Western Sahara dispute spills into Tunisia

A diplomatic crisis is brewing in the Maghreb region amid tension between Morocco and Tunisia after President Kais Saied received the leader of the Polisario Front.

Tunisian President Kais Saied’s decision to receive Brahim Ghali — the leader of the Polisario Front, a rebel group fighting for independence in the Western Sahara — late last month has developed into a diplomatic crisis with repercussions spilling into the sports world.

Is Russia’s Economy on the Brink?

Moscow’s Struggle to Sustain Its War in Ukraine

In April, just weeks after he launched the invasion of Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin maintained that the West could never strangle Russia’s economy. The barrage of American and European sanctions had not succeeded and would not succeed in bringing his country to its knees. “We can already confidently say that this policy toward Russia has failed,” he told his officials. “The strategy of an economic blitzkrieg has failed.”

Two Cold Wars in a New Bipolar World

A prudent regard for the tragic, unexpected turns history can take would urge leadership in Washington, Moscow, and Beijing to weigh carefully the trajectory they are on and how seriously they want to test moving in another direction.

Vostok military exercises indicate that Russia is far from isolated

Despite the West’s containment strategy, Moscow is deepening its convergence with China and maintaining strong ties with India.

The next iteration of Russia’s quadrennial Vostok exercise has just begun in its far east region, involving more than 50,000 troops, 140 aircraft and 60 warships. Vostok (which means “east” in Russian) is one of four exercises Russia routinely conducts every four years, the others being Zapad (west) Tsentr (center), and Kavkaz (south), the directions corresponding to the locations of the drills within the country.

The War in Ukraine and the Return of Realpolitik

The return of a two-bloc world that plays by the rules of realpolitik means that the West will need to dial back its efforts to expand the liberal order, instead returning to a strategy of patient containment aimed at preserving geopolitical stability and avoiding great power war.

Газовое оружие подошло к пределу

Остановка «Северного потока» на неопределенный срок заставляет переосмыслить всю текущую ситуацию в газовых отношениях России и ЕС. До сих пор РФ, пользуясь высокой зависимостью Европы от своих энергоресурсов, могла успешно добиваться одностороннего изменения газовых контрактов (переход на рубли) и одновременно поэтапно снижать объем поставок, взвинчивая цены на газ в ЕС. Очевидно, основной целью было оказать давление на власти ключевых государств, что должно было способствовать урегулированию текущих масштабных разногласий в сфере безопасности.

Israel Mossad Chief: We have started military preparation for a military strike against Iran

Chief of the Israeli Mossad, David Barnea, described the emerging Iranian nuclear deal signed between Iran and world powers as “a strategic disaster” for Israel, and that “Israel has already begun preparations for a military strike against Iran if such action is deemed necessary.”

Israel’s Times of Israel newspaper quoted Barnea saying that the deal is “very bad for Israel” and that the US “is rushing into an Accord that is ultimately based on lies,” in reference to “Iran’s ongoing claim that its nuclear activities are peaceful in nature.”