TOPICS

By Shehab Ali With June 5th marking the first anniversary of the Islamic State’s invasion into Iraq, there’s no time like now to assess unfolding events and developments that have taken place over the last 365 days. That iconic image of all that desert sand getting kicked up by …

The shaky truce in Ukraine has given NATO ample opportunities to spread the New Cold War beyond Eastern Europe and into new theaters, one of which has been the greater Black Sea region. The recent destabilizations in Macedonia and Moldova that endanger Russian interests there can be directly …

By Paul Craig Roberts Over the last 15 months Ukrainians have paid for Washington’s overthrow of their elected government in deaths, dismemberment of their country, and broken economic and political relationships with Russia that cost Ukraine its subsidized energy. Now Ukrainians are losing their pensions and traditional support …

By Paul Pillar The New York Times hailed Israel’s ingenuity in addressing its water needs, but played down how Israel exploits its military domination to divert water away from Palestinians and to Israelis, as ex-CIA analyst Paul R. Pillar explains. Israel is the object of widespread admiration for its …

By Maria Dubovikova The confrontation between Russia and the West that started over the Ukrainian crisis, having led to mutual sanctions and blacklists, seems to be calming down. Both sides have shown readiness for dialogue and we seemed on the edge of a thaw in relations. However, it …

U.S. President Barack Obama arrived in southern Germany early Sunday for a G7 summit that is set to be overshadowed by tensions over Greece’s debt crisis and flaring violence in Ukraine. Before the start of the summit in the Bavarian Alps Obama said that leaders would discuss how …

Why is China leading in the race for renewable energy? In terms of a detective novel, China has both motive and means to build a new green growth system. It has abundant motives due to the appalling pollution problems it has created in over three decades of unbridled …

The worldwide use of the renminbi would reduce the cost of financial transactions for China by allowing the direct exchange of RMB claims with non-USD currencies.  China established the first renminbi clearing center in the Middle East in Qatar in April. The aim of the center is to offer local financial institutions access …

Belarus is holding a military exercise not far from its border with Ukraine, which is aimed at tightening border controls and improving its territorial defense.  Belarus is staging military drills aimed at testing the reinforcement systems of its border control and territorial defense, according to the country’s Defense Ministry. © SPUTNIK/ …