The opening of a sizable U.S. consulate in Erbil represents a strategic shift in Trump's approach to Iraq, one that places a higher priority on long-term diplomatic influence concentrated in more stable geographic regions than on direct military engagement
In an initiative that goes beyond conventional diplomacy, the United States opened a sizeable consulate building in Erbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan, on Wednesday, December 3. This opening has significant political and security ramifications...
... ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) has twenty-one, the Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy Party (DEM Party) has four, and the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), its partner, has four. This implies that if the ruling coalition agrees with the Kurds and three additional members from smaller parties on the committee, it might obtain a two-thirds majority—31 votes. Therefore, it seems that the government and the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) may have brokered a deal for the CHP ...
Policy Brief #47 / 2023
Policy Brief #47 / 2023
The Middle East has been clearly showing signs that is it changing. It would not be an overstatement to say that a lot of what is happening now would have been unthinkable just a couple of years ago.
The greatest of these changes is the China-mediated rapprochement between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Given that these countries are regional “centers of power”, their new and improved relations may help reduce regional...
... especially important for Turkey, given that it is on the eve of its presidential and parliamentary elections, which are to be held in June this year.
Interestingly, President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan is trying to solve the problem posed by Syrian Kurds by combining force with the possibility of normalizing relations with Syria. Back in December of last year, he proposed to hold a meeting between the presidents of Russia, Turkey, and Syria. According to Erdogan, this meeting should be after negotiations ...
RIAC and IRAS Working Paper #59/2020
RIAC and the Institute for Iran-Eurasia Studies Working Paper #59/2020
This paper aims to analyze the pivotal points of the Middle Eastern crises and to which extent the interests of Moscow and Tehran overlap or contradict each other. Some of the key issues of the political situation in the region were assessed, such as the situation in Idlib, the prospects for a political process in Syria, Israel’s role in the region’s future, the path to Syria’s reconstruction...
... events of 2014, when Islamic State intensified its advance and surrounded the (mainly Kurd-populated) city of Kobani in Northern Syria, were another source of irritation for Washington. It was some time before the Turkish authorities decided to help the Kurds, which also dealt a blow at the country’s image in the eyes of the international community. As a result, Washington strengthened its cooperation with the Kurds in fighting Islamic State. In addition, it is clear that the White House has rule out ...
