Russia Pressures Trade and Energy Routes in Eastern Mediterranean
The Eastern Mediterranean Sea is a major strategic point of connection for international shipping and commerce. In recent years, this has drawn the attention of the Russian Federation, which seeks to reassert itself into the...
Venezuela’s Biggest Losers
Venezuela is on fire. An economic meltdown resulting from the disastrous policies of the “Bolivarian Revolution” has spawned broad speculation as to the outcome of this socioeconomic upheaval, which includes a Soviet-style...
The Russian Navy and Syria: Supporting Regional Strategic Objectives
Russia is using the on-going Syrian Civil War as an opportunity to secure its strategic objectives through an increased maritime presence in the Eastern Mediterranean. In intervening in the Syrian Civil War on the behalf of the...
Milking Two Cows: Egypt’s Return to Cold War Politics
Arriving in Tel Aviv after a trip to Cairo, Defense Secretary Mattis praised the U.S.-Egyptian military-to-military relations as a solid bedrock. Just the night before, Egypt freed a U.S. aid worker, Aya Hijazi, who had been held...
US Policy and Civil War in Ukraine: What Will It Take to Bring Peace?
In a surprising turn of events, the Trump administration recently stressed that Russia must deescalate violence in Ukraine and be held accountable for Crimea. The Russian government quickly responded, saying it doesn’t return its...
Diplomacy Bots: The Evolution of Digital Relations
If any of your Twitter friends have been unusually pro-Russia lately, or retweeting comments made by Russia’s ambassador to the United Kingdom Alexander Yakovenko, they may have signed up for an online “diplomatic club” sponsored...
On China and Russia: Strategy for the New Administration
The United States is currently bearing witness to the full dichotomy of foreign policy and strategy recommendations vis-à-vis relations with Russia and China. The spectrum includes experts who assert that the United States should...
A New Ceasefire for a New Year
Turkey confiscated supplies from a Russian plane destined for Syria, Saudi Arabia armed the Syrian rebels, and the Free Syrian Army continued to benefit from the better equipped, funded, and experienced al-Qaeda fighters. This...
Donald Trump’s Paper Tiger World
The paper tiger fallacy, portraying an opponent as incredibly strong yet eager to concede, is a tried and true trope of foreign policy punditry for good reason. It rectifies a critical flaw in premeditated policy arguments by...
The United States Must Help Central Asia Help Itself
For all of the United States’ focus on defeating the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL), countering Russia, and balancing against a rising China, it has neglected a region critical to all of these issues: Central Asia....