F. Schaeffer, Worldcrunch
BEIJING — On Xingfu Street, in central Beijing, a dozen people dressed in reflective vests compose a single file line — but they are not merely standing. Hunched to the ground or cautiously walking sideways, they advance as if they were simulating a hostage evacuation or avoiding a sniper. Watched by bewildered passersby, these citizens are participating in a performance by the artist Deng Yufeng, aiming to depict...
Galip Dalay, Brookings
Greco-Turkish maritime disputes, couched in competing narratives of national sovereignty, are nothing new. Their genesis dates as far back as the founding periods of the two states. These disputes have traditionally taken the form of a frozen conflict, with occasional flare-ups. Given this backdrop, what are the driving factors behind the current dispute, which is the longest-lasting crisis between the two countries since Turkey's military intervention in Cyprus in 1974?
Stephan Pechdimaldji, Newsweek
In the final days of the Trump administration, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo declared that China was committing genocide against Uighurs and other minorities in Xinjiang province. Whether this was intended to box in our newly elected president remains to be seen. Historically, the United States' record on recognizing genocide has been problematic.
F Tastekin, Al-Monitor
Myths and falsehoods abound in Turkish and Arab press about Turkey's regional ventures, nourishing overblown elations and fears.
Maaza Mengiste, London Review of Books
Ian Bremmer, Time
In geopolitics, Biden will spend time and political capital rebuilding the Transatlantic relationship, something other recent U.S. presidents never had to worry about. He'll have to re-establish U.S. credibility in the region by reassuring South Korea, Japan and other Asian allies—who are rightly fearful that Trumpism might return—that the U.S. remains committed to help them manage challenges created by China's rise. That means a tighter alignment of free-market democracies and a coordinated multilateral approach. Читать дальше...
Hannah Beech, NYT
The army's detention of Daw Aung San Suu Kyi brought an abrupt end to the theory that she might strike a workable balance between civilian and military power.
Michael Auslin, National Review
Myanmar's military staged a coup on Monday, taking power in the capital of Naypyidaw, declaring a state of emergency, and detaining Aung San Suu Kyi, the country's de facto leader. Since the landmark 2015 election in Burma that ended over half a century of military rule starting in 1962, and brought Suu Kyi to power, much of the world has assumed that democracy in the nation of 54 million people was fully established in...
Salil Tripathi, Foreign Policy
With Washington and much of the world preoccupied, the generals have calculated they can get away with it.
Arif Rafiq, Middle East Institute
In the 1950s, at the onset of the Cold War, Pakistan and Turkey were part of the Central Treaty Organization or CENTO, a pro-Western bloc of Muslim-majority states. Today, the two countries — both with troubled relations with the United States — are Muslim middle powers with a growing entente in a multipolar Eurasia.
