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Op-ed

Erdogan is Here to Stay

The Turkish president has adopted a transactional policy with the West. Washington should respond in kind. Since the conclusion of Turkey’s presidential elections in May, much analysis has rightly focused on the implications of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s third term from both domestic and foreign policy perspectives. In …

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Elemental Bonds: The United States, Vietnam, and Rare Earth Elements

Washington and Hanoi should seize the opportunity presented by recent improvements in relations to forge a partnership in Rare Earth Element (REE) development. Just a few weeks ago, the United States and Vietnam announced an upgrade in relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, Vietnam’s highest tier of foreign …

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Tragedy and Opportunity in Nagorno-Karabakh

The United States has tended to think about this crucial region too little and too late. But a strategic opportunity still exists. In the span of mere days, the long-disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh, home to Armenians since antiquity, has disappeared as a political entity. By the evening of …

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Beijing’s Middle East Policy is Running Aground

Despite limited diplomatic achievements this year, China finds the Middle East’s perennial conflicts and tensions difficult to navigate. As the United States and the Soviet Union discovered half a century ago, China is finding that its deepening engagement with the Middle East is more frustrating than rewarding. Energy, …

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Social and geopolitical waters in Iraq

The aftermath of the defeat of the Islamic State (IS) group in Iraq has led to a protracted process of recriminations and continued marginalisation of communities demonised as being “friendly” to the terrorist organisation, particularly the Sunni Arabs, who once were the social and political elites of the …

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How likely is an Al-Sabab takeover in Somalia?

Mohammad Godobe The Islamist insurgent group Al-Shabab first rose to prominence in 2006 when US-backed Ethiopian troops invaded Somalia under the cover of American drones, ousting a coalition of Shariah courts, dubbed the Islamic Courts Union, of which Al-Shabab was the youth wing. The armed group became the …

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The geopolitical implications of Nagorno-Karabakh’s demise

Samuel Ramani On 19 September, Azerbaijan launched a large-scale military offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan’s offensive aimed to vanquish the Republic of Artsakh, an ethnically Armenian majority autonomous enclave governed from Stepanakert, and assert its control over the entirety of Nagorno-Karabakh. Azerbaijan’s brief military campaign, which followed a months-long …

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Human Security Perspectives on Hate Speech

As readers of this article, including myself as the writer, we have all likely encountered hate speech, sometimes without even realizing it. The way each of us perceives hate speech can vary, and its impact on individuals may also differ. This recognition leads us to acknowledge that both …

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Democracy Promotion in ASEAN: Opportunities and Limitations

Waqas Jan After the European Union, ASEAN (Association of the Southeast Asian Nations) is fast becoming a complete and holistic political and economic union, its most recent consensus on trade facilitation through custom clearance where all 10 ASEAN member states (AMS), signed the Mutual Recognition Arrangement (MRA) of …

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