Author: M Barbu

The Sanctions War Is Just Beginning

Targeting Russia Was the Easy Part

The international sanctions campaign that countries and companies have mounted against Russia in the wake of its invasion of Ukraine is a remarkable achievement of multinational diplomacy and corporate responsibility. Much of the world has voluntarily terminated business with Russia, severing trade ties and financial relationships with the country and shocking the Kremlin by freezing many of its foreign assets. The speed, scope, and scale of these punitive economic measures and the nature of their target—one of the world’s largest and most important economies—are all without precedent.

Leadership at War

How Putin and Zelensky Have Defined the Ukrainian Conflict

If anyone doubts the importance of individual leaders in the shape of world events, surely the war in Ukraine has dispelled them. It is Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war and no one else’s, just as World War II in Europe was Adolf Hitler’s. Both men wanted war; both embraced it as a test of virility against a decadent enemy.

Defense spending continues yearslong climb among NATO members

Defense spending increased for the seventh consecutive year within the NATO alliance, with the United States picking up much of the tab, according to figures in NATO’s annual report released Thursday.

In 2021, the U.S. accounted for 69% of defense expenditures within the NATO alliance while only accounting for 51% of allied gross domestic product. By contrast, Germany — the second largest economy within NATO — represented 5% of allied defense spending while accounting for 10% of NATO GDP.

Shades of terror: Fatah vs Hamas vs ISIS – analysis

People with short memories might say that this wave of terrorism is just ISIS/Arab-Israeli related, but Hamas is also plenty involved.

Part of the challenge facing security forces in the face of the terrorist attacks over the past eight days has been their source: the perpetrators came from radically different sectors, and do not fit into a conventional box that holds a clear answer on what to do next.

Mali’s crisis hits 10-year mark

Mali’s current political and security crisis is a continuation of events that happened a decade ago.

Separatist Tuareg rebels, fighting under the banner of the National Movement for the Liberation of Azawad (MNLA), began attacking towns and army bases in northern Mali in January 2012.

They went on to defeat Malian government forces and conquer Gao, a strategically important city on the banks of the Niger river in northeastern Mali, on March 31, 2012.

Turkish Drone Industry Banks on Ukrainian Battlefield Successes

Turkish-made drones have featured prominently in Ukraine’s resistance against Russia’s invasion, taking out significant Russian targets in the first few weeks of the war. But the conflict, and any possibility of a Russian victory, have cast a shadow over the future of Turkey’s rapidly growing drone industry, which relies on Ukrainian engines.

Russia-Ukraine talks in Turkey yield respite but no ceasefire

Turkey played host for the second time as peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine resumed today.

Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine resumed in Istanbul after a two-week pause today. It’s the second time the sides have met in Turkey, which has sought to position itself as an honest broker in the conflict.

The round held at Istanbul’s Dolmabahce Palace “achieved more meaningful progress” than any of the talks held so far, asserted Turkey’s Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu after they ended. Russian negotiators called the talks “constructive.”