Turkey’s Post-Mosul Calculations in Iraq

by Robert Olson Turkey does not have one foreign policy toward Iraq but several. Its primary concern is not toward the Shi’a-dominated government in Baghdad but rather toward the Kurdish Regional Government (KRG) in Irbil, and, in particular, toward the… Continue Reading

Turkey’s Gains in Syria

by Robert Olson On August 24, Turkey invaded Syria to retake the Islamic State (ISIS or IS)-held town of Jarabulus. Along with Free Syrian Army (FSA) forces comprised of anti-Assad, jihadist, and pro-Turkish Turkmen forces, Turkey has continued to drive… Continue Reading

Kurdish-Turkish War Escalates

by Robert Olson On March 15, Duran Kalkan, one of the main leaders of the PKK, stated that March would be a Kurdish Spring, at least for the Kurds in Turkey. Kalkan announced that the PKK would extend its war… Continue Reading

Failed States and States of Failure

by Tom Engelhardt One of the charms of the future is its powerful element of unpredictability, its ability to ambush us in lovely ways or bite us unexpectedly in the ass. Most of the futures I imagined as a boy… Continue Reading

John Kerry: We Have a Middle East Strategy

by Derek Davison In a speech in Washington on Wednesday to kick off the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s “Arab World Horizons” project, Secretary of State John Kerry articulated and defended the Obama administration’s Middle East strategy. He described the… Continue Reading