Latest Articles about Middle East
PUTIN’S AFRIKA KORPS
Deals by Russian companies seeking to acquire African minerals seem to be the order of the day. A $2 billion investment in Zambia was announced in June. The companies, whose names were withheld, are seeking to acquire mining assets in the mineral rich African country.... MORE
REPUTED RUSSIAN CRIME BOSSES DISMISSED MEDVEDEV AS PUTIN’S “PUPPET”
While analysts and other observers continue to discuss Russia’s new ruling diarchy, in particular, the current relative balance of power between President Dmitry Medvedev and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin and how likely that balance of power will remain static, an unusual group of observers has... MORE
MEDVEDEV’S BUSINESS-TOUR YIELDS MORE PROMISES THAN FRUIT
President Dmitri Medvedev is apparently building strong momentum in his foreign policy activities, exploiting one success to achieve another. The remarkably cordial Russia-EU summit in Khanty-Mansiisk two weeks ago paved the way for his friendly visits to Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan last week; and this... MORE
NEW CHARGES AGAINST KHODORKOVSKY: ARE THE SILOVIKI DRAWING A LINE?
The Investigative Committee of the Prosecutor General’s Office has filed new charges against former Yukos chief Mikhail Khodorkovsky, who, like his former business partner Platon Lebedev, is currently serving an eight-year sentence for fraud and tax evasion. The new charges could add 15 years to... MORE
CHOOSING AN ENEMY, CHOOSING A STRATEGY, CHOOSING A DOCTRINE
Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov announced that the number of servicemen in the armed forces would be decreased from the present 1.13 million to one million by 2013. According to Serdyukov, "The previously approved concept scheduled a decrease in numbers to 1.1 million by 2011 and... MORE
EU-RUSSIA SUMMIT TARGETS NEW PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT
The European Union-Russia summit on June 26 and 27 in Khanty-Mansiisk set the stage for negotiations toward a new basic document on EU-Russia relations. Concluding such an agreement is almost certainly a higher priority for Russia than for the EU. The EU might have used... MORE
…WHILE GLOSSING OVER POST-SOVIET CONFLICTS
The unresolved conflicts, conducted or underwritten by Russia in ex-Soviet territories, were glossed over in Khanty-Mansiisk. EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy Javier Solana had informally assured Georgian leaders ahead of the summit that he would “forcefully” take issue with Russia’s... MORE
Turkey and Iraqi Kurds Agree to Disagree on PKK’s Terrorist Status
In an interview with Italian newspaper Il Tempo, Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) President Massoud Barzani stated that “the PKK [Kurdistan Workers’ Party] is not a terrorist organization.” Barzani also added that “if the PKK rejects Turkey’s commitment to hold talks with it, the PKK can... MORE
RUSSIA EXPLOITS EU’S VULNERABILTIES AT EU-RUSSIA SUMMIT
The European Union played its cards ineptly at the EU-Russia summit in Khanty-Mansiisk on June 26 and 27. Moscow managed to define the atmosphere and rules of the game at this summit, taking advantage of the EU’s multiplying vulnerabilities. That those vulnerabilities are mostly self-inflicted... MORE
MEDVEDEV’S SWEET-TALKING NARROWS THE RIFT IN RUSSIA-EU RELATIONS
President Dmitry Medvedev has every reason to consider the Russia-EU summit in Khanty-Mansiisk last week a personal success, judging from how his European partners have praised the friendly atmosphere and very constructive character of the talks. EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security... MORE