TRENDS

14

Nov

ASEAN, China, Indo-Pacific, Mutual Defence Treaty, Quad, Quadrilateral Security Dialogue

The Quad; A Complement or Replacement for ASEAN?

BY: Gabriel Joel P. Honrada* PEJOURNAL - There are two emerging guarantors of the multilateral rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific. First is the Quadrilateral Security Dialogue (Quad) between the US, Australia, Japan, and India. Second is the Association of Southeast Asian States (ASEAN). Both organisations attempt to uphold the rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific, albeit via different means. The Quad provides a tangible enforcing presence and backs up the rules-based order in the Indo-Pacific with the threat of military force. In comparison, ASEAN takes a softer approach of interaction, socialisation, and integration to preserve the same. In view of China’s…

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14

Nov

crusaders of nowhere, European Union, Islamophobia, right-wing circles, Western Values

The crusaders of nowhere

BY: Flavio Ferraro* Translated BY: Costantino Ceoldo PEJOURNAL - In some right-wing circles, what to say if you want identitarian or conservative, in the aftermath of each terrorist attack we witness the usual script, in favour of the crusaders of nowhere: in addition to defining with the word “Islamic” criminal actions that have nothing to do with Islam (such as the recent horrible events in Vienna), thunderous appeals are launched to highlight the incompatibility of the Islamic religion with “our values”. Now, if this happened in the ranks of progressives, no one would be surprised; but that all this happens…

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14

Nov

Algeria, Conflict, European Union, Frente POLISARIO, Morocco, Sahrawi, United Nations Security Council, Western Sahara

Western Sahara, Morocco clear-cut conflict escalation

BY: Hana Saada PEJOURNAL - In a flagrant and deliberate violation of the Ceasefire agreement signed between the two parties to the conflict in Western Sahara (Frente POLISARIO and Morocco) in 1991, the Moroccan occupation forces opened, on Friday, three new breaches in the Moroccan military wall of shame with a view to attacking the peaceful Sahrawi protesters who are protesting peacefully in Guerguerat. In this aspect, the Moroccan Armed Forces sent military forces through three routes east of the illegal breach in Guerguerat to Sahrawi civilians who were demonstrating peacefully in the areas since October 21 against the illegal…

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13

Nov

Ansar allah, Houthi movement, Muslim Brotherhood, Turkey, West Asia, Yemen

Reviving Turkey’s role in Yemen; Its advantages and risks

PEJOURNAL - Turkey's neo-Ottoman foreign policy in West Asia in recent years has made the country one of the most important and interfering players in regional changes. Although in these interventions, the pragmatism of this country has been preferred to the ideological dimension of foreign policy as in the past, but behind such an approach, supporting the currents close to the Muslim Brotherhood and the alliance with Qatar in the region has been very important. And for this reason, the type of convergences and divergences of this country in West Asia is largely influenced by Brotherhood tendencies. The kind of…

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13

Nov

Baltic Region, baltic sea, EU, NATO, Russian, USA

Russian Policies in Baltic Region

BY: Daniel Ranjbar PEJOURNAL - Russia’s relations with the Baltic states, including Estonia, Lithuania and Latvia, have deteriorated since the collapse of the Soviet Union, with Russia and its Western allies blaming Russia for the increase. It should not be overlooked that the differences between Russia and the Baltic states are rooted in the centuries-old history of the inhabitants of the region. Army of Poland and Lituvania occupied Moscow for two years to become the only country in history to conquer Moscow, unlike Napoleon, the leader of France, and Hitler, the leader of Nazi Germany. The three Baltic republics, Estonia,…

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10

Nov

agreement, Americas, Canada, Mexico, NAFTA, the United States, trade deal, USMCA

Replacing NAFTA with USMCA

BY: Jacobien van der Kleij PEJOURNAL- The 2,082 paged framework known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), went into force on the 1th of July this year and will constitute according to Trump “the best and most important trade deal ever made by the USA”. And its predecessor, NAFTA, part of Reagan's 1980 presidential campaign and signed in 1992 by Bill Clinton, will go down in history as the “US worst Trade Deal”. However, the impetus for a new trade Agreement governing a market with more than 500 million people involved, does not signal an end to trade disputes between…

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10

Nov

ceasefire, chess game, Europe, Haftar, Libya, Libya’s Civil War, NATO, Qatar, Russia, Turkey, UN, USA

Libya’s ceasefire: the opening move of a complex chess game.

BY: Begona Arechalde On October 23, the UN body in charge of supervising the peaceful resolution of the Libya’s Civil War, UNSMIL, announced in Geneva that the warring factions have reached a ceasefire agreement. The document, that is just three pages long, summarises the next steps in the de-escalation of the conflict. The UN must monitor the correct implementation of the clauses to prevent internal disputes and third-party interests from sabotaging the progress made. Friday's agreement gives a truce to the poverty-stricken North African country, at war since the ouster of Muammar Qaddafi in a coup orchestrated by NATO and…

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10

Nov

Africa, America, Atlantic Council, China, COVID-19, EU, foreign policy, Joe Biden, Latin America, Middle East, Multilateralism, NATO, presidency, Trumpism, USA

What does Joe Biden’s presidency mean for America’s role in the world?

BY: Atlantic Council PEJOURNAL - We finally have a winner. After several days of counting votes, former Vice President Joe Biden has defeated President Donald J. Trump in the US presidential election, after the Associated Press called Pennsylvania for the former vice president on November 7.  While Biden may have to contend with a divided Congress to achieve his many domestic priorities, he will have much more power to shape US foreign policy going forward. “Under a Biden presidency, the United States will shift from a ‘with or without us’ approach to a policy that fundamentally believes the United States can achieve more when we work together with partner nations,” Jason Marczak, director of…

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10

Nov

Donald Trump, Iran, Joe Biden, maximum pressure, Middle East, smart pressure, West Asia Disintegration

Trump or Biden; Looking inside is the only solution to problems

BY: Pooya Mirzaei PEJOURNAL - In the run-up to the US presidential election, some think that if Joe Biden wins, sanctions will be lifted and the dollar will fall, but if Trump stays in the White House, conditions will escalate, makes it much harder for Iran. Reviewing the background and positions of these two shows that neither Biden's election works wonders nor Trump has power to go over what he has done so far. Biden's stance on Iran, as explicitly published in his special note to the world a few weeks ago in CNN, shows a much smarter approach to…

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10

Nov

Election, Middle East, North America, policy, Strategy, the United States, West Asia

How do the North American elections influence West Asia?

BY: Valeria Rodriguez PEJOURNAL - While there are conflicting positions in West Asia between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Iran and Qatar, there are likely to be some changes, but not substantive, in the United States' relationship with West Asia. The relationship with Israel is historic as it is considered a satellite state of the United States. With Trump's administration the relationship was practically carnal, the United States supported each of the violations of international law by Israel. Some examples of this were the transfer of the American embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the Deal of the Century…

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