Mali’s Northern War Enters a Dangerous New Phase as Separatists and Al-Qaeda Allies Challenge Bamako and Russia The battlefield is changing fast. A fragile alliance between Tuareg separatists and an al-Qaeda-linked insurgency has transformed Mali’s war into a three-sided struggle with consequences that could reverberate across the Sahel. BAMAKO, Mali — The war in […] Read more
Russia Unleashes Largest Ballistic Missile Assault of the War as Ukraine’s Air Defenses Face Critical Test Deadly Barrage Rocks the Ukrainian Capital, Patriot Missile Shortages Raise Alarm, and a New Phase of the War Begins KYIV — Before dawn broke over Ukraine’s capital, air-raid sirens once again shattered the silence. Then came the explosions. Dozens […] Read more
Ukrainian Drone Blitz Ignites Russian Refinery as Putin Admits Russia Faces a “Difficult Period” MOSCOW / KYIV / KRASNODAR – The flames rose before dawn. First came the sirens. Then the explosions. Then fire, towering columns of orange and black cutting through the darkness over southern Russia, visible for kilometers. Another night. Another strike. Another […] Read more
Supposedly, Russia’s conflict in Ukraine has had a significant impact on the Kremlin’s extensive propaganda apparatus. Moscow’s long-running effort to sway Western opinion collapsed almost overnight as European governments tightened restrictions on Russian disinformation, forbade the broadcasting of state media outlets like Russia Today and Sputnik, and enacted a number of other measures to curtail […] Read more
Foreign ministers from the Group of Seven (G-7) developed nations are to meet in London on Tuesday to discuss the most pressing geopolitical challenges facing the world, including Russia and China. The U.K. is hosting G-7 foreign and development ministers in the first face-to-face meetings since the coronavirus pandemic began, and the first gathering of […] Read more
Germany has come under increasing pressure to pull the plug on its controversial giant gas pipeline project with Russia, following the suspected poisoning of Russian opposition politician Alexei Navalny. Experts say Berlin is unlikely to do so for now, however, given the Nord Stream 2 project is over 94% completed after almost a decade’s construction, […] Read more
A week-long vote on constitutional changes in Russia comes to a close Wednesday, with citizens voting on changes which include an amendment that would allow President Vladimir Putin to run for further terms in office, and potentially lead the country until 2036. Unlike most votes, however, the one in Russia is seen as a foregone […] Read more
Qatar’s Minister of State for Energy Affairs shared his thoughts on some of the major oil producers’ market moves in recent months, shedding disapproval on the March decision by Saudi Arabia and Russia to launch into a price war, which sent oil prices into free fall. “I think it was a very big mistake,” Saad […] Read more
After complex discussions with Turkey and Iran about the future of Syria in Sochi, Russian President Vladimir Putin was up for a bit of exercise. So the judo black belt joined his country’s national team for a warm up and training session in the city that hosted the 2014 Winter Olympics. Russian TV showed Putin […] Read more
