Iran is trying to spin Syria crisis for its benefit
Iran is pushing several narratives via state media, including blaming US and Israel for toppling Assad regime, and turning to Russia and other countries.
Caspian Sea
Central Asia in the Energy Transition
Excerpt The Central Asian region, in terms of energy, has long been known mostly for its vast endowments of oil and gas. Indeed, some of the largest new discoveries of oil anywhere in the world in the...
Op-eds
Russian Ship Likely Carrying Iranian Missiles Docks at Caspian Sea Port
New satellite imagery showed a Russian cargo ship that was likely carrying Iranian ballistic missiles docking at a Russian port on the Caspian Sea, CNN reported on September 11....
Flash Briefs
Don’t Forget the Air Highways
While U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg is focusing his remaining months in office on attaining compensation fees for U.S. air travelers, a much bigger threat to air travel and transport...
Op-eds
Türkiye’s Energy Engagement in Central Asia and the Caucasus
Excerpt In recent years, Türkiye has significantly increased cooperation with the states of Central Asia and Azerbaijan. One of the most important geopolitical developments in recent years in Eurasia...
Op-eds
US International energy policy toward the 2024 elections
While international energy policy is not on the ballot in the 2024 US elections, the election outcome will profoundly impact the U.S. role in international energy developments. Current U.S. energy policies have determined new rules of American engagement in the international arena. ...
Op-eds
Antisemitism, Russian Disinformation and the West
As Russia falsely accuses the West and Ukraine of inciting antisemitic violence on Russian territory, perhaps it’s time for the West to use its own information operations to set the record straight.
Op-eds
A New Spring for Caspian Transit and Trade
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Memos
Insecurity in the Black Sea Puts Upward Pressure on the Global Oil Market
The global oil price is edging toward $100 a barrel. If oil remains high, it will be difficult to bring inflation down. Most blame the Saudi Arabian and Russian oil cuts for the price increase and ignore...
Op-eds
Iran Becomes Full Member of Shanghai Cooperation Organization
Iran officially became the ninth member of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi participating in the organization’s virtual summit on July 4. Iran’s...
Flash Briefs
Iran Pledges Support for Putin After Failed Mutiny
The chief of the Iranian armed forces general staff, Maj. Gen. Mohammad Bagheri, invited Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu to visit Iran during a phone call on June 28. According to a readout...
Flash Briefs
WAR IN UKRAINE UPDATE: Battle for Bakhmut Continues; Iran Helps Russia
Russian forces continue to grind forward in street-by-street fighting in the decimated eastern Ukrainian city of Bakhmut. Having apparently consolidated control over a railway...
Op-eds
Israel Opens First Permanent Embassy in Turkmenistan
Latest Developments Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen inaugurated Israel’s first embassy in Turkmenistan during a visit to the Central Asian state on April 20. Cohen is the first Israeli foreign...
Flash Briefs
How Much Can Iranian Artillery Ammo Help Russia?
British outlet Sky News reported last week that Iran had secretly supplied Russia with a considerable amount of ammunition and intends to send more. If true, this would be a boon for Moscow at a time...
Op-eds
How Iran’s Ethnic Divisions Are Fueling the Revolt
Non-Persian minorities, often overlooked in the West, may hold the key to the uprising’s course.
Op-eds
IRGC-Controlled Iranian Airline Makes Unexplained Flights to Russia Amidst Invasion of Ukraine
The U.S.-sanctioned Iranian airline Qeshm Fars Air has flown to Moscow at least seven times since mid-April after having made that trip only twice last year, according to the flight tracking service FlightRadar24....
Policy Briefs
Energy in Conflict: The Case of the 2020 Armenia-Azerbaijan War
Excerpt With the rise in frequency of hybrid warfare, combatants in various conflicts are increasingly targeting domestic energy infrastructure and energy supply flows.1 In conventional warfare, militaries...
Op-eds
Putin Just Pushed the World Into an Even Bigger Energy Crisis
Even without sanctions, Russia’s war will increase the shortage of oil and gas.
Op-eds
The Trigger for War: Energy in the 2020 Armenia-Azerbaijan War
Excerpt Traditionally, militaries at war seek to meet their operational energy1 needs, gain access to energy supplies, and deny energy supplies to their adversaries. However, in the 2020 Armenia—Azerbaijan...
Op-eds
Is Europe’s Energy Crisis a Preview of America’s?
Europe has itself to blame for shortages and spiking prices, but Washington is copying many of its policies.