In regard to international relations (IR), power is understood as the ability of state or other political actors to impose its own control or influence over other state(s) or other political actors, or at least to influence the outcome of events on the local, regional or global level. Power politics as a phenomena has two dimensions: internal and external. The internal dimension is applied in the inner policy of the state and the external in the foreign affairs or outside of the home politics. [ 3,314 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/western-russophobic-paranoia-…/

Pakistan's announcement that it will seek the expulsion of over 1,5 million Afghan refugees in the next 30 days is being tacitly justified by Trump's tweet and channels his zero-tolerance stance towards immigration from "terrorist"-prone states, but it also represents the employment of reverse-"Weapons of Mass Migration" in pushing Kabul closer towards the edge of collapse and consequently filling the Taliban's rank of supporters. [ 759 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/pakistans-asymmetrical-respon…/

The recent disturbances in Iran have put Tehran on the strategic regional defensive, and the foreign policy slogans that are being shouted are obvious signs that pressure is being put on it to enact "concessions" during the upcoming Sochi Syrian Congress. The Russian seaside city of Sochi will host the upcoming "Syrian National Dialogue Congress" by the end of the month, during which time Moscow expects all relevant parties to enact "concessions" in finally advancing UNSC Res. [ 766 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/iranian-riots-influence-outco…/

Today’s Ukraine is painfully reminiscent of Germany in the 1920s: poor governance on the heels of a lost war, which – added to the sense of betrayed hopes and the sharp decline in average incomes coupled with rising prices - is all driving a critical mass of the Ukrainian population toward an overwhelming feeling of desperation. A demand from the public for a “strong hand” - a new, authoritarian ruler - is rapidly coalescing, due to their… [ 1,620 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/04/ukraines-future-nazi-leader/

If Trump is willing to accept the enormous loss of American life -- which are the only people that he cares about as the US President -- then turning the Korean Peninsula into Asia's nuclear panhandle would indeed "Make America Great Again" by permanently handicapping its Russian & Chinese geostrategic competitors as well as its Japanese & South Korean economic ones. [ 1,489 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/trump-nuking-north-korea-make…/

The Islamic Republic has hitherto placed its strategic focus on securing its western and southern flanks, but with that largely having been achieved to the maximum extent that is realistically possible under the present geopolitical circumstances, it’s time for Iran to redirect its attention to the northern and eastern directions in order to maximize its Eurasian role in the complementary “Multipolar CENTO” and “Golden Circle” clubs of Great Powers. [ 2,712 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/reconceptualizing-irans-role-…/

In the 1970’s, the BBC did a series, “The Long Search,” in which Ronald Eyre explored various religions. To my mind, it remains the best such series I’ve seen. When it came to Christianity, the series wisely presented three separate treatments: the Orthodox, the Catholics and Protestants. In its program on Orthodoxy, Eyre traveled to Romania, which was then under the boot of Ceausescu and official “atheism.” The persecution only allowed the Church to shine brighter in Eyre’s examination. [ 1,307 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/2017/12/31/sacrifice-and-worship/

Latin America is in limbo as the US’ “Operation Condor 2.0” has more or less succeeded in reducing multipolarity in the region, though the upcoming Mexican and Brazilian presidential elections might herald a paradigm shift if leftists win the highest office in both Great Powers. The US has systematically dismantled multipolarity in the Western Hemisphere ever since it began its asymmetrical counteroffensive in 2009 by supporting the military coup against Honduran President Manuel Zelaya. [ 847 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/12/30/2018-outlook-latin-amer…/

Africa’s known for its internal divisions and predisposition to conflicts, especially those which are encouraged from abroad, and it’s with this in mind that there are plenty of reasons to worry about its stability in 2018. Proceeding from North Africa to Southern Africa, Egypt is regularly attacked by terrorists in the Sinai and elsewhere, posing a real threat to President Sisi’s government. [ 959 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/2017/12/29/2018-outlook-africa/

The UAE’s use of a warped form of Arab Nationalism for countering Turkey and Iran’s perceived leadership of the global Muslim community works in favor of America’s grand strategic interests by creating a trilateral Dubai-Riyadh-Cairo axis for Washington to rely upon in “Leading From Behind” to break the post-Jerusalem trend of multipolar unity spreading throughout the Ummah. Twitter Taunting Emirati officials have recently become embroiled in a Twitter feud with Turkish President Erdogan that strongly resembles a preplanned infowar operation against the most vocal opponent of President Trump’s unilateral recognition of the entirety of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital. [ 1,758 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/uae-helping-america-propagati…/

Most people don’t understand Trump’s domestic and international intentions, believing that he and his team are “ruining everything” because they’re “hopelessly incompetent”, though the fact of the matter is that the President is an Agent of Chaos (a.k.a. “The Kraken”) and is deliberately working to undermine, tear down, and ultimately reform or outright recreate all existing institutions because he’s convinced that they no longer serve America’s interests and have instead been co-opted by its enemies, both internal and external. [ 1,488 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/12/27/trump-agent-chaos-k-kra…/

The viral rise of Ahed Tamimi to international stardom as the Resistance’s latest hero is to a large extent due to the interest that various parties have in diverting attention from the politically inconvenient fact that Hamas’ Third Intifada never really took off. Ahed Tamimi, the teenage Palestinian activist who became famous for slapping an Israeli soldier, was arrested in a predawn raid on her home last week in a case that’s since attracted considerable international media attention, made even all the more controversial by the Israeli Education Minister’s… [ 1,547 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/ahed-tamimi-proves-isnt-third…/

In times when politicians in the west are becoming increasingly clownish, sometimes true wisdom can only be ascertained through the antics of professional comedians. The Russian prank callers Vovan and Lexus are clear examples of this. The dynamic duo have previously phoned up extremist US Senator John McCain and convinced him that they were Ukrainian politicians, while they also got through to Turkey’s President… [ 861 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/new-low-ignorance-nikki-haley…/

The rumor mill was churning once again with the popular claims that China allegedly deployed its military forces to Syria. The latest now-discredited report stated that two teams of Chinese special forces were being deployed to Syria to fight against Uighur terrorists, with the only difference between this latest speculation and those which came before it being the name of the units involved. [ 597 more words ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/difference-really-make-china-…/

In the late 1600’s in colonial Boston, the celebration of Christmas was against the law. Indeed, anyone evidencing the “spirit of Christmas” could be fined five shillings. In the early 1800’s, Christmas was better known as a season for rioting in the streets and civil unrest. However, in the mid-1800’s some interesting things changed the cultural response to the feast and, in 1870, Christmas was declared a federal holiday (which is to say that prior to 1870, Christmas was not a day-off in America). [ 1,261 more word ]

https://orientalreview.org/…/12/24/put-dickens-back-christ…/