This week's high-level diplomatic meetings involving Russia, the United States, and NATO mark a departure from recent years of minimal contact. Putin has forced this crisis diplomacy upon the West, and for him, this already constitutes success: it shows the world that Russia is a globally significant power to be reckoned with.
Policymakers and analysts know that sanctions on their own are unlikely to topple the regime or force Belarus’s president to behave better toward his citizens.
Since October 2020, the European Union has gradually extended its sanctions against Belarus. Aimed to change the calculations and dynamics within the ruling elite, sanctions are now perceived as less important by the Belarusian people given the authoritarian regime's consolidation of power.
2021 will be remembered as a turning point for NATO in its approach to the China question.
At the last general election, just under 15m people voted for parties on the right that wanted to “get Brexit done,” while almost 17m people voted for parties on the left and centre that wanted it stopped. Yet, as we all know, we ended up with a House of Commons with a big pro-Brexit majority. How come?
Despite soaring inflation rates and dwindling currency reserves, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan remains committed to the Turkish Growth Model. Beyond monetary policy, Turkish foreign policy is being recalibrated to account for the country’s political, business, and economic interests.
With increased summitry and frequent communication between Moscow and Washington, present-day Russia-U.S. relations harks back to the Cold War. To defuse tensions, the Americans must draw the Russians to the table and negotiate from a position of strength.
While a successful Iran nuclear deal is far from guaranteed, alternatives to diplomacy are bleak. The United States’ apparent unwillingness to signal its intention to honor the agreement, Iran’s nuclear progress, and rising tensions between Washington and Beijing stand in the way of a renewed compromise.
Start of 2021 the UK left the EU, and the Biden administration comes in and this really is in principle a moment to reorganize the so-called West. To reorganize those powers that have basically shaped the world since the end of the Second World War
In today’s geopolitical environment, world leaders agree on very little. But reining in Big Tech is emerging as one of the few ideas that everyone can get behind.