The current challenge Pakistan faces is dangerous and surrounded by concerns and risks
On the day of the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan, Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Chief, General Faiz Hameed, was seen sipping coffee at the Serena Hotel in Kabul. A news channel reporter captured this moment on video and asked, “Will you be meeting with the senior leaders of the Taliban?” The then-Director General (DG) of ISI replied: “No, I am not sure,” pointing to then-Pakistan Ambassador to...
... Poroshenko and the 2014 revolutionaries. The inherent vulnerabilities of Ukraine’s political system, present since the country’s independence, may resurface with renewed intensity.
Andrey Kortunov:
A Failed Journey to the West
The state of Ukrainian society adds another layer of complexity. Fatigue from prolonged military action, frustration with losses, and disillusionment with Western partners are taking their toll. Society has yet to grapple with the full impact of post-traumatic stress disorder....
Despite the efforts of Middle Eastern countries to enhance their influence in regional and international affairs, they continue to deal with issues that require external support
Becoming more evident in recent years, the latest events taking place in the Middle East may reinforce an awareness of the changing role of Middle Eastern states in international relations. Episodes such as U.S. President Donald Trump's remarks about the Gaza Strip and the fall of Bashar al-Assad's regime in Syria have...
... place can be described as a kakistocracy. It is the root cause of the deep-seated dissatisfaction in the Alienation 2.0 phase. Notwithstanding its utmost pertinence to the current condition, this word is hardly mentioned in discussions aimed at solving society’s ills. Instead, democracy and other concepts characterizing liberal international order are advocated at compounding rates. Such a rendition is not incidental at all. The concept of democracy in its essence and exercise of—particularly through ...
Twists and turns of the conflict in eastern DR Congo
In January 2002, the city of Goma, located in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, lay in ruins. The cause was not the Great African War,
[1]
which had been ravaging the country for several years. The war’s first rebellion had, in fact, started here in August 1998, when Banyamulenge-Tutsi fighters, led by a former ally of President Laurent-Désiré Kabila and backed by Rwanda (where Paul Kagame has ruled since the 1994 genocide), seized...
... principles, as clearly seen in the cases of U.S. and EU pressure on Georgia and their support for Moldova.
Under these circumstances, even governments that support European integration are no longer willing to be a revolving door for transnational “civil society.” Standards and rules provide less and less protection to anyone. Tomorrow, your government may face demands for another concession—for example, joining restrictions against Russia—and find itself transformed from an ally into a target for ...
Emotion and frustration seem to be taking over the political world, but especially so in the UK
Introduction
This paper attempts to uncover why England (and later the United Kingdom) has a deep historical dislike of Russia and Russian society. Starting with William Pitt’s verbal attack on Russia in 1791, the same sentiments moved onto the Dardanelles, the so-called “Great Game”, the Crimean War, the acquisition of Cyprus, Mackinder’s obsession with Russia, the Bolsheviks, the ...
... candidate) and the Republican candidate (almost certainly Trump) in the presidential election is not solely political but fundamentally about values: a clash of ideological trends, worldviews, and ultimately conceptions of human nature, one’s place in society, and one’s goals and responsibilities.
The phenomenon of Donald Trump’s popularity, which represents the hopes of the conservative segment of the American electorate, has been the subject of numerous academic studies. Trump is characterized ...
... remarks were delivered by Andrey Kortunov, RIAC Academic Director, and Vitaly Naumkin, IOS RAS President and RIAC Vice-President.
The substantive basis of the conference was the RIAC monography "Conversations about the Arab World: Politics, Power, Society". The book was presented by its authors: Aleksandr Aksenenok, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Russia, RIAC Vice-President, and Vasily Kuznetsov, Deputy Director for Science of the IOS RAS, RIAC Member.
During the discussion,...
... that a more competent government would take their place. This is what Georgia’s unofficial patron Bidzina Ivanishvili promised voters, and the presence of such an influential figure, who had no personal interest in a political career, helped Georgian society achieve a peaceful and democratic transfer of power. People believed that their lives would be better under Ivanishvili than under Saakashvili.
Indeed, the Georgian dream of a healthy socioeconomic life became a reality in the eight years from ...
