President Barack Obama, in his State of the Union address to Congress, along with calling Ukraine a Russian "client state", which infuriated the Ukrainians, referred to conflicts in the Middle East "...that date back millennia" It's not clear what … [Read more...] about Obama’s Millennial Problems
Russia
Wrong man, Wrong Job*
Pres. Barak Obama repeatedly refers to the end of his time in office and that he is no longer campaigning. There is more than a little ambiguity there, however, for his modus operandi is a permanent campaign – even when it is for more limited … [Read more...] about Wrong man, Wrong Job*
Key factor in sharply-improved Putin-Netanyahu strategic ties? The Obama White House
Left: Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Sept. 21, 2015 / EPA Israeli-Russian strategic cooperation already good was markedly improving in early October 2015. The primary impediment … [Read more...] about Key factor in sharply-improved Putin-Netanyahu strategic ties? The Obama White House
Dancing with Tyrants*
Left: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan with Hamas leader Khaled Mashaal. The communist leadership of China; President Putin of Russia; Turkey’s Erdogan, King Salman of Saudi Arabia. Should Israel deal with such regimes? They are all wholesale … [Read more...] about Dancing with Tyrants*
Characteristics of Palestinian “Popular Activists” Confronting the IDF (Oct 3 – Nov 22, 2015)
Left: Cartoon from the website of Fatah's information unit accusing Israel and the United States of executing Palestinian children (website of Fatah's information department, December 12, 2015). The latest ongoing Palestinian terrorist attacks … [Read more...] about Characteristics of Palestinian “Popular Activists” Confronting the IDF (Oct 3 – Nov 22, 2015)
Iran to Increase its Involvement in Syria
Growing Iranian involvement in the war in Syria is about to be officially requested by Basher Assad in Tehran later this month. To assure his safe arrival in and departure through Iraqi airspace, his plane will be guarded by "four strategic Russian … [Read more...] about Iran to Increase its Involvement in Syria
The Middle East Poker*
Left:U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and foreign ministers from Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Europe in Vienna, November 14, 2015 in a bid to step up diplomatic efforts to end the four-year-old conflict … [Read more...] about The Middle East Poker*
Dangerous Mideast Reality*
The volatility of Middle East events notwithstanding, a new picture is emerging of alliances very different from those preceding the outbreak of the Arab Spring and the now five-year-old Syrian civil war. That new reality is obscured by the Obama … [Read more...] about Dangerous Mideast Reality*
The New Old Sick Man of Europe*
For a century European politics was dogged with “the sick man of Europe”: the collapsing Ottoman Empire and its implications for the major powers. That’s not the case now, of course. Multi-ethnic empires are a thing of the past, their death rattle … [Read more...] about The New Old Sick Man of Europe*
What Should Israel Worry About?
A former director of the Central Intelligence Agency recently stated that the intelligence community in the U.S. has a perfect record of identifying future threats: "We have never been right". The one thing we know nothing about is the future. … [Read more...] about What Should Israel Worry About?