Category: Blogs

Nord Stream 2 Makes No Sense and Must Be Stopped

By Anders Åslund

Europe is saturated with energy and demand falls steadily, as Europe saves energy. From 2004 to 2014, the primary energy consumption in the European Union declined by 12 percent and its consumption of natural gas fell by 21 percent. Yet last June, Russia’s state-controlled natural gas corporation Gazprom announced its intention to build Nord Stream […]

Collapse of States Had Implications Beyond the Middle East in 2015

By Ashish Kumar Sen

In 2016, it will be important to see if the United States and Russia can work together to end conflicts, says Atlantic Council’s Francis J. Ricciardone As 2015 draws to a close, our experts take a look back at the year that was and look ahead to 2016. This interview is part of a series. […]

The Kremlin’s Dangerous New Threat in Ukraine

By Ihor Kozak

Fighting continues to gradually intensify in eastern Ukraine. The Kremlin-backed militants are now using heavy weapons, including tanks, artillery, and ferocious Grad rocket systems, sporadically. Moscow’s rationale behind this latest escalation is to achieve a frozen conflict by gradually sabotaging the execution of the Minsk II ceasefire agreement. Russian President Vladimir Putin likely realizes that […]

Deir Ezzor Airport under ISIS Attack and Assad Control

By Justice for Life Observatory in Deir Ezzor

The Islamic State (ISIS) has for the last year besieged regime-controlled areas in Syria’s Deir Ezzor province. ISIS has completely surrounded the regime territory in Deir Ezzor and and has been able to fully blockade the passage of food and trade on the ground, making air transportation—at great cost to the regime—the only medium through […]

Top News: UN Endorses Peace Process for Syria

The UN Security Council’s (UNSC) unanimous support of a peace process for Syria that is set to begin next month with government-opposition talks and a ceasefire represents its strongest gesture yet in support of a solution to the civil war.

Top News: Esraa al-Taweel Released for Medical Reasons After Seven Months Detention

By EgyptSource

Cairo Criminal Court ordered the release Saturday of Egyptian photographer Esraa al-Taweel after nearly seven months in detention pending trial. Judge Hassan Farid said Taweel was released because of her medical condition and her need for to receive treatment outside prison.

EconSource: Saudi Arabia Plans Major Economic Shakeup Amid Oil Slump

By EconSource

Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has privately outlined plans to reshape the economy to withstand low oil prices. The strategy, which includes state spending reforms and privatizations, was presented at a meeting this week with senior officials, businessmen, and economists.

“From Russia with Cash”: Dirty Money Unchecked in London

By Amanda Abrams

The numbers are staggering. Annually, $1 trillion is stolen by corrupt officials from countries around the globe. That money needs to be spent, or laundered, and much of it goes into big anonymous real estate deals in the United Kingdom, which is seeing £1 billion in unrecorded capital inflows per month. The main source of […]

Does Egypt Believe in its Parliament?

By Yussef Auf

After a three and a half year absence, the Egyptian parliament is back in business as the final rounds of election are coming to an end. A revote for thirteen seats is taking place in four constituencies, after which all seats in the parliament will be filled. Since the Supreme Constitutional Court (SCC) dissolved the […]