Canberra, 8 February 2016 For nearly four years of the Civil War, Russia was content with providing traditional support through the provision of arms and logistics to its client-state Syria, while the Assad regime battled for its very existence. Therefore, the direct military intervention in September 2015 can be considered a revolutionary act by […]
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Tag Archives: Iraq
SAUDI ARABIA AND IRAN: DRAWING THE BATTLE LINES
January 20, 2016 
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Canberra, 20 January 2016 Ever since King Salman came to power in early 2015 and brought about sweeping changes in the hierarchy within the monarchy, the administration has been pursuing a more vigorous foreign policy than the one followed by the previous regime of King Abdullah. The focused objective has been to limit to the […]
Continue readingThe Middle-East: An Open Pandora’s Box
December 12, 2015 1 Comment
Singapore, 12 December 2015 Even before the discovery of the vast oil reserves in the region, the Middle-East had been the stomping ground of the global powers of the time. The past century has seen the region embroiled in convoluted conflicts that have simmered and altered shape, but have never really been brought to […]
Continue readingTURKEY – AT A CRITICAL JUNCTURE
November 16, 2015 0 Comments
Canberra, 16 November 2015 The 2002 electoral victory of the Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalkinma Partisi or AKP) was a turning point in modern Turkey’s political narrative. The relatively young leadership of the party, while subscribing to the secular basis of the Turkish Republic, was openly demonstrative of their devout Muslim identity and […]
Continue readingTHE ISLAMIC STATE—UNDERSTANDING AND COUNTERING ITS STRATEGY
September 22, 2015 3 Comments
Canberra, 22 September 2015 The Islamic State (IS) has been fighting the combined military might of the US-led coalition for over a year without having been contained or defeated as was promised by world leaders at the start of the war. The term ‘war’ is being used after due consideration, for what is going on […]
Continue readingTHE IMPROBABILITY OF PEACE IN SYRIA
August 25, 2015 1 Comment
Canberra, 25 August 2015 The regime of President Bashar al-Assad now effectively controls only about one-sixth of the territory of original Syria and its control is diminishing on a daily basis because it is losing territory to insurgents and facing a manpower shortage in the military. Till recently the regime continued to hold the core […]
Continue readingTHE KING IS DEAD-LONG LIVE THE KING – SAUDI ARABIA: A LEGACY OF FOREIGN POLICY BLUNDERS
February 11, 2015 2 Comments
Canberra, 11 February 2015 Much is being written about the ‘peaceful’ transition of power and the rapid administrative overhaul that has been undertaken by King Salman in the fortnight or so that he has been in power in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi newspapers are trumpeting the changes as heralding a new era within the kingdom. […]
Continue readingDECIPHERING THE FIGHT AGAINST THE ISLAMIC STATE Part II The US-led Coalition
November 18, 2014 2 Comments
Canberra, 18 November 2014 [This is the second part of a two-part series analysing the on-going conflict in the Middle East] Introduction The US-led coalition has been fighting the Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria since offensive air operations were launched on 8 August. Aside from the Western nations, the coalition includes Saudi Arabia, […]
Continue readingDECIPHERING THE FIGHT AGAINST THE ISLAMIC STATE Part I: The Major Participants
November 18, 2014 1 Comment
Canberra 18 November 2014 [This is the first part of a two-part series analysing the on-going conflict in the Middle East] Introduction The world is continuing to look at the Islamic State (IS) as yet another, and admittedly more potent, terrorist or ‘jihadi’ network. This is a rather simplistic view since the current conflict in […]
Continue readingTURKEY ON THE BRINK PART I: THE DEBACLE OF FOREIGN POLICY
October 8, 2014 0 Comments
Singapore, 8 October 2014 [This is Part I of a two-part series analysing the precarious situation that Turkey has created for itself in the most recent conflict raging in the Middle-East against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant.] For years Turkey has tried to become part of the European Union and for years […]
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Sanu Kainikara 
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