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Presidential visits abroad are high-level instruments of statecraft and, more often than not, signals of geopolitical priorities. The recent visit of U.S. President Donald Trump to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and Qatar, exemplified this, indicating the administration's policy orientation.
Courtesy: Gateway House
Over two centuries, the U.S. has amassed vast economic powers across the globe during and after the two World Wars , and sanctions slowly became an effective tool it used to achieve its foreign policy goals, becoming the global emperor of sanctions.
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Kurdish independence has been an unresolved problem in West Asia for over a century, but a solution may be in sight. Two recent developments highlight this: the unilateral ceasefire declaration by the Kurdistan Workers Party and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding between Syria’s transitional government and the Syrian Democratic Forces. These may be key to resolving the Kurdish issue.
Courtesy: Hindustan News Hub
The earthquakes that struck Turkey and Syria on 6 February devastated those regions. India established its credentials as an early responder, along with the global community. Humanitarian aid may not lead to a significant change in regional foreign policy, but people’s goodwill has been established in Turkey and a window opened in Syria for normalisation with its Arab partners.
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The Gulf is increasing its diplomatic weightage globally. The maximum acceleration has been by the UAE, which is leveraging its advantages of economy, location, and connectivity to position itself as a key regional and geopolitical facilitator.
Courtesy: Reuters
The Ukraine crisis has sent the EU scrambling for new gas supplies, generating fresh interest in gas pipelines from Central Asia and West Asia via Turkey. Practical difficulties make most of these new projects unviable.
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The UN turned 75 this year but instead of grand celebrations, the world witnessed an empty UNGA with world leaders addressing it via video screening because of the pandemic. The UN is under unprecedented stress and being shown up for its inability to tackle the challenges of today like the pandemics, climate change, terrorism or global peace and security. The institution's key governing structures, especially the UN Security Council, are inadequate and demand reform. India must now use gritty resolve to ensure its place in these governing structures.
Courtesy: Foreign Affairs
Countries in the Middle East, such as Iran, Israel or Saudi Arabia, do not want a military confrontation. Yet, current circumstances conduce to the breaking out of just such a war
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The removal of 11 top ministers in the Riyadh government last week by the young crown prince Mohammad bin Salman, is a geopolitical upheaval, the implications are serious. Domestically, the kingdom is seeking to liberalise its conservative society and move away from oil-dependency – evident from the expected listing of its crown jewel Aramco. For India, which imports oil largely from West Asia, instability could cause a spike in prices, leaving less for its ambitious reforms. Globally, there is now space for new alignments – in the Great Power plays, in the Shia-Sunni rivalry, and in the war on terrorism.
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The Kurdish issue is far more complex and sophisticated than the simplistic nationalist rhetoric, made fashionable by Europeans-- and which all actors in the game feel compelled to employ and have us believe