Ground beneath Zelensky’s feet is shifting

A HIMARS vehicle on deployment in Eastern Ukraine (File photo)  Reading and rereading the US President Joe Biden’s statement last Monday on Ukraine Independence Day, one is reminded of English poet John Keats’ immortal line, ‘Heard melodies are sweet but those unheard are sweeter.’ Three things are striking.  Biden repeatedly invoked the abiding nature of …

Erdogan repairs Syria ties with eye on Eurasianism

Dogu Perincek, Chairman of Turkey’s left-wing nationalist Patriotic Party,  is reportedly leading a delegation to Syria (File photo)  Yesterday, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev regarding the forthcoming Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit in Samarkand on September 15-16. This must be the fourth or fifth time the two leaders confabulated over the upcoming event. One …

Ukraine war of attrition at inflection point

Two Russian soldiers patrolling in Kherson, south Ukraine The great beauty about the war of attrition is that the military strategy of belligerent attempts to win a war by wearing down the enemy may not necessarily achieve the intended strategic success. Worse still, it may remain inconclusive and it becomes difficult to distinguish between the …