Hagia Sophia: Clash of Civilizations or Reassertion of Civilizational Identity?

Hagia Sophia: Clash of Civilizations or Reassertion of Civilizational Identity?

Turkey’s controversial decision to reconvert Hagia Sophia from a museum into a mosque has been met with sharp criticism abroad from those who claim that it’ll exacerbate the so-called “Clash of Civilizations” and reverse the secular reforms of Ataturk while supporters of this move claim that it’s a justified reassertion of civilizational identity in an…

Okay! The US Does Not Want the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway

Okay! The US Does Not Want the China-Kyrgyzstan-Uzbekistan Railway

If you live in the United States the mention of a country like Kyrgyzstan or Uzbekistan probably only registers on a subconscious “movie memory” level. Or, you assume all those countries with “stan” at the end are the same – foreign, off this world, and too far distant to matter. Unless, of course, you work…

Putin Had a Dream to Reset the World Order

Putin Had a Dream to Reset the World Order

Moscow has a way of signalling to the White House on critical issues from time to time through public statements calibrated to catch President Trump’s attention. It happens usually on Sundays such as on July 11 when the Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov transmitted a complicated signal which pointedly called attention to the growing despondency in Moscow…

Palestine Plays Regional Power Politics with Proposed Energy Deal

Palestine Plays Regional Power Politics with Proposed Energy Deal

A Palestinian move to secure Palestine’s energy needs by tying them to high-stakes Turkish regional gambits constitutes an effort to reduce Palestinian dependence on Israel at a time when the Jewish state is looking at annexing parts of the occupied West Bank. When Faed Mustafa, Palestine’s ambassador in Ankara, expressed interest in June in negotiating with…