’s …
Read More »Erdogan’s visit to Tehran defines Turkey’s future roadmap
COMMENTARY Turkish president Erdogan will visit Tehran on Wednesday, October 4 to hold bilateral meetings and attend a joint strategic council session. The meeting comes on the heels of Iranian FM visit to Doha, signaling ever closer cooperation and coordination between the three states, and ahead of Saudi …
Read More »Putin arrives to Ankara, German military leaves Incirlik airbase for Jordan
ANALYSIS/COMMENTARY Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Ankara on September 28 for key talks with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, including recent developments in Iraq and Syria and bilateral relations. At the same time, following months of strained relations between the two NATO-states, on Thursday German military has …
Read More »Russian S-400 Erdoğan’s Best Defense from (Un)Predictable Western Policy Whims
ANALYSIS/OPINION Stana Dubajic • By buying Russian S-400 air-defense missile system Turkey, erstwhile Western ally, second largest NATO member, and a bulwark against Soviet expansion in the Middle East during Cold War, has caused a geostrategic earthquake and tipped the Middle East balance of power irreparably against the West. …
Read More »Trump at the United Nations
Kim Petersen “The United States of America has been among the greatest forces for good in the history of the world, and the greatest defenders of sovereignty, security, and prosperity for all.” – US president Donald Trump’s speech to the United Nations General Assembly, 19 September 2017 If you are …
Read More »After Astana-6 China Ready to Join the Syrian Peace Process, Lead the Reconstruction Efforts
GM | Staff Writer After two days of negotiations, Astana talks wrapped up on Friday, resulting in long-awaited agreement on establishing the fourth and the final de-escalation zone in Idlib governorate bordering Turkey. As the talks were concluding, China finally upped the ante on Syria by expressing its …
Read More »The ill timing of Iraqi Kurdish referendum spells another disaster
Stana Dubajic As the Syrian tragic war draws to its end, another potentially explosive development in the region is increasingly gaining media attention in recent weeks – the Iraqi Kurdish referendum. With less than two weeks left to the Referendum date, the Kurds seem to be faced with a …
Read More »King of Saudi Arabia to visit Russia in October
By Peter Korzun • Despite differences over Syria and the Iranian nuclear deal, current Russia-Saudi Arabia relations are arguably at an apex, both in terms of shared interests and mutual understanding. It has just been announced that King of Saudi Arabia Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al Saud will visit Russia in late October. …
Read More »