Middle East & Africa
Scars of Betrayal: Assyrians Continue to Feel Uncertainty from the Sykes-Picot Agreement
Assyrians are one of the oldest continuously documented ethnic groups in history today. Their presence dates to the initial stages of human civilization and...
Between Fragility and Reset: The Future of Iran–Pakistan Relations
Iran and Pakistan have long occupied an uneasy space in one another’s strategic calculus, linked by geography yet divided by history, ideology, and external...
“Never Again”, But for Whom and Where?
After World War II, Europe launched a moral and identity-based project grounded in the imperative of “learning from history.” This involved remembrance of the...
Militias and the Politics of Survival: Lessons from Iraq
This November, Iraqis will once again head to the polls for parliamentary elections. Yet the outcome will be shaped less by formal parties than...
Japan-Africa: Indivisible Knot for Accelerating Trade and Development
Japan has one combined distinctive goal on the African agenda—investment, trade, and development. This was indicated explicitly in most all speeches and presentations at...
Right to Peace in Ethiopia: Constitutional Promises and Tigrayan Realities
The Ethiopian Constitution of 1995, adopted during the EPRDF and framed as a foundation for a democratic federation, places peace at the center of...
Peace Through War: Western Pressure and Iran’s Turn to the East
After Israel’s attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities on June 13, 2025 (Operation “Sunrise of the Lions”), the U.S. once again demonstrated its willingness for...
Geopolitics vs. Development: G20-Africa Pushes a New Vision for the Global South
In an interview with Modern Diplomacy in mid-August 2025, Ms. Tandiwe Thelma Mgxwati, Minister Plenipotentiary and Charge d'Affaires a.i. at the South African Embassy,...
What Russia Wants in Africa — and How It Plans to Get It
For African countries, more and more diverse economic opportunities have opened up primarily due to the changing geopolitical dynamics around the world today. These...
A Fragile Chance to Break Iran’s Hold on Hezbollah
The Middle East often appears frozen in entrenched conflict—until everything shifts at once. The June 2025 12‑Day War between Israel and Iran offers one...