Saudi Arabia accusing Qatar of sponsoring terrorism is like the McDonald's fast food chain accusing its Burger King rival of sponsoring obesity. However the schism that has opened up between the Gulf States carries with it a dangerous portent of a regional conflict with ramifications for the entire world. Adding to this sudden ramping up of regional …
Continue reading With Trump on Board, the Saudis Move Against Iran
After a coalition of Persian Gulf sheikdoms led by Saudi Arabia presented an ultimatum to Qatar on Monday and blockaded its economy, the Turkish parliament approved two military deals with Qatar, enabling deployments of the Turkish military to Qatar. Turkish forces will also train the Qatari gendarmerie. As part of an agreement signed between Ankara …
Continue reading Turkey Prepares to Send Troops to Qatar in Conflict with Saudi Arabia
The Persian Gulf region continues to surprise and keep the entire world community on its toes. Yet again, a dangerous tension in relations between a number of countries and Qatar has developed. Six Arab countries, namely Yemen, Libya, Bahrain, Egypt, UAE, Saudi Arabia and the Republic of Maldives, have announced their severance of diplomatic relations with …
Continue reading Persian Gulf – What is Happening in the Region?
The diplomatic row around Qatar that is flaring up into something more serious caught many in Russia by surprise. Although disсontent with a number of Doha’s activities has been smoldering in the region for a while, it didn’t appear on most Russian experts’ radar screens largely because Russia didn’t expect the rivalry for Gulf Cooperation …
Continue reading Russia’s Reading on What’s at Stake in Qatar Crisis
That “Arab NATO” didn’t last very long, did it? The break with Qatar by some of its Arab brethren, including its nearest neighbors, is impressively comprehensive, involving a breach of diplomatic relations and an economic and transportation embargo. It reflects sharp divisions not only within the Arab world but even among the half dozen monarchies …
Continue reading Trump’s Destabilization of the Persian Gulf
“It’s difficult to see how things won’t get any worse; it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets any better.” That was the stark warning given to me by a senior official from the Middle East who was sent by his country’s leader to try and mediate between Qatar and Saudi Arabia last …
Continue reading Qatar Crisis: Coup Attempts, the Politics of Revenge and the Dream of Becoming King
In an examination in the New Yorker of the career and prospects of the US Secretary of Defence, General James Mattis, Dexter Filkins, a highly respected Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, noted President Trump’s attitude to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation and its military posture, and wrote that «along NATO’s eastern frontier the Russian military maintain[s] tens of thousands of troops, …
Continue reading NATO’s Military Frontier – and Fake Stories
President Donald Trump has twice tried to institute a travel ban on all refugees from six or seven Muslim-majority countries. During the presidential campaign, Trump called for a “total and complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States,” slated to last “until our country’s representatives can figure out what is going on.” His Muslim ban …
India and Pakistan put aside their long-running tensions, as they were officially confirmed as members of the increasingly influential Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), during a summit in Kazakhstan capital Astana. “I thank the SCO for making India a part of this esteemed organization, which now represents 40 percent of humanity and nearly 20 percent of …
Continue reading Then There Were 8: Eurasian Powerhouse SCO Expands After India & Pakistan Join
