Where have I been these past few days? Shouldn’t I have been taking a victory lap and screaming, “I was right!� and “I told you so!� this whole time? Well, yes … yes, I should have. But I was busy doing some cramming and studying on the topic. See, I had followed Syria closely a... Read More

To seek a deal on Ukraine is to treat the symptom and to ignore a cure. ‘Doomsters’ is an occasional Russian expression used to categorise commentators that only see the ‘dark side to events’ (a vice quite prevalent during the Soviet era). Marat Khairullin, a highly respected Russian military analyst, says, “Today, a network of... Read More

Until recently, a serious geopolitical working hypothesis was that West Asia and Ukraine were two vectors of the standard Hegemon modus operandi, which is to incite and unleash Forever Wars. Now both wars are united in an Omni-War. A coalition of Straussian neo-cons in the US, hardcore revisionist Zionists in Tel Aviv and Ukrainian neo-nazi... Read More

Who was behind Wednesday’s terrorist attack on Turkey’s leading aerospace company? According to reports, at least five people were killed, and 22 others wounded, when two terrorists attacked the facility with explosives and gunfire before being “neutralized.� First clue: Turkish president Erdogan “was holding talks in Russia with Vladimir Putin at the time of the... Read More

Well, this is the biggest story of the day, by a lot. It’s unfortunate I had a sort of rough weekend and don’t feel like commenting too much on it right now. Reuters: Turkey is a significant military power. They have a serious and professional military. They could, you know, do various things. They can’t... Read More

Hey, wow. Looks like Erdogan is wising up and realizing that his only chance at a real empire is if he goes to war with Israel and wins. Hopefully, he’s now planning to launch an immediate attack, and just kill every Jew in Palestine. The Guardian: Erdoğan and Shoukry expressed concern during the meeting that... Read More

The French Empire unraveled soon after World War II. But, it was far from a total loss. The French colonialists reconnected with the National Core. They returned to France, their homeland. Back then, French colonialists had a homeland waiting for them with open arms. But, what is France today? It is a demographic colony of... Read More

Oddly, few Western writers on the South Caucasus have ever grasped Christian Armenia’s significance as Russia’s only ally and military outpost among the region’s three countries. Simply put: Were Russia to lose Armenia, the U.S./NATO/EU and pan-Turkism would inevitably dominate the Caucasus/Caspian and, perhaps, beyond. Putin understands this. Georgia and Azerbaijan are, after all, headed... Read More

Azerbaijan’s late September military operation to retake the ethnic Armenian enclave of Nagorno-Karabakh, the self-styled “Republic of Artsakh,� caused most of the residents to flee to Armenia and the government of breakaway region to announce it will dissolve by 1 January 2024. The likely end of conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia may unlock opportunities for... Read More

The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEC) is a massive public diplomacy op launched at the recent G20 summit in New Delhi, complete with a memorandum of understanding signed on 9 September. Players include the US, India, UAE, Saudi Arabia, and the EU, with a special role for the latter’s top three powers Germany, France, and... Read More

It’s another stunning sunset in the western edge of the Sicilian coast, and I’m right in front of the Real Duomo in Erice, the pluri-millenary “Mount�, sung by Virgil in the Aeneid as “close to the stars�, and founded by the mythical homonymous son of Venus and Bute who became King of the Elimi, an... Read More

Most people think of Turkey – now renamed ‘Turkiye,’ – as an exotic land of spices, little cups of sweet coffee and fierce-looking men with bristling mustaches. They would be surprised to learn that Turkiye (and ex-Turkey) is the most populated nation in Europe (excluding Russia) and an industrial and military powerhouse. In fact, Turkiye’s... Read More

China flew in and made peace between Iran and Saudi Arabia. This led to Syria being allowed back into the Arab League. Russia flies in and gets Turkey to make peace with Syria. Things are changing so fast. RT: Turkey, Syria, Iran and Russia have agreed to develop a roadmap for rebuilding ties between Ankara... Read More

West Asia is a region that is currently experiencing a great deal of geopolitical activity. Recent diplomatic efforts, initiated by Russia and overseen by China, secured a long-elusive Iranian and Saudi Arabian rapprochement, while Syria’s return to the Arab League has been welcomed with great fanfare. The diplomatic flurry signals a shift away from the... Read More

President Erdogan may be instrumentalizing what happens in the aftermath to craft his P.R. campaign ahead of the next elections. The setting: a cosy Ossetian restaurant owned by two Ossetian ladies close to Istiklal street, a very busy central area of Istanbul. The players: a smatter of Istanbul intelligentsia – academics, media, liberal professionals, lawyers,... Read More