Author: M Barbu

Ukraine-Russia War: Africa Undercuts Ability to Mediate, Analysts Say

Political analysts say South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has undercut his own utility as a potential mediator of the war in Ukraine with a controversial suggestion that NATO’s own actions are to blame for Russia’s invasion of its western neighbor.

Ramaphosa has said he prefers negotiations over weapons or economic sanctions, in reference to sanctions piled on Russia by the United States and Western allies in the aftermath of the invasion, now in its fourth week.

The War in Syria, 11 Years and Counting

This week marks the 11th anniversary of the war in Syria.

As a Syrian American, it is difficult to acknowledge such a grim milestone without feeling a profound sense of anguish over the nearly 500,000 lives lost, the displacement of over 13 million people, and the destruction of its cultural relics.

‘I see bad times ahead.’ Sanctions start to get real for Russians.

Barely two weeks ago, most Russians enjoyed relatively prosperous, consumerist lives, with access to goods and services familiar to anyone in the West.

But Russia’s so-called special military operation in Ukraine has stirred up a blizzard of economic penalties in response. Amid that storm, Russians’ place in the interconnected global economy seems about to end.

The Middle East Is on the Brink Again

The Risks of an Unstable Authoritarian Order

little more than a decade after the Arab Spring swept away many autocratic regimes in the Middle East and plunged others into chaos, a new authoritarian order is settling over the region. Egypt and Tunisia, the first two countries to rid themselves of longtime dictators in 2011, have weathered coups that pulled them back toward authoritarianism. Sudan, which had to wait until 2018 for its revolution to succeed, has also seen its once-promising transition to democracy derailed by a coup. Meanwhile, Iran has expanded its sphere of influence across the Middle East, especially in Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen, while China, Russia, Turkey, and the Gulf states have increased their sway over many of the region’s weakest states. Thanks in part to these trends, President Bashar al-Assad’s brutal regime in Syria is being quietly eased back into the Arab fold.

The Toll of Economic War

How Sanctions on Russia Will Upend the Global Order

The Russian-Ukrainian war of 2022 is not just a major geopolitical event but also a geoeconomic turning point. Western sanctions are the toughest measures ever imposed against a state of Russia’s size and power. In the space of less than three weeks, the United States and its allies have cut major Russian banks off from the global financial system; blocked the export of high-tech components in unison with Asian allies; seized the overseas assets of hundreds of wealthy oligarchs; revoked trade treaties with Moscow; banned Russian airlines from North Atlantic airspace: restricted Russian oil sales to the United States and United Kingdom; blocked all foreign investment in the Russian economy from their jurisdiction; and frozen $403 billion out of the $630 billion in foreign assets of the Central Bank of Russia. The overall effect has been unprecedented, and a few weeks ago would have seemed unimaginable even to most experts: in all but its most vital products, the world’s eleventh-largest economy has now been decoupled from twenty-first-century globalization.

What’s behind Russia’s logistical mess in Ukraine?

By now, it’s no secret: The Russian military is experiencing logistical difficulties in Ukraine—from the now-infamous stalled convoy outside Kyiv to reports of Russian soldiers looting grocery stores for food. Experts have debated whether the problem is due to corruption, poor planning, or both.

Fear of provoking Putin is leading the Western world toward disaster

The conventional wisdom in Washington is that NATO should refrain from enforcing a No-Fly Zone over Ukraine due to the risk of an all-out NATO-Russia war. This view reflects a decades-long misunderstanding of both Russia and Ukraine, and is mired in appeasement thinking. While the window to impose a No-Fly Zone has likely closed, there are still alternatives that could work. The West should implement them without delay.

Russia-Ukraine war recasts Turkish policies and priorities

Erdogan sees opportunity in Ukraine crisis, including enhanced global role and dramatic reset in ties with Israel, as he weighs next steps in Libya and elections next year.

Erdogan: Turkey will leave its mark on 21st century

“Turkey’s diplomatic isolation was the focus of excited punditry in recent years,” writes Amberin Zaman, “but today, Ankara is running out of red carpet as a deluge of foreign dignitaries knock at its door.”

UN: Nearly 3.5 million Ukrainians have fled country, as world watches in ‘disbelief’

Refugee agency praises neighboring countries’ compassion for ‘extreme plight’ of refugees; most of those who crossed borders to escape have entered Poland

Nearly 3.5 million Ukrainians have now fled the country following Russia’s invasion, the United Nations said Monday, praising neighboring countries for showing overwhelming compassion toward their “extreme plight.”