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Latest Articles about Middle East
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Yemen: A Dangerous Regional Arms Bazaar
Yemen is the second most heavily armed country in the world after the United States. Before the current civil war began, there were an estimated 54 guns for every 100 residents. [1] Now, the number of small and medium arms in the country is far... MORE
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Mess in the Middle East Opens Few Opportunities for Russia
Russia’s best chances to claim a prominent role in the Middle East usually come amidst a regional escalation of tensions. But the confluence of diplomatic rows, terrorist attacks and air strikes at the start of June did not exactly play into Moscow’s hands. As usual,... MORE
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Russia’s Syria Resupply Route Through the Turkish Straits: Vulnerable to Terrorist Attack?
Since Moscow’s military intervention in the Syrian civil war began in September 2015, a key element of Russian logistical support for its forces has been a maritime supply route deployed from southern Russian Black Sea ports via the Turkish Straits to Syria. This supply train,... MORE
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Russia a Fair-Weather Friend for Syria’s Kurds
In the kaleidoscopic, ever-shifting array of factions that characterize the Syrian civil war, allegiances can shift in surprising ways. Nowhere is this more evident than in the relationship between Russia and the Kurds. In theory, the two sides should be diametrically opposed. Moscow is heavily... MORE
Islamic State’s Man in Sinai: A Post-Mortem Profile of Abu Anas al-Ansari al-Saynawi
On April 2, 2017, the Egyptian military announced that 19 senior militants of the Islamic State (IS) wilayat (province) of Sinai had been killed in a series of airstrikes that took place on March 18 in the restive northern Sinai Peninsula. [1] Among the militants... MORE
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Collapse of Russian Shipping in the Caspian Puts Moscow’s Regional Strategy at Risk
Since the start of 2017, the amount of cargo passing through Russian ports on the Caspian Sea has fallen, compared to last year, by 48.4 percent to only 1.1 million tons, according to the Russian Ports Association. This figure is striking given that Russian ports... MORE
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The Battle for Yemen: A Quagmire for Saudi Arabia and the UAE
The Saudi- and Emirati-led war in Yemen has been ongoing for 26 months. The war, which began on March 26, 2015 and was ambitiously named “Operation Decisive Storm,” has achieved none of its stated intentions (al-Arabiya, March 26, 2015). The primary aim was the reinstallation... MORE
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The Dangerous Implications of Raising the Kurdish Flag in Kirkuk
In recent weeks, the already complicated politics around the Iraqi city of Kirkuk have been further inflamed by the decision of Kirkuk Governor Najmaddin Karim to raise the flag of the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) over government buildings in the city (Rudaw, March 28). The... MORE
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Embrace of Iranian Overtures Undermines Georgia’s Counter-Terrorism and NATO Integration Efforts
Georgian Prime Minister Giorgi Kvirikashvili recently visited the United States. And the main tangible result of his delegation’s meetings with US President Donald J. Trump, Vice President Mike Pence and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was the signing of the General Security of Information Agreement... MORE
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Making Sense of the Turkish Air Strikes on Sinjar and Karachok
On April 25, the Turkish Air Force carried out strikes on the town of Sinjar (Iraqi Kurdistan) and on targets in the Karachok Mountains (northeastern Syria, between the towns of al-Hasakah and Qamishli) (Hürriyet, April 25). The airstrikes on Kurdish forces highlight Turkey’s determined stance... MORE