Geopolitics

Shehab Al-Makahleh It is palpable that a nation’s foreign policy mirrors its political leaders’ perspectives and views. These are a product of internal and external factors that influence political orientations in relations with other countries and international organizations. Jordan, like other Mideast countries, has always been inclined to …

By Shehab Makahleh, Alex Vatanka The Kingdom of Jordan, a long-time U.S. ally in the Middle East, is looking to reorient its regional policies. This shift is not only significant for Washington to monitor but has already alarmed Saudi Arabia, the historic cornerstone of Jordanian foreign policy. With Jordan engaged …

Andrew Korybko   A superficial reading of “Operation Olive Branch” indicates that it’s a Turkish-Kurdish war, but the details of who’s fighting make it look a lot more like a Daesh civil war in its opening stages, and that’s exactly what both Ankara and the YPG originally intended. …

Shehab Al-Makahleh It is apparent that Washington has various stances on Syria during the coming period. The first is that its foreign policy is still vague, it has targeted the Syrian army many times. The second trend is the role-play that Russia and Iran master when it comes …

Deena Stryker   Who today knows the name of Paul Wolfowitz? He was neither a Congressman, Senator, nor governor, yet until this month, official US ‘defense’ policy has borne his name. A former President of the World Bank and U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, following the 1991 Persian Gulf War, the neo-conservative he authored the …

By Shehab al-Makahleh and Giorgio Cafiero The Red Sea has historically connected traders from Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East. Today the strategically valuable body of water is vital to Sino-European trade. In recent years, several countries have established military footholds along the saltwater inlet’s African shore. …

By Leonid Savin After Brexit and the significant growth of Eurosceptic and populist influence in Europe, the future of the European Union seems to be no longer questioned. However, the future is always open, and therefore there is more than one possible scenario. The U.S. National Intelligence Council proposes …

By Shehab Al-Makahleh and Giorgio Cafiero Jordan has been left with no choice but to oppose US President Donald J. Trump’s recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel because the issue impacts the kingdom’s security and politics. As Jordanian King Abdullah II focuses more attention on Jerusalem and the …

Shehab Al-Makahleh  The importance of the Middle East region for the US stems from the fact that it is part of a wider geography which includes Europe and Asia, whose security has been one of the main American concerns since the 1900s. The Middle East has been considered …