Russian foreign policy has undergone a renaissance over the past couple of years as its “progressive” faction emerged at the fore of decision-making and bravely pioneered non-traditional partnerships all across the “Ummah” (global Muslim community). This took place concurrently with the country’s “Pivot to Asia”, more accurately described as a “Rebalancing to Asia”, which also…
Extensive interview on Russian-Pakistani relations that Andrew Korybko gave exclusively to Mr. Muhammad Taimur Khan of the Institute of Strategic Studies, Islamabad (ISSI) and which was published in the July 2017 edition of The Diplomatic Insight. 1. A great shift has been witnessed in Pakistan-Russia relations lately. In your opinion, what are the reasons behind…
The Iranian leader, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, made a strikingly strong statement on the Rohingya crisis in Myanmar this week, berating “hypocritical” (presumably Western) governments for their double standards on human rights. Addressing a gathering of clerical students, Khamenei on Tuesday urged Muslim countries to apply pressure on the Myanmar government, which according to Khamenei…
Did the doomsday clock on the petrodollar (and implicitly US hegemony) just tick one more minute closer to midnight? Apparently confirming what President Maduro had warned following the recent US sanctions, The Wall Street Journal reports that Venezuela has officially stopped accepting US Dollars as payment for its crude oil exports. As we previously noted,…
Modi is probably not a fan of Shakespeare plays. But that doesn’t stop him from taking the Bard’s “The world is a stage” to historic height in politics. The Hindutva leader’s tool of trade is “make believe”. For decades, Bollywood movies have brought tremendous joy to hundreds of millions of viewers in India. The flicks…
Even before the Indian establishment and the media stopped their celebrations over the BRICS declaration in Xiamen in China earlier this month condemning terrorist groups, including those based in Pakistan, hoping that this could be the game-changer moment in Islamabad-Beijing relations, the Chinese made a U-turn by openly defending their all-weather ally. In fact, China’s…
