September, 2021

• 26 September

  Russia intensifies Idlib attacks ahead of summit with Turkey, Iran on Syria

  

  Some believe that the Russian escalation in Syria’s Idlib is either a prelude to a major assault or a means of increasing pressure on Turkey. Since early September, Russia has been stepping up its military attacks and airstrikes in Syria’s northwestern province of Idlib and its surroundings. Russian President Vladimir …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Two children die every week at Syria’s al-Hol camp, charity says

  

  Fires are among the leading cause of death among children of suspected Islamic State fighters who are stranded in the al-Hol and Roj camps in northeast Syria. An average of two children die every week in a sprawling displacement camp in northeast Syria housing families with suspected ties to the …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Iran says ‘remarkable progress’ made in Saudi Arabia talks

  

  Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Saeed Khatibzadeh said significant progress had been made during direct talks in Baghdad between the rival powerhouses. Iran has made further progress in direct talks with Saudi Arabia, an Iranian official said, after the Saudi king expressed optimism on Wednesday that the negotiations could build confidence …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Bloody week in Yemen on border of government and Houthi territory

  

  Tens of fighters on both sides have died this week during fighting in the Shabwa governorate. Yemen has experienced bloody fighting this week as the civil war continues to cause suffering in the country. Fighting between pro-government and Houthi rebel forces has led to 35 deaths this week in the …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Erdogan says Turkish relations with US not ‘healthy’

  

  Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan added that the trajectory of US-Turkey ties “does not bode well.” Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Thursday that his country’s relationship with the United States was not “healthy.” “I cannot say that a healthy process is running in Turkish-American ties,” Turkish broadcaster Haberturk quoted …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  The Wagner Group Is the Last Thing Mali Needs

  

  With rising communal and interethnic violence gripping swaths of the country, two coups in less than a year and a deadlocked transition to civilian rule, Mali is arguably facing its most uncertain moment since the 1991 March Revolution, which paved the way for the country’s return to civilian government nearly …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Australia Can’t Get By on Nuclear Subs Alone

  

  The newly minted Australia-U.K.-U.S. security pact, known by its acronym AUKUS, was announced just days after the 70th anniversary of another regional trilateral defense arrangement, the ANZUS treaty, which comprises Australia, New Zealand and the United States. The genesis of both deals was deeply informed by history and geography. Signed …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  The AUKUS Deal’s Implications for China

  

  Last Wednesday, the Biden administration unveiled a historic security partnership in the Indo-Pacific region between the U.S., Australia and the U.K., known as AUKUS. As part of the deal’s terms and conditions, the United States and the United Kingdom will help Australia build and deploy nuclear-powered submarines, as well as …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Behind the Scenes of the Taliban’s Internal Power Struggle

  

  The Taliban’s announcement earlier this month that it had formed an all-male “interim” Cabinet in Afghanistan comprising only the movement’s members—many of them veterans of the Taliban’s last stint in power in the 1990s—took many observers by surprise. Members of the notorious Haqqani network, which controls southeastern Afghanistan, were placed …

  Read More »
• 26 September

  Turkey: NATO’s Pro-Russian, Taliban-Friendly Ally

  

  Around the Taliban, and in a bizarre combination of convergence of interests and ideological kinship, a new anti-Western circle is evolving, including a willing NATO member state…. anti-Western sentiments are bringing together these regional powers, who are now courting Afghanistan’s radical rulers. The hard lesson learned from relying on an …

  Read More »