Latest Articles about Middle East
KREMLIN PONDERS MEANING OF EAST EUROPEAN SUMMIT
The exceptionally harsh criticism of Russia's behavior by the senior Western representatives at this week's Vilnius summit of Eastern European countries has undoubtedly rattled the Kremlin leadership. But the big question that the Moscow policy elite tries to answer is about the true meaning of... MORE
Prosecuting Terrorism: Yemen’s War on Islamist Militancy
Any observer of Yemen's political scene cannot help but notice that Yemen appears to be awash with al-Qaeda suspects. Mass trials follow mass arrests as hundreds of suspects flow through Yemen's legal system. Some are selected for execution and others for lengthy prison sentences, but... MORE
SOVMEN REMAINS PRESIDENT OF ADYGEYA, BUT KREMLIN LOOKS FOR ALTERNATIVES
The political crisis in the North Caucasus republic of Adygeya caused by the surprise resignation of its president, Khasret Sovmen (see EDM, April 6), was resolved on April 17. That day Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Adygei president in the Kremlin and asked... MORE
RUSSIAN ENERGY PROFITS AID RUSSIAN MILITARY, BUT NOT MILITARY-INDUSTRIAL SECTOR
Although energy and foreign policy issues have dominated reporting from Russia in 2006, there have also been interesting developments in the defense sector. The Putin regime has launched a comprehensive effort to modernize the Russian military, including its defense-industrial sector. Moreover, this effort has included... MORE
TURNING DEMOCRACY INTO A “FRINGE ELEMENT” AND MOLDOVA INTO A RUSSIAN PROTECTORATE
The latest session of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna adds to the indications that officials in Brussels and Washington are returning to the 2002-2004 policy of resolving the Transnistria conflict in a manner that abandons Moldova to Russian domination. That policy entails now, as... MORE
GAZPROM PICKS OFF ONE LARGE GERMAN MORSEL, POISED FOR ANOTHER
With Russian President Vladimir Putin and German Chancellor Angela Merkel looking on, the chairmen of Gazprom and BASF, Alexei Miller and Juergen Hambrecht, signed an agreement on joint ventures in Siberian gas field development and gas marketing in Germany and Europe on April 27. The... MORE
Sinai Bombings Mark Latest in Pattern of Symbolic Attacks in Egypt
Last week's deadly explosions at a popular restaurant, café and supermarket frequented by tourists in the Egyptian city of Dahab in the Sinai Peninsula appear to fit the pattern of terrorist attacks targeting Cairo's lucrative tourism infrastructure. As a critical source of income for the... MORE
Kurdish Unrest Escalates in Turkey’s Southeast
The issue of national security appears to be again coming to the forefront of Turkish politics. The continuing infiltration of Kurdish insurgents into Turkey from Iraq, the clashes between the army and domestic Kurdish youths, the spate of terrorist acts carried out by Kurdish militant... MORE
…as al-Zarqawi Models Himself After Bin Laden
There are a number of features that make al-Zarqawi's video noteworthy. First of all, al-Zarqawi himself appears unmasked in it, the first time the militant jihadist leader has appeared in this manner. Secondly, the high-quality video was presented as a production of the "Mujahideen Shura... MORE
RUSSIAN-GERMAN SUMMIT IN TOMSK: SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP ON DISPLAY
The Russian-German energy and political summit held April 26-28 in Tomsk indicated that Chancellor Angela Merkel's Christian Democrat-Social Democrat government is reverting to the Russia policy line established by her predecessor Gerhard Schroeder's Social Democrat-Green government. Eight cabinet ministers and a massive group of business... MORE