Turkey Plays Khashoggi Crisis to Its Geopolitical Advantage

by James M. Dorsey With Turkish investigators asserting that they have found further evidence that Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi was killed when he visited the kingdom’s consulate in Istanbul two weeks ago, Turkey appears to be leveraging the case to enhance its… Continue Reading

Journalist’s Disappearance Challenges Fragile Middle Eastern Pragmatism

by James M. Dorsey Saudi Arabia and Turkey, despite being on opposite sides of Middle Eastern divides, are cooperating in Syria to enable youth and women to acquire skills that would either allow them to compete in the job market or turn… Continue Reading

Fragility of Middle East Alliances Becomes Ever More Apparent

by James M. Dorsey Three recent developments lay bare the fragility of Middle Eastern alliances and a rebalancing of their priorities: the Russian-Turkish compromise on an assault on the rebel-held Syrian region of Idlib, the fate of troubled Abu Dhabi airline Ettihad,… Continue Reading

China Struggles with Belt and Road Pushback

by James M. Dorsey China, in an implicit recognition that at least some of its Belt and Road-related projects risk trapping target countries in debt or fail to meet their needs, has conceded that adjustments may be necessary. “It’s normal… Continue Reading

China Drafts Restrictions for All Religions

by James M. Dorsey China intends to extend aspects of its crackdown on Islam in the north-western province of Xinjiang to all religions as is evident from the publication of proposed restrictive guidelines for online religious activity. The guidelines, according to… Continue Reading