Category: Blogs

The Odesa Gambit

By Michael Hikari Cecire

Mikheil Saakashvili has a varied resume: former President of Georgia, Justice Minister, parliamentarian, senior statesman, and Ukrainian presidential adviser. On May 30, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko added another line to his CV. He named Saakaskvili regional Governor of Odesa, a vulnerable and strategic port city on the Black Sea. Despite having served in Georgia through […]

Top News: Iraqi Forces Edge Towards Ramadi

By MENASource

Iraqi forces retook an area west of Ramadi on Saturday as they pressed their operation aimed at sealing off ISIS by severing their supply lines.

Foreign Incursions into Swedish Territorial Waters Expose Stockholm’s Military Shortcomings

By Elisabeth Braw, Politico Europe

At the end of the Cold War, Swedish submarine hunters commanded an arsenal featuring depth charges, torpedoes, and anti-submarine-warfare grenades, and surface submarine hunters were aided by a large number of helicopters, which easily spot movements in the water.

NATO: Countering Strategic Maskirovka

By Julian Lindley-French, Canadian Defense and Foreign Affairs Institute

What must NATO do to counter President Putin?

Top News: Hunger-striking Prisoner Mohamed Soltan Gives Up Egyptian Citizenship, is Deported to US

By EgyptSource

Egyptian authorities freed an Egyptian American on Saturday who was sentenced to life in prison and had been on hunger strike for over a year, forcing him to renounce his Egyptian citizenship as a precondition of his release.

EconSource: Oil Halts Advance as Saudis Pump at Record Before OPEC Meeting

By EconSource

Oil halted a two-day advance as Saudi Arabia maintained record crude output in May before the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) meets this week to discuss its production policy.

Fighting Putin’s Lies with the Truth

By Damon Wilson

“I can tell you outright and unequivocally that there are no Russian troops in Ukraine,” Russian President Vladimir Putin declared on a live television show April 16. That claim was patently false. To put it bluntly: Mr. Putin was lying through his teeth. The conflict in Ukraine’s east is a Kremlin-manufactured war, begun by Russian […]

Making Sense of Saudi Arabia’s Leadership Transition

Saudi King Salman’s recent shakeup of key leadership positions in his kingdom will not affect oil production in the short term, though it may offer some clues about how Saudi Arabia will confront urgent issues such as rising youth unemployment and instability in the Gulf. That’s the consensus of three scholars who spoke May 29 […]

NATO Leader Sees Dangerous Trend in Russia’s Nuclear Activities

By Jens Stoltenberg, NATO

Russia’s recent use of nuclear rhetoric, exercises and operations are deeply troubling.

TTIP Action | May 28

By Global Business & Economics Program

The European Parliament in Strasbourg Speeches & Official Announcements TTIP: More US Market Access, Reform Investment Protection, Retain EU Standards Members of the EP Trade Committee voted on draft recommendations to the negotiators of the EU-US trade deal on Thursday, approving them in committee by 28 votes to 13 with no abstentions. They noted that […]