U.S. President’s low-key arrival and meeting with King Salman underscores tension that has deepened over US policy towards Iran and the war in Syria . Barack Obama arrived to a noticeably low-key reception in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday against a background of mutual irritation in a relationship tested by a turbulent Middle East, plummeting oil … Continue reading
If the Syrian Civil War has taught us anything, it’s that there is a stark difference between how the US and Russia fight their wars. While Russia engaged in a successful air campaign over Syria and worked closely with Assad and Hezbollah to beat ISIS, America sowed chaos in the region by trying to support … Continue reading
Syrian President Bashar Assad says the estimated economic loss to the country from the war is $200 billion. He said rebuilding contracts will primarily be given to Russia, China and Iran. “The economic damage and damage to infrastructure exceeds $200 billion. Economic issues can be resolved when the situation in Syria stabilizes. But the reconstruction … Continue reading
By Sirwan Kajjo, Mehdi Jedinia The Iranian government is encouraging prominent Tehran developers to buy property in well-off Shi’ite majority neighborhoods in Syria’s capital, analysts and construction industry sources in Tehran said. “Entire neighborhoods have been purchased by Iran,�? Syrian economist Khorshid Alika told VOA. During the early days of Syria’s civil war, Tehran kept Iran’s involvement … Continue reading
By Michael Snyder The horrific terror attacks in Brussels, Belgium on March 22, 2016 are going to reverberate in our memories for years to come, and perhaps that was the intention. Terror attacks are designed to create fear and to get attention, and these attacks have definitely done both. On Tuesday morning, two huge explosions … Continue reading
By Brian Whitmore The Russian media predictably went into overdrive with the chest-thumping this week as the country’s forces returned home from Syria. On his flagship Vesti Nedeli program, the Kremlin’s chief propagandist Dmitry Kiselyev went so far as to call the Russian intervention a “victory of good over evil” that returned Russia to the … Continue reading
Saudi Arabia has acknowledged that the US-led anti-ISIS coalition has held a “political�? discussion about a potential ground troop deployment in Syria. Riyadh’s statements have been criticized by Damascus as destructive and a threat to regional security. In an interview with Reuters, an aide to Saudi Arabia’s defense minister, Brigadier General Ahmed Asseri, confirmed that … Continue reading
By Jeff Desjardins, Visual Capitalist The global arms trade is huge. While it’s hard to pin down an exact value of arms transfers, the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute estimates that the number was at least $76 billion in 2013, with the caveat that it is likely higher. The volume of transfers have been trending upwards now … Continue reading
By Andrew Manners Despite a tentative agreement struck last week to freeze oil production, Saudi Arabia is likely to keep oil prices low for the foreseeable future. Last week Saudi Arabia, Venezuela, Qatar, and Russia reached an historic agreement to cap oil production at mid-January levels. The pact – the first between OPEC and a … Continue reading
By Michael Snyder The ceasefire in Syria is a joke. Turkish military units continue to mass along the border, and militants are pouring across the border to attack targets in northern Syria. The Prime Minister of Turkey is now openly admitting that his government is supporting the militants that are trying to overthrow the Syrian … Continue reading