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Sohail Mahmood (Pakistan), Mehdi Dehnavi (Iran) The recent extremist uprisings in the Middle East are one of the most alarming international news of this year. International community seems to fail with generating new efficient ideas how to deal with this ordeal. The IS is spreading steadily its influence and is gaining support among people....
In recent months, the Ukrainian crisis and the sharp deterioration in relations between Russia and the West have pushed the Middle East up the scale of Russia's foreign policy priorities. The sudden and rapid surge in terrorist activity in the Middle East and North Africa as well as the terrorists’ military successes in Iraq have determined Russia’s renewed focus ...
Less than two weeks ago President Obama, sitting for an interview with The Economist magazine, basically went ‘old school’ on President Putin, dismissing his Presidency, his country, and the future of both. While his words were certainly blatant and blunt, what might be even more revealing is the subtle subtext hidden inside his cavalier attitude: apparently even Presidents are not above being petulant. There can be little debate about President Obama’s intent to insult and offend...
Dynamics and Trends in Water Consumption The population of the Arabian monarchies is expected to reach 59 million by 2025 and 72 million by 2050. As a result, water seems to be becoming even more important as a strategic resource than hydrocarbons. One ton of fresh water is already more expensive than a ton of oil in this water-scarce environment, meaning that water security is a key prerequisite for the region’s future development. Water Supply Except for Oman, all Gulf Cooperation Council...
... rather than the Falklands, which for London is like a red cloth to a bull. Against the background of the serious deterioration in US-Russian relations, the Kremlin does not want to lose track of the constructive cooperation with the White House in the Middle East peace process, where there are already points of contention between Moscow and Washington. For instance, there is disagreement over the reconciliation between Hamas and Fatah. The Kremlin took into account the restrained position taken by ...
... connections and leveled accusations of Iranian involvement and support to the Houthis, what with the common Shia heritage. These accusations are not completely baseless. Iran has a long history of generating support for whatever groups it can find across the Middle East, especially if those groups might share a particular hatred for Israel. Saudi Arabia has actually always supported the Yemen government’s version of events, but, keeping in mind the earlier axiom that foreign affairs are never simple ...
ISIL or al-Qaeda 2.0? On June 10, 2014, Iraq was shattered by yet another political earthquake, raising the possibility of another Afghanistan located right in the heart of the Middle East. Within just a very small number of days, the terrorist organization Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL), known in Iraq and Syria for appalling atrocities and militant fanaticism, was able to occupy the two-million person city of Mosul,...
... Jordan and other countries. Opened by Dimitrios Triantaphyllou, Director of the Center for International and European Studies, the event was composed of two parts, the first presenting a series of plenary sessions on issues from Ukraine crisis to the Middle East settlement other problems like corruption in Iran and socially responsible business in Turkey. The speakers' list included Sergey Konoplyov, Director of Harvard's Black Sea Regional Security Program; Adam Balcer, Program Director "The ...
... military and strategic gains achieved by the group so far this year have been impressive and unexpected by leaders in the West, this lack of expectation may be accounted for more by the absence of diligence on the part of Western analysts covering the Middle East than by any miraculous strength of force on the part of ISIS. The ISIS movement in Iraq has been bolstered by the hardened fighters located largely in eastern Syria, where there has always been a heavy population of Sunni Muslims. The reality ...
President Vladimir Putin’s visit to China on May 20-21 culminated in the signing of roughly 50 agreements ushering in a period of unprecedented convergence between the two countries. Does this affect the situation in the Middle East and, if so, in what way? Everything seems to indicate that the answer to the first part of this question is yes. Seemingly, the Middle East was not the focus of the talks between the two leaders. For all the obvious asymmetry in interests,...
