Tag Archives: Turkish foreign policy

Sad Times for Democracy

Posted on July 5, 2020 by

July 5, 2020 China had a two-term limit on its president since the 1990s. Xi Jinping became president in 2012. In April this year, the National People’s Congress approved the removal the two-term limit, effectively allowing him to “remain in … Continue reading →

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Turkish-French Tensions Over Libya

Posted on June 29, 2020 by

June 29, 2020 Two weeks ago, France accused Turkey of harassing a French frigate off the coast of Libya while it carried out checks on a Turkish ship that it suspected of breaking the UN arms embargo. Turkey denied the … Continue reading →

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Turkey Needs to Pivot to Diplomacy

Posted on June 22, 2020 by

June 22, 2020 Ataturk was the hero of our War of Independence, the founder of the Republic and Turkey’s greatest ever reformer. His motto was, “peace at home, peace in the world”. Suffice to say, we no longer have peace … Continue reading →

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The Day of Reckoning

Posted on June 15, 2020 by

June 15, 2020 The end of the Cold War raised hopes for a more peaceful and stable world with the “international community” collectively confronting global challenges. This proved a myth. After three decades, all we hear now is Cold War … Continue reading →

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Confrontation over Hong Kong

Posted on May 26, 2020 by

May 26, 2020 In April 2017, President Trump hosted his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping for a two-day summit at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida. After their meeting, Mr. Trump spoke of “tremendous progress” in the U.S.-China relationship. A year later, … Continue reading →

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The Syrian Quagmire

Posted on May 18, 2020 by

May 18, 2020 Syria’s relations with Moscow have traditionally been close and steady. Russia operated a military base in Tartus for more than four decades. In the mid-1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet Union, U.S. Secretary of State Warren … Continue reading →

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Fighting King Covid XIX

Posted on May 11, 2020 by

May 11, 2020 Two months ago, underlining the regrettable shallowness of the concept of “international community”, I said that the world now needs the kind cooperation  commensurate with the enormity of the coronavirus challenge, like emergency meetings at the UN … Continue reading →

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The Idlib Problem Still with Us

Posted on April 27, 2020 by

April 27, 2020 Coronavirus is seen as the greatest global challenge of modern times. Because, the death toll in some countries has reached tens of thousands. Just as important is the shock of unpreparedness, helplessness and vulnerability of a technologically … Continue reading →

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“International Community” and the UN System

Posted on April 20, 2020 by

April 20, 2020 Some say that after coronavirus passes “nothing will be the same”. Should that prove to be the case, hopefully the past will not dictate the future. Last week, President Trump announced he was halting funding to the … Continue reading →

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Sailing in Uncharted Waters

Posted on April 7, 2020 by

April 7, 2020 The Arab Spring threw the Middle East in chaos. Then came the Ukraine conflict and Russia’s annexation of Crimea. As the Syrian conflict moved up on the international agenda the former receded. Despite on and off official … Continue reading →

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