Iranian Kurdish opposition groups based in Iraqi Kurdistan appear to have stepped up their armed activities inside Iran in recent weeks, undermining the Kurdistan Regional Government’s (KRG) efforts to promote its upcoming independence referendum as a peaceful development. Iranian Kurdish fighters based in Iraq have repeatedly crossed the border into Iran and engaged in numerous clashes…
Iran’s Chief of General Staff Mohammad Bagheri wound up a three-day visit to Turkey today, a trip that showcased how the regional rivals can swiftly smooth their differences in the face of common threats. Bagheri, whose visit was a first since Iran’s 1979 Revolution, was given the full red carpet treatment, including face time with Turkish President Recep…
Are they on the verge of a historic triumph or a new national tragedy? It is tragic that throughout history it has been the Kurds’ fate to be deprived their own state, despite being one of the most populous nations on earth (numbering 30-40 million). Twice in the last century at the end of global…
The Kurdistan Regional Government quietly signed a major deal June 2 with Russian oil giant Rosneft, allowing Russia its first entry to the Kurdish oil market, which was dominated by the United States and Turkey. Iraq’s central government for years has opposed the sale of Iraqi oil by the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) in northern…
This could be the beginning of a new alignment that will elevate the Russian position in the region while diminishing the influence of the United States. The new and seemingly prolonged row between Saudi Arabia and Qatar is having some curious and almost shocking knock-on effects. The most interesting is that Syrian media has been…
For the past six years, the United States, Israel, NATO and the Gulf Cooperation Council have waged an unrelenting proxy war against the sovereign, secular state of Syria. The U.S.-funded Free Syrian Army, called “moderate rebels” in the corporate-owned media, fights openly alongside forces backed by U.S. allies Saudi Arabia and Turkey. These forces, really…
