Category Archives: Uncategorized

US-GCC Camp David Summit: An Overview

Posted on May 18, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

18 May 2015 US-Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Summit meeting at Camp David ended with a Joint Statement and an Annex which contains additional detail on future avenues of cooperation. The Gulf States had four major expectations from the summit: • … Continue reading →

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Confusion over the Camp David Summit

Posted on May 13, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

13 May 2015 Following his visit to Riyadh, Secretary Kerry met with his Gulf counterparts in Paris on Friday, May 8th in preparation of this week’s summit at Camp David. After the meeting, Kerry and Saudi Foreign Minister al-Jubair held … Continue reading →

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Yemen: Time for Decisive Diplomacy

Posted on May 9, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

9 May 2015 Saudi Arabia has announced a five-day humanitarian cease-fire in Yemen. The cease-fire is supposed to start on Tuesday, May 12th at 11:00 p.m., last for five days and be subject to renewal. During two press conferences with … Continue reading →

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Turkey’s Upcoming Election and the Syria Conflict

Posted on May 4, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

4 May 2015 On 27 April, the International Crisis Group published the “Statement on a Syrian Policy Framework”. The Statement starts with an analysis of the conflict and then suggests a framework for a political deal based on the understanding … Continue reading →

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Yemen’s Ordeal Continues

Posted on April 28, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

28 April 2015 On 24 April Saudi Arabia announced that “Operation Decisive Storm” had achieved its objective and priority would now shift to rebuilding the country and political dialogue. This new phase was to be called “Renewal of Hope”. This … Continue reading →

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UN Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 2216 on Yemen

Posted on April 17, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

17 April 2015 UNSC Resolution 2216 of 14 April 2015 represents a diplomatic victory for Saudi Arabia and its regional allies, in particular the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. In this Resolution, the Security Council remains silent on the Saudi-led military … Continue reading →

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Escalation in Yemen

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

15 April 2015 The fighting in Yemen no doubt reminds Turks of a beautiful but sad folk song (Lament of Yemen) mourning the loss of thousands of Turkish soldiers in this far away part of the Ottoman Empire during the … Continue reading →

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Middle East Desperate for a Course Correction

Posted on April 10, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

10 April 2015 President Obama has again spoken to Thomas L. Friedman of the New York Times. Although the interview essentially aimed at reassuring the people of Israel and Congressional opponents that the framework agreed upon in Lausanne represents the … Continue reading →

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From Joint Action Plan toward a Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action

Posted on April 5, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

Co-authored with Yusuf Buluc (*) 5 April 2015 On 23 November 2013 P5+1 and Iran reached agreement on a Joint Plan of Action which was a roadmap for the negotiation process that was to follow. Sixteen months later we have … Continue reading →

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Arab States Trying to Overcome Disarray

Posted on March 30, 2015 by Ali Tuygan

30 March 2015 On 26 March 2015, Saudi Arabia supported by the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar started air strikes against the Houthis who in addition to Yemen’s capital Sana had also captured the country’s second largest city … Continue reading →

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