Latest Articles about Middle East
PUTIN EXPANDS THE GOVERNMENT AND DEROGATES THE MILITARY
A huge bureaucratic surprise occurred in Moscow on February 15 when Russian President Vladimir Putin announced new appointments in the government, typically providing very little explanation for his sovereign decisions. Most attention was focused on defense minister Sergei Ivanov’s elevation from deputy to first deputy... MORE
MOSCOW-BEIJING-NEW DELHI AXIS MOVES IN SLOW MOTION
On Wednesday, February 14, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov met with his Chinese and Indian counterparts Li Zhaoxing and Natwar Singh in New Delhi, where the three countries pledged to contribute to global peace, security, and stability. In a joint statement issued after the meeting,... MORE
TATAR TREATY SUGGESTS DISSENT INSIDE KREMLIN ON REGIONAL POLICY
On Friday, February 9, the Russian State Duma ratified a power-sharing agreement between the federal authorities and the Republic of Tatarstan, a Muslim-dominated republic in the Volga region. The treaty gives Tatarstan a degree of economic and political autonomy that no other region enjoys (see... MORE
RUSSIA AND THE KOREAN AGREEMENT: RELIEF MINGLED WITH GLEE AND WARINESS
True to past experience, Russia greeted the six-party agreement on Korea signed February 12-13, with official expressions of correct appreciation and relief that the “nightmare of the Korean crisis [was] over.” Also unmistakable was a delight at what its media regarded as Washington’s “capitulation” and... MORE
Kirkuk’s Referendum Revives Fears of Ethnic Violence
Last week, the Iraqi government called for the implementation of Article 140 of the country's permanent constitution, which calls for the "normalization" of the situation in Kirkuk (Asharq al-Awsat, February 2). This gives Kurds the go-ahead to reverse Saddam Hussein's "Arabization" of Iraq's fourth-largest city.... MORE
Iraqi Insurgents Claim New Generation of Missiles Being Used
In the short span of January 20 to February 7, four U.S. military and two private security firm helicopters were lost due to enemy ground fire in Iraq, raising concerns that insurgents have introduced new tactics or weapons in their battle against coalition air supremacy.... MORE
A POTEMKIN DEMOCRACY, A POTEMKIN FREE MARKET, AND A POTEMKIN ARMS RACE
Using language rarely heard since the Cold War, last week Russian President Vladimir Putin blasted the United States, European Union, NATO, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the West in general during a major policy speech at a security conference in Munich on... MORE
RUSSIAN MILITARY “MODERNIZING,” NOT REFORMING — IVANOV
On February 7 Russian Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov told the State Duma that Russia will re-arm its armed forces, offering 5 trillion rubles to develop new hardware rather than simply maintaining the armed forces. The program will continue until 2015. More significantly, Ivanov reacted against... MORE
BAKU AND TEHRAN SIGN AGREEMENT ON TV AND RADIO BROADCASTING
On February 3, Azerbaijan’s minister of communications and information technology, Ali Abbasov, and the head of the Iranian State Broadcasting Agency, Ezzatollah Zarghami, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on bilateral media cooperation. The document was signed at the end of Zarghami’s four-day visit to... MORE
BIG BUSINESS IS INVITED TO THE KREMLIN FOR FRESH INSTRUCTIONS
Following Russian President Vladimir Putin’s well-established ritual of demonstrating his power to loyal subjects, his annual meeting with business leaders was far heavier on symbolism than on substance. Most of the two dozen CEOs and owners of Russia’s largest companies who were invited to the... MORE