Latest Articles about Foreign Policy
Russian Energy Industry Faces Looming Investment Crisis
The 2023 UN Climate Change Conference (COP28), currently taking place in Dubai from November 30 to December 12, is missing contributions from one major energy power—namely, Russia. Many countries are guilty of pledging to curtail emissions then departing from their plans and falling short of... MORE
Expiration of UN Missile Sanctions Has Limited Effect on Iran’s Arms Trade
While much of the world’s attention was focused on the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas war, the UN Security Council’s sanctions on the development and export of Iranian missiles quietly expired on October 18 (Amwaj.media, October 22). The sanctions were part of UN Security Council Resolution... MORE
Russia Playing Cat-and-Mouse With OSCE (Part Two)
Russia forced what it calls “the collective West” into significant concessions for this year’s Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) annual meeting of foreign ministers. Using its statutory veto and blocking powers, Moscow forced the organization to replace Estonia with Malta to chair... MORE
Moscow Uses Natural Gas to Fragment Moldova and Block Chisinau’s Turn to the West
On November 24, the Russian Foreign Ministry issued a statement against Moldova joining the European Union’s sanctions against Russia. Press Secretary Maria Zakharova threatened that “the Moldovan decision will not go unanswered. Measures taken will be reported later” (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian... MORE
Russia Playing Cat-and-Mouse With OSCE (Part One)
The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is holding its annual meeting at the level of foreign ministers from November 30 to December 1 in North Macedonia, the organization’s chair for 2023. Several Western governments—including those in Washington, Berlin, and Paris—are coming to the... MORE
Kazakhstan Turns Toward China Amid Cooling Relations With Russia
In late October, Kazakhstan halted the export of 106 products to Russia, a move attributed to Astana’s growing compliance with Western sanctions. Kazakhstan’s Deputy Minister of Trade and Integration Kairat Torebayev confirmed that the banned products are primarily linked to military goods, including drones, their... MORE
Armenia and Azerbaijan Discussing a Swap of Exclaves
On November 28, Alen Simonyan, head of Armenia’s National Assembly, told journalists that “the ball is in Azerbaijan’s court” regarding peace negotiations between the two countries. He added, “Armenia fully supports the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan. … If desired, the peace agreement can be signed... MORE
Strained Relations Between Azerbaijan and the West
On November 16, Baku canceled a meeting between the foreign ministers of Armenia and Azerbaijan scheduled to take place on November 20 in Washington (Apa.az, November 16). The Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry asserted that, under the current circumstances, it is not possible to proceed with US-mediated... MORE
Russian Influence Diminished in Remaking the Middle East
The Kremlin has welcomed the Israel-Hamas truce in Gaza that began on November 24. The pause, however, does not fit into Russia’s larger designs for the Middle East. From Moscow's perspective, further escalation would have been a much better option in disrupting the US-led world... MORE
“Changes Unseen in a Century”: Seeking American Partnership in US Decline
In his opening remarks this week to US President Joe Biden, CCP General Secretary Xi Jinping said “The China-US relationship, which is the most important bilateral relationship in the world, should be perceived and envisioned in a broad context of the accelerating global transformations unseen... MORE