Latest Articles about Middle East
PUTIN IN BUCHAREST: MORE COOPERATION WITH NATO IN AFGHANISTAN?
The arrival of Russia’s President Vladimir Putin at the NATO Summit in Bucharest April 2-4 may prove to be a turning point in the relationship between the Alliance and Russia, not only signaling potential future cooperation over Afghanistan, but also opening a more constructive dialogue... MORE
“PARTY OF THE THIRD TERM” MAY GET ITS WISH
State Duma Speaker Boris Gryzlov said on April 1 that the lower house of parliament will be ready to confirm President-elect Dmitriy Medvedev’s announced candidate for the post of prime minister, outgoing President Vladimir Putin, on May 8 – that is, just one day after... MORE
What Direction for the al-Mahdi Army after the Basra Offensive?
As Moqtada al-Sadr orders his Mahdi Army militia to lay down their arms in return for an exchange of prisoners and cessation of government raids against his followers, the six-day Iraqi-U.S. military offensive in Basra has reached its final stage (Al-Arabiyah, March 30). For the... MORE
Presence of Turkish Terrorists in Belgium Leads to Dispute with Ankara
Belgium and Turkey have a somewhat tense and delicate relationship that has lately been complicated by a dispute over counter-terrorism efforts. Ankara believes that activities by Turkish terrorist groups abroad constitute a Turkish matter. Brussels, on the other hand, attempts to resist Turkish pressure on... MORE
PUTIN STILL POPULAR, BUT PEOPLE WANT POWER TO REMAIN IN THE KREMLIN
A new poll conducted by the independent Levada Center found that while most Russians continue to view President Vladimir Putin positively and are happy that he will continue on in government service as Dmitry Medvedev’s prime minister, they do not want Russia changed from a... MORE
PUTIN SEEKS TO REAFFIRM CONTROL OVER DISGRUNTLED SILOVIKI
The colorful notion of the siloviki – power-wielders or men-of-power – that just a year ago seemed to convey an essential characteristic of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s regime, has all but disappeared from Russian political discourse. With the surprise mid-December nomination of Dmitry Medvedev as... MORE
KREMLIN MOUTHPIECE TO LEAVE GENERAL STAFF
When Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Defense Minister Anatoly Serdyukov met their U.S. counterparts, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and Defense Secretary Robert Gates, in Moscow March 17-18, one important person was absent – Russia’s top military commander, First Deputy Defense Minister and Chief... MORE
WILL ROLE OF PARTY LEADER HELP PUTIN HOLD HIS OWN IN THE RULING DIARCHY?
Two Russian newspapers, Nezavisimaya gazeta and Moskovsky korrespondent, reported today, March 28, that Vladimir Putin will be named head of United Russia at a party congress that will be held in April. Noting that Putin used the occasion of a United Russia congress last October... MORE
Moqtada al-Sadr’s Religious Strategy Complicates Jaysh al-Mahdi Ceasefire
As smoke billows from Baghdad’s U.S.-controlled “Green Zone” following a series of rocket and mortar attacks thought to have been carried out by members of Moqtada al-Sadr’s Jaysh al-Mahdi (JaM) movement last weekend, important questions have been raised concerning the direction of the movement as... MORE
RUSSIA’S PRESIDENT-ELECT SPEAKS TO FINANCIAL TIMES
Russian observers are mulling the significance of Dmitry Medvedev’s interview with Britain’s Financial Times newspaper, particularly his comments about how he views his future role and how he will work with President Vladimir Putin, who has agreed to serve as his prime minister. In the... MORE