Category: Blogs

Crisis in Burundi: The Missed Ethnic Dimension

By J. Peter Pham

Reading recent pronouncements about the crisis in Burundi issued by the US State Department, one would think that the ambitions of incumbent President Pierre Nkurunziza for a third term are the only real issue. Of course, the question of whether he can and should seek another five years in office raise, respectively, serious, distinct issues […]

Is Turkey Marching Toward Early Elections?

By Aaron Stein

Over 50 million Turkish voters went to the polls on Sunday June 7 to cast their ballots for their preferred political parties. During the final days of the campaign, the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) sharpened their political attacks on Turkey’s fourth largest political party, the Peoples’ Democratic Party (HDP).

Iran and Syria: Will Tehran Ease the Humanitarian Crisis?

By Frederic C. Hof

The Rafik Hariri Center hosted a private meeting on June 3 to discuss the policy implications of a remarkable report issued by the Syrian American Medical Society. Entitled Slow Death: Life and Death in Syrian Communities Under Siege, author Valerie Szybala placed under the microscope one aspect of the Assad regime’s mass homicide survival strategy.

A ‘Disaster’ if China was Behind OPM Cyber Attack

By Ashish Kumar Sen

If the Chinese government is in fact behind the cyber attack on the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) it would be a “disaster” in terms of counterespionage, says the Atlantic Council’s Jason Healey.“The kind of information that OPM has is a goldmine for intelligence agencies,” Healey, a Nonresident Senior Fellow in the Atlantic Council’s Cyber […]

NATO’s First Drone Rolls off Assembly Line

By NATO

The first of NATO’s five unmanned air vehicles rolled off the factory line in San Diego on Thursday, 4 June 2015.

Top News: UN Mulls Blacklisting Two Libyans to Help Political Talks

By MENASource

The United Nations is considering blacklisting two Libyans, Abdulrahman Swehli and Othman Maliqta. The former is a politician from Misrata who was elected to the General National Congress (GNC) and later to the House of Representatives.

EconSource: Oil Prices Turn Higher as OPEC Keeps Output Ceiling Unchanged

By EconSource

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) agreed to stick to its policy of unconstrained output for another six months on Friday, setting aside warnings of a second decline in prices as some members, including Iran and Iraq, look to ramp up exports.

Top News: Egypt Plans to Set Up Two New Ministries

By EgyptSource

Egypt is planning to form two new ministries for entrepreneurs and Egyptian expatriates’ affairs, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said on Thursday in Germany.

Ukraine’s Success Will Have ‘Huge Implications’ for Entire Region

EU official: ‘Russia recognizes that we are not looking to gain territories’ Describing Ukraine as an “international issue,” a top European Union official said June 4 that turning the country into a success story will have “huge implications for the whole region.” “Russia recognizes we are not looking to gain territories. We are looking to […]

‘We Are Not Freaks of Nature’

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Panel looks at view from the Middle East, examines US’ role Few people would be surprised to learn that people in the Middle East—just like Americans—care first and foremost about bread-and-butter issues, their lives, and the lives of their families. “Contrary to the myth that [people in the Middle East] go to bed at night […]