The summit of Arab diplomats on March 27-28 hosted by Israeli Foreign Minister Yair Lapid in the southern Negev Desert is doubtless a landmark event. The UAE’s Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Bahrain’s Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, Morocco’s Nasser Bourita, and Egypt’s Sameh Shoukry are the Arab participants, while the visiting US Secretary of State …
Biden’s reality check in Europe
Russian General Staff dy head Gen. Sergey Rudskoy during briefing on special operation in Ukraine, Moscow, Mar. 25, 2022 The takeaway from the US President Joe Biden’s European tour on March 25-26 is measly. Dissenting voices are rising in Europe as western sanctions against Russia start backfiring with price hikes and shortages of fuel and …
Biden wings his way to the borderlands of Ukraine
US President Biden (L) and Polish President Andrzej Duda (R) By a queer coincidence, former US Secretary of State Madeline Albright passed away while President Joe Biden was travelling in Air Force 1 en route to Europe on what is probably the most crucial diplomatic mission of his presidency. The general expectation is that 80-year …
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India, US have different priorities
Prime Minister Modi and President Biden (File photo) An extraordinary week has passed for the Modi government’s dalliance with the Quad. Call it a defining moment, a turning point or even an inflection point — it has elements of all three. The last week saw a 2-day visit to Delhi by Japanese prime minister Fumio …
China sees parallel between Ukraine, Taiwan
On the evening of 18 March, President Xi Jinping (R) had a video call with US President Joe Biden at the request of the latter. The Chinese stance on developments around Ukraine was initially one-dimensional, namely, there is no conceivable comparison between Ukraine and Taiwan issues, as they are fundamentally different, because Taiwan is a …
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US to remove IRGC from terror blacklist
Axios reported earlier this week citing Israeli officials and US sources that the Biden administration is considering the removal of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps [IRGC] from its terror blacklist, in return for a ‘public commitment from Tehran to de-escalation in the region.’ It is improbable that Tehran will give any such ‘public commitment’. But, …
Russian forces double down to complete operation
Turning point: Russian special forces have entered the strategic industrial port city of Mariupol on the Black Sea coast After substantially degrading Ukraine’s military capabilities, Russia is poised to escalate the special operation leading to the victory lap. Moscow has given signals in this direction. The most significant signal came from the Kremlin spokesmen Dmitry …
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India Should Quit Quad Now!
Prime Minister Modi chaired a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Security and top officials, New Delhi, March 13, 2022 Hedging between superpowers — United States, Russia and China — was never the smart thing to do. India should have known that the contradictions are simply irreconcilable. This is a moment of truth, therefore, as …
Holy wars have no timeline
An injured European who volunteered to fight in Ukraine being evacuated at the sprawling base at Yavoriv 25 kms from Polish border following a predawn Russian cruise missile attack on Sunday A French presidency official said on Saturday that Russian President Vladimir Putin “did not show a willingness” to end the special operation in Ukraine …
Russia adjusts to “sanctions from hell”
Russia’s Central Bank is under western sanctions The Russian President Vladimir Putin’s remarks at his meeting with government ministers on Thursday constituted his first comments on the West’s “sanctions from hell.” They were focused almost entirely on “a set of measures to minimise the consequences of sanctions on the Russian economy and the people of our country.” Putin’s number …