The unexpected alliance between Turkey and Libya is a geopolitical earthquake that changes the balance of power in the eastern Mediterranean and across the Middle East. Turkey’s audacious move has enraged its rivals in the region and cleared the way for a dramatic escalation in the 9 year-long Libyan civil war. It has also forced…
Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s decision to intervene in Libya on behalf of the Government of National Accord (GNA) is more than self-aggrandizement — it’s about control of the development of energy resources in the eastern Mediterranean. Erdogan steps in to save GNA The passage of legislation by the Turkish Parliament on Thursday authorizing the deployment of…
Few could have predicted several years ago that Russia and Ukraine would reconcile with one another to the point of agreeing to ensure the reliable delivery of gas to the EU for the next 5-15 years, but that’s exactly what just happened last week in the most convincing sign yet that the long-awaited “New Detente”…
The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, construction of which is intended to transport 55 billion cubic metres of Russian gas to Germany per year under the Baltic Sea, is a ragbag of options and promises. The fruit of a deal between Berlin and Moscow, it has troubled those within Russia, Germany, Europe and the United…
Trump hits Nordstream 2 firms with sanctions on pretense of protecting European interests from Russia as Germany and EU say ‘keep out of it.’ But does Europe have the power to shake them off? If the Nordstream 2 pipeline proposed to carry cheese from Switzerland to Germany, and Donald Trump thought that by interfering he…
The U.S. crossed the Rubicon this week. And I’m not talking about the ridiculous impeachment of President Trump for doing his job. I’m talking about passing the NDAA with provisions to sanction ‘from hell’ anyone associated with completion of the Nordstream 2 pipeline. The U.S. is now openly dismissive as a matter of law any…
