SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.
Online Strategic Council—Opinion: Madam Vjosa Osmani-Sadriu, 38 years old, educated in the United States and candidate of the ruling party for the position of President of Kosovo, was elected as the new President of Kosovo in the third round of voting in the 112-seat parliament with the positive vote of 71 MPs. In this voting, 11 votes were disqualified and two opposition parties and one Serb-minority party boycotted voting in the parliament. Osmani-Sadriu, former speaker of the parliament, is the second women to be elected president in Kosovo after the Balkans conflict. She is holding a ceremonial position now however she plays the leading role in determining Kosovo’s foreign policy while she is the commander in chief of the armed forces. She became the interim chief of cabinet in November 2020 after Hashim Thaci resigned as the president of Kosovo. Thaci submitted his resignation before a court in the Netherlands began investigating war crimes. Hashim Thaci is awaiting the court.
Mahmood Fazeli—International affairs analyst
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: Military aggression continues against Yemen while countries such as the United States, Germany, United Kingdom, France and Canada are accomplice to the crimes committed against the world’s most impoverished country of the region through the continued sale of arms and intelligence and logistical supports provided to Saudi Arabia.
Mahmoud Fazeli—Expert of European issues
Strategic Council Online – Europeans say that if the release of Taliban prisoners by the Afghan and US governments is to be a sign of confidence in the start of intra-Afghan negotiations, the Taliban must take further confidence-building steps. Therefore, from the European point of view, the release of 5,000 Taliban forces, even without a positive outlook for a peace agreement, is tactically very dangerous.
Nozar Shafiee – Expert and Researcher on Subcontinent Issues
SCFR Online – Opinion: Developments in the South Caucasus and Central Asia indicate that transit competition has become an arena for a new staging of influence among Iran, Turkey, Russia, and China.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The upcoming Palestinian elections, after nearly two decades of hiatus, could affect the arrangement of political forces, the legitimacy of institutions, and the future path of Palestinian governance.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The direct war of the United States and the Israeli regime against Iran, disruption of nuclear inspections, and intensification of great power competition have taken the non-proliferation crisis beyond the issue of Iran’s nuclear program.
SCFR Online – Opinion: In the Iran–U.S. equation, China pursues a cautious balance between its energy and transit interests with Tehran and considerations related to sanctions and competition with Washington.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The simultaneity of pressure on the Strait of Hormuz and Bab el-Mandeb has turned the geography of energy and shipping into a new arena for the emergence of new risks, costs, and leverage.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The Makkah Pact, signed on August 7, 2026, between Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan, is more than an answer to geopolitical vacuums; in practice, it faces a “deterrence dilemma” and “differing threat perception.” While this pact symbolizes a transition toward regional self-reliance, its first field tests and the complexities of relations with regional actors will determine its real meaning.
SCFR Online – Opinion: The reason for Washington’s reluctance to enter directly into war with Ansarullah is military and economic limitations, electoral considerations, and concern about the expansion of the crisis at two energy chokepoints.
SCFR Online – Opinion: Ansarullah’s recent lightning-fast operation and surprise advances on Yemen’s western coast have rapidly transformed the equations of the war in that country and developments in West Asia, and have challenged the calculations of Saudi Arabia, the United States, the West, and the Israeli regime.