![](/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/region-middle-east.jpg)
Latest Articles about Middle East
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Daria-Trepova.jpg)
Russia’s Main Strategy: Demonize Ukraine and Hope for Weakening Western Support
As the United States continues to investigate the massive leak of classified Pentagon documents that include key strategic insights into plans for a Ukrainian counteroffensive, Russian propaganda is trying to make the most of the situation (Euromaidan Press, April 10). In doing this, propagandists are... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Azerbaijan-and-Israel-2023-640x360.jpg)
Azerbaijani-Iranian Tensions Disrupt the South Caucasus
On March 30, Azerbaijan officially inaugurated its first embassy in Tel Aviv, Israel, after avoiding the move for three decades. Although the decision highlighted the importance of Azerbaijani-Israeli relations, it quickly became a catalyst behind the renewed war of words between Iran and Azerbaijan (Themedialine.org,... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Ukraine-offensive-2023-640x428.jpg)
Moscow Engulfed by Anxiety About Impending Ukrainian Offensive
Combat operations in the Donbas trenches remain deadlocked, but their diminishing intensity does not signify an impasse in the course of the Russo-Ukrainian war, which continues to evolve on the ground. One notable change has been the cessation of Russian long-distance missile and drone strikes... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Al-Ansar-Media.jpg)
Profiling Ansar al-Islam: Kurdish Jihadists Threatening Russian Forces in Syria
Ansar al-Islam (AAI) is a jihadist group that formed in September 2001 in Iraqi Kurdistan from the merger of two small groups: Jund al-Islam, which was then led by Abu Abdullah al-Shafi’i, and a splinter group of the Islamic Movement of Kurdistan, which was led... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Lavrov-and-Mirzoyan-640x427.jpg)
Regional Tensions Loom Over Multilateral Initiatives in South Caucasus
On March 20, at a joint press conference following his meeting with Armenian Foreign Minister Ararat Mirzoyan in Moscow, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov accused the West of attempting to undermine Russia efforts to develop the “3+3” cooperation framework in the South Caucasus (YouTube, March... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/Caspian-sea-trade-640x335.jpg)
Russia Faces Serious Problems in Developing North-South Trade Corridor via Caspian Sea
Moscow had counted on the expansion of its north-south trade via the Caspian Sea to help end-run Western sanctions (Casp-geo.ru, August 3, 2022); however, the sanctions regime, which led the Russian government to seek to expand the capacity of this route in the first place,... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Lukashenka-in-Iran-640x335.jpg)
Belarus and Iran: Minsk Goes Where Doors Are Open
On March 12 and 13, just ten days after his state visit to China (see EDM, March 16), Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka paid an official visit to Iran. For similar reasons with the visit to Beijing—that is, widespread speculation that Minsk might be joining Russian-Iranian... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Iran-and-Baskkortostan-640x418.jpg)
With Moscow’s Encouragement, Iran Moves More Deeply Into Russia Than Ever Before
Not surprisingly, given Russia’s war against Ukraine, Iran’s decision to supply Moscow with drones and other military technology has attracted some of the most attention around the world (Cursorinfo.co.il, March 30). And equally unsurprising, given the long-term consequences of any change in east-west and north-south... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/EU-mission-to-border-640x360.jpg)
Iran Not Opposed to Deployment of EU Monitoring Mission Along Armenian-Azerbaijani Border
The Iranian ambassador to Armenia, Abbas Badakhshan Zohouri, announced on the sidelines of the “Armenia-Iran Relations in Context of Common Interests” forum, which was held on February 10, that “Iran does not oppose the deployment of a civilian EU [European Union] monitoring mission to the... MORE
![](/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/Belarus-repressions-640x360.jpg)
What to Make of the Escalating Repressions in Belarus?
In Belarus, a hunt for “extremists” has suddenly intensified. Primarily, both the audacious attack on the Russian A-50 aircraft (see EDM, March 8) and the simultaneous finale of two lengthy court proceedings are to blame. The defendants in one of the proceedings were Marina Zolotova... MORE