John V. Whitbeck The Western world has reacted to the “terrorist” shooting spree in Paris with near-hysteria, immediately intensifying its own lethal violence in the Middle East. Israel is branding as a wave of “terrorism” the continuing suicidal attacks by hope-deprived Palestinian children armed only with knives and …
Read More »‘Irresponsible arms transfers’ key factor in IS arsenal: Amnesty
For decades, huge weapons shipments entered Iraq with no clear process in place to track where they were stored or how they were used The Islamic State (IS) group has captured much of its military arsenal from weapons supply points left throughout Iraq by Saddam Hussein prior to …
Read More »Erdogan’s dreams of empire are perilous for Turkey
The aggressiveness of Turkish foreign policy is something new. It goes back to 2009 when, at Davos, President Erdoğan insulted Shimon Peres, then Israel’s president, using the Turkish form of “you” that is normally used for dogs, and accusing him of atrocities in Gaza. That went down very …
Read More »Will Turkey be able to replace Russian gas with Qatari imports?
Recent meeting between Turkey’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani gave rise to a new rhetoric in Turkey: Turkey will be able to meet any shortfall in Russian gas supplies with new imports of Qatari liquefied natural gas (LNG). Any new LNG contracts signed with Qatar, …
Read More »Turkey sticks its neck out again, this time in Iraq
In its second incredibly controversial move in as many weeks, Turkey drew Baghdad’s wrath over the weekend by dispatching uninvited reinforcement troops to Iraq. While Turkey said the move was merely routine, Baghdad called it a “violation of sovereignty” and told Ankara it had 48 hours to get …
Read More »Oval Office address, RIP? Obama’s stand-up moment fails to revive a speech setting where only a few presidents have actually thrived.
By Sarah Wheaton By speaking from a podium, President Barack Obama may have made his last stand for the Oval Office speech on Sunday night. It’s never been the president’s best stage as a communicator, White House aides acknowledge, which may be why it was only Obama’s third …
Read More »Daesh on the Run: Putin’s Decisiveness the Key to Russia’s Success in Syria
Russian decisiveness in taking on the notorious Daesh (ISIS/ ISIL) terrorist organization in Syria is the key to Moscow’s successful military operation, political analyst Salman Rafi Sheikh stresses. In contrast to the US-led anti-Daesh coalition, Russia has demonstrated a serious and realistic approach towards conflict resolution in the Middle East, according …
Read More »Turkey Playing ‘Daesh Card to Achieve Its Own Geopolitical Goals
Turkey’s double-standard policy toward the Daesh (ISIL) terrorist group proves that Ankara has its own geopolitical goals in the region, analysts said. Turkey has rejected a US proposal to deploy additional troops to seal the stretch of the Syrian-Turkish border controlled by Daesh terrorists, local media reported last week.The 98-kilometer stretch of the …
Read More »NATO Will Help Turkey to Strengthen Its Air Defense System
NATO Secretary General believes that Ankara has suffered more than any other NATO member from the crisis in the Middle East. As such, the alliance has decided to work out a new “package” of measures to strengthen Turkey’s military capacities, Stoltenberg said. NATO will help its ally, Turkey, …
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