In the “graveyard of empires,” Afghanistan never ceases to deliver geopolitical and historical twists. Last week in Moscow, another crucial chapter in this epic story was written when Russia pledged to use its diplomatic muscle to spur peace efforts in the war-torn country. Flanked by Afghan representatives and their Taliban rivals, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov talked …
Continue reading Afghanistan Takes Center Stage in the New Great Game
Daesh’s takeover of a refugee camp in the US-controlled part of Syria is the last possible chance that Damascus has to liberate the northeast, but even attempting to do so is a serious gamble that might not even be undertaken because of its astronomically high strategic risks. Daesh unexpectedly came back from what most of …
Continue reading The Daesh Hostage Drama Is Damascus’ Last Chance to Liberate the Northeast
The current situation – extending from the Russian response to the destruction of its Ilyuchin-20 to the US mid-term elections on 6 November - is uncertain. All the protagonists of the war in Syria are waiting to see whether the White House will be able to pursue its policy of breaking away from the current …
Continue reading International Relations: The Calm Before the Storm?
Fiji’s inclusion as the latest member of the US’ anti-Daesh coalition in Syria has nothing at all to do with protecting the island nation’s people from the world’s worst terrorist group but is the US’ way of pressuring the country to send a none-too-subtle signal to China. A rather peculiar bit of news emerged earlier …
Continue reading Fiji Isn’t Fighting Daesh, It’s Being Used by the US to Send a Signal to China
Reports from the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk indicate that Daesh terrorists have blown up a major oil pipeline which continues to smoulder as of 14.00 Baghdad time. The battle to restore government rule in Kirkuk after a lengthy Daesh occupation was among the most harrowing battles of Iraq’s long war against Daesh and later …
At the Tehran summit on Friday, Iran’s Hassan Rouhani and Russia’s Vladimir Putin expressed tactical differences with Turkey’s President Erdogan, on how to proceed with the military offensive for the Syrian army to retake the northwest province of Idlib from terrorist groups. Rouhani and Putin want a determined push to eliminate the last bastion of anti-government militants, …
On July 24 in the south of Syria, terrorist group forbidden in Russia Daesh very loudly reminded the world of itself. In As-Suwayda and the south west of Deraa, two massive suicide bombings occurred, resulting in more than 220 people killed and close to 200 wounded in As-Suwayda, while the suicide bomber in Deraa blew …
Readers, a small detective story. Note down this number: MFG BGM-71E-1B. And this number: STOCK NO 1410-01-300-0254. And this code: DAA A01 C-0292. I found all these numerals printed on the side of a spent missile casing lying in the basement of a bombed-out Islamist base in eastern Aleppo last year. At the top were …
On the 10th of July, a private meeting in Islamabad took place between the intelligence heads of China, Russia, Pakistan and Iran. The meeting has been described as an opportunity for each power to discuss a more coordinated and united strategy in tackling international terrorism with a particular emphasis on the Takfiri groups Daesh (ISIS). …
