Combating ISIS
French President Francois Hollande reportedly described the recent attacks in Paris as an “act of war” by the organisation calling itself Islamic State (ISIS) – which has claimed responsibility for […]
» Read moreCategory: Conflicts
Time for realism in Syria
William Hague’s thoughtful article in Tuesday’s Telegraph (13 Oct 2015) is based on the mistaken assumption that a Western military intervention in Syria could be helpful. When you have a […]
» Read moreHopes for a UN relaunch in Syria
Yesterday President Obama made a speech to the UN in which he endorsed the aims of the organisation and offered his support to it as the best hope for achieving […]
» Read moreBeing provoked into intervention
Lord Richards, a former chief of Britain’s defence staff, is reported as opining that “David Cameron lacked the “balls” to take the military action in Syria that could have prevented […]
» Read moreThe Iran deal is the safest option
Today’s Iran deal, which is designed to prevent Iran from developing nuclear weapons in exchange for a lifting of sanctions, is the safest way forward for the Middle East – […]
» Read moreJoining the so-called ‘Islamic State’ (IS or ISIS)
This week’s New Statesman has published an article by Mehdi Hasan, entitled How Islamic is the Islamic State? He argues that religion is not what persuades people to join IS […]
» Read moreUkrainian Narratives
The recent talks in Minsk were reported in the West in terms of a conflict with Russia – as in this week’s Economist leading article, entitled “Putin’s war on the […]
» Read moreWhat drives ISIS?
In an article entitled Iraq Illusions, published in The New York Review of Books, Jessica Mathews describes the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) as “only one of an […]
» Read moreResisting Islamic Extremism
Prospect magazine has just published a thought-provoking article entitled Do not give Isis what it wants, drawing attention to the dangers of the West being drawn into another war. Experience […]
» Read moreUkraine after Crimean Separation
The West has mishandled its relationships with Ukraine and with Russia. President Putin’s annexation of Crimea now looks irreversible – despite the West’s protests. The West appears impotent, whilst President […]
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