(Satellite images suggest Saudi Arabia testing missiles capable of delivering nuclear weapons) Saudi Arabia launched a mammoth National Industrial Development and Logistics Program (NIDLP) Monday focusing on a dozen sectors in the economy including energy, petrochemicals, mining and the automotive industry. The powerful Saudi Minister of Energy, Industry and Mineral Resources Khalid al-Falih claimed that …
Putin’s firewall around Russia-Turkey partnership
(Russian President Vladimir Putin (R) and Turkish President Recep Erdogan following joint press conference at the Kremlin, Moscow, Jan 23, 2019) The much-awaited meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his visiting Turkish counterpart Recep Erdogan in Moscow last Wednesday focused on the the withdrawal of US troops from Syria. The timeframe of the US …
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Afghan peace comes two steps at a time
Dramatic news is filtering in from Qatar where the United States Special Representative for Afghanistan Zalmay Khalilzad and his delegation were huddled together with the representatives of the Taliban for four consecutive days since Monday. The duration of the talks unmistakably signifies that complex negotiations have taken place. Things are moving almost entirely in the …
Trump-Kim summit to show real progress
The White House disclosed in Washington on January 19 that President Trump’s second summit with the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un “will take place near the end of February”. One month is a very long time in politics but the White House disclosure came at the conclusion of three-day working level talks between senior officials …
Sri Lanka’s BOP crisis is an eye-opener
In a curious twist to Sri Lanka’s famous “debt trap”, Colombo has approached New Delhi and Beijing in panic to help it somehow meet the unprecedented foreign debt obligations. Eyebrows will be raised. How come Beijing? Yes, it is about Beijing helping Colombo to tackle its real “debt trap” – namely, repayment of maturing loans …
US officials converge on Pakistan seeking Afghan peace
After a successful mission to Turkey this weekend on US President Trump’s behalf, his leading Republican ally Senator Lindsey Graham is reportedly heading for Islamabad on a similar mission seeking rapprochement with another truculent erstwhile ally of the US. Senator Graham, interestingly, used to be a hardliner on Afghanistan who once believed that a US …
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US erodes Russia-Turkey axis in Syria
(Turkish tank convoy moving to Syrian border, Jan 14.) Through the past month since US President Donald Trump tweeted his fateful decision to withdraw troops from Syria, a familiar pattern began appearing – no sooner than Trump makes a foreign-policy decision, those around him scramble to try to delay that decision. However, in the Syrian …
Debris of INF treaty will fall far and wide
The US-Russia talks in Geneva regarding the 1987 Intermediate-range Nuclear Forces (INF) treaty have ended in failure. In a final call to salvage the treaty, Moscow offered that American experts could inspect a new suspect Russian missile, which Washington has been citing as the alibi for its decision to quite the treaty, but the US …
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With eye on Iran, US steps up presence in Iraq
(Proposed 1600 km long Basra-Aqaba oil & gas pipeline) The US’ plan to withdraw troops from Syria has electrified the Iraqi political and diplomatic landscape. The Saudi establishment daily Asarq Al-Awsat has reported from Baghdad, quoting a prominent Iraqi analyst that the American troops who are being redeployed to Iraq from Syria will be divided …
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Trump has mixed signals for Astana partners
(Turkey deploys battle tanks on border with Syria.) Trump’s tweets earlier today regarding Syrian withdrawal plan came out of the blue – “Starting the long overdue pullout from Syria while hitting the little remaining ISIS territorial caliphate hard, and from many directions. Will attack again from existing nearby base if it reforms. Will devastate Turkey …
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