Doug Klain, National Interest
Yes, Ukraine has some serious problems but it remains one of the most promising democracies in Eastern Europe.
Chas Freeman, Responsible Statecraft
After centuries of domination by foreigners, the Middle East is now being reshaped primarily by interactions between countries within it.
David Maxwell, 1945
Following the successful Joe Biden-Moon Jae-in summit on May 21, 2021, the Moon administration began backsliding on alliance commitments to military readiness. Specifically, President Moon said COVID-19 will likely make it difficult to conduct the annual ROK/U.S. Combined Forces Command (ROK/U.S. CFC) training in August. Moon likely has the naïve hope that forgoing this...
Americas Quarterly
AMLO's coalition lost precious seats in Congress, placing a hurdle on his plans to pursue constitutional changes.
D. Sevastopulo & S. Fleming, FT
Ever since he entered the White House in January, Joe Biden has articulated one foreign policy goal above others — to work with allies to restrain China.
Michael Rubin, Ekathimerini
On November 19, 1987, the US Senate amended the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act to declare "defense articles of United States origin may not be transferred to or used on Cyprus by Turkey or Greece." The arms embargo passed without notice in either the Washington Post or New York Times, and neither president Ronald Reagan's papers nor secretary of state George Shultz's autobiography mention the ban. The senators behind the amendment believed it would jumpstart diplomacy... Читать дальше...
Stratfor Worldview
The economic growth Turkey's seen this year is unlikely to be sustainable in the long term, as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan pushes to cut interest rates in ways that further destabilize the country's already fragile currency and financial situation. Erdogan has been clear in recent statements that he wants to begin easing Turkey's high-interest rates despite ongoing high inflation in the country, which doesn't bode well to begin an easing cycle. Currency, balance of payments and debt crises are not imminent... Читать дальше...
Ryan Gingeras, War on the Rocks
There was a moment a decade ago when it appeared that the mafia's influence over Turkish politics had ended. Since the 1970s, individuals from Turkey's underworld had been the focus of a series of scandals that rocked the country's political establishment. But by 2009 a number of renowned godfathers were either on trial or already serving long prison terms. Then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared that his government's "clean hands" policies...
Emily Schrader, Jerusalem Post
In the aftermath of the severe hostilities we've seen in recent weeks, the fact that so many divergent parties could come together to form a government is a positive step.
Aslan Doukaev, Jamestown
Despite the relative success of the Syrian regime in stopping the advance of the armed opposition (with help from the Russian expeditionary force and Iranian-backed Shia militias), the war-torn country still remains a magnet for foreign Islamic volunteers. Over 1,800 Dagestanis from the Russian Federation have joined anti-government groups in Syria, Dagestan's Press and Information Minister Umarosman Gadzhiyev told a conference last Friday (May 28), dedicated to countering... Читать дальше...
Malcolm Cook, Lowy Institute
China will not agree to a South China Sea Code of Conduct (COC) that is consistent with the 2016 South China Sea arbitral tribunal ruling, and therefore any COC which China agrees with the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) will harm Australia's interests. But a lack of Australian support for such a Code would aggravate relations with Southeast Asian states and ASEAN, and with China.
Eli Lake, Bloomberg
Milton Ezrati, National Interest
It has become apparent that American business and industry have shifted decisively away from Chinese sourcing, in part because of China's nationalist positioning during the pandemic.
Aharonson & Mansour, Al-Monitor
One of the first challenges for the new Israeli government will be the ongoing crisis in the Gaza Strip. As Hamas' behavior is not expected to change much in the future, and following the lessons learned from the recent Operation Guardian of the Walls, in order to avoid repeating the same mistakes and expecting a different outcome Israel should draw up a to-do list that includes the following items.
Robert Zaretsky, Forward
"Unusual," "unprecedented" and "unlikely" are the commonly used adjectives to describe the uncommon coalition preparing to govern Israel. And their usage is perfectly understandable: If the current coalition survives the internal and external pressures it faces and takes office on June 14, it will truly be all of those un-words. Not only does the coalition encompass parties on the secular hard left and religious hard right, but also depends upon the support of an Israeli Arab party that... Читать дальше...
César Pintado, Small Wars Journal
Chinese investments in Africa have multiplied in recent years, especially since the 2013 launch of the Belt & Road Initiative (BRI). But China has realized that it is a mistake to entrust security and development to trade alone.
