US Foreign Policy

( Middle East Monitor ) – Despite being at the forefront of states determined to see the overthrow of the Syrian government by throwing its weight behind armed opposition factions over a decade ago, Turkey has hinted that it could follow other countries in the region in normalising relations with Damascus. As it stands, Ankara […]

Iran

Russia and Iran’s growing Friendship shows their Weakness not their Strength

The Conversation

By Scott Lucas, University of Birmingham | – (The Conversation) – Facing economic and military difficulties in his invasion of Ukraine, the Russian president Vladimir Putin popped up this week in Iran’s capital Tehran. His plan was to show the world that, despite sanctions on Moscow and international aid for Ukraine’s resistance, he was not […]

Joe Biden

President Biden Must Commit to Ending the War in Yemen

Foreign Policy in Focus

By Farrah Hassen | – ( Foreign Policy in Focus ) – Biden once said the U.S. should never “check its principles at the door just to buy oil or sell weapons.” He should take his own advice. By Farrah Hassen | July 13, 2022 The United Nations has called the Saudi Arabia-led war in […]

Joe Biden

The Fateful Fist Bump

John Feffer

( Foreign Policy in Focus ) – If you thought the polarization of politics in the United States was corrosive, brace yourself for the even more corrosive polarization of geopolitics. By John Feffer | July 20, 2022 The fist bump has been the default method of person-to-person contact in the COVID era. Shaking hands is […]

Featured

Russia announces $40 Bn. Investment in Iran Oil & Gas, as Khamenei Supports Putin’s invasion of Ukraine

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey arrived on Tuesday in Tehran for a summit on guaranteeing the Syrian peace process in the framework of the Astana negotiations. But since this summit took place in the wake of President Joe Biden’s trip to the Middle East to create a united […]

Featured

Bin Salman: US Whitewashed Israeli Killing of Shireen Abu Akleh, so why is Biden so upset about Khashoggi?

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Saudi Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Adel al-Jubeir, pulled back the curtain for the Alarabiya news channel (Saudi-owned but based in Dubai) on what transpired at the meeting between President Joe Biden and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman: Al-Jubeir confirmed that Biden, as he had pledged, quickly […]

Arms Sales

A Powerful Turkish Drone Is Helping Ukraine Fight Russia. It’s Also Killing Civilians Across the Globe.

ProPublica

By Umar Farooq | – ( ProPublica) – Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed was in a tough spot last August when he paid a visit to Turkey. For nearly a year, his government had been at war with rebels from the Tigray People’s Liberation Front, which was now pushing south from its stronghold near the […]

China

In Saudi Arabia, Biden Plays Defense against Russia, China, Iran

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Although President Joe Biden’s trip to Saudi Arabia was ostensibly about petroleum and attempting to lower gasoline prices in the US, it doesn’t seem to me that that rationale entirely explains Biden’s about-face on Saudi Arabia. For one thing, Biden must have been told that Saudi Arabia does not have […]

Apartheid

Palestinians Protest, hang Black Flags of Mourning over Biden’s Bethlehem Visit, Accusing him of Sidelining their Political Rights

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The Israeli newspaper Arab 48 reports that widespread protests broke out on Thursday in the Israeli-Occupied Palestinian West Bank against the planned visit on Friday by US President Joe Biden to Bethlehem, with residents staging demonstrations and raising black flags. They chanted against US one-sidedness in backing Israel’s actions, and […]