Left: Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) shows the way to his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas during their meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow on April 13, 2015. (photo credit: AFP/Sergei Ilnitsky, Pool) On April 13, … [Read more...] about Russian Missiles to Iran Signal New Middle East Policy
Russia
An Era of Blah Blah Blah
One of the many reasons we commemorate the catastrophic death of Abraham Lincoln 150 years ago is to celebrate his incredible style, his ability in a few words to sum up the essence of our hopes and fears at a moment of crisis. What makes it all the … [Read more...] about An Era of Blah Blah Blah
Putin Throws a Spanner Into the Works*
Following the unsigned non-agreement on the contents of which no-one agrees in · Lausanne, declared "historic" by President Obama (which it surely is, in the sense that the 1938 Munich agreement and the 1994 North Korean agreement were historic), … [Read more...] about Putin Throws a Spanner Into the Works*
Toward a New Russian Initiative on the Israeli-Palestinian Issue?*
Left: Russian President Vladimir Putin (left) shows the way to his Palestinian counterpart Mahmoud Abbas during their meeting at the Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow on April 13, 2015. (photo credit: AFP/Sergei Ilnitsky, Pool) The significance … [Read more...] about Toward a New Russian Initiative on the Israeli-Palestinian Issue?*
The Cuban fiasco*
In that simplistic jargon characterizing Pres. Barack Hussein Obama’s worldwide “transformation” of U.S. foreign policy, the chief argument for his Cuban shift has been “[T]hese 50 years have shown that isolation has not worked.” In the facts of … [Read more...] about The Cuban fiasco*
Iran’s Nuclear Framework: Insights and Recommendations*
President Barack Obama speaks the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington, Thursday, April 2, 2015, about the breakthrough in the Iranian nuclear talks. The president heralded a framework nuclear understanding with Iran as an "historic" … [Read more...] about Iran’s Nuclear Framework: Insights and Recommendations*
Syria-ISIS “Pragmatic Cooperation”
Left: Oil fields in Syria and Iraq, in areas controlled by ISIS (islamist-movements.com) Overview One of the interesting phenomena of the civil war in Syria is the tacit understandings between two sworn enemies: the Assad regime and the terrorist … [Read more...] about Syria-ISIS “Pragmatic Cooperation”
The “Historic” Agreement That Ignores History*
No-one agrees on what was agreed with Iran, but in any case the precedents are hardly encouraging. By this time hordes of commentators have chewed over Mr. Obama's "historic" agreement. Some aspects, however, have been overlooked or … [Read more...] about The “Historic” Agreement That Ignores History*
Putting the squeeze on Israel
One of the many anomalies of Pres. Barack Hussein Obama’s collapsing foreign policy is Washington’s growing rift with Israel, despite the two countries’ historically intimate ties at every level. Obama’s fundamental antagonism toward Israel was … [Read more...] about Putting the squeeze on Israel
The Iran Deal Through an (Oil) Glass Darkly
The profit margins Big Oil requires are no longer to be made in Saudi Arabia but in Iran and Iraq. Once the US concludes a nuclear deal with Iran, Big Oil will see to it that it sticks, and Washington can turn its attention to the true cause of … [Read more...] about The Iran Deal Through an (Oil) Glass Darkly