NORMAN A. BAILEY
Winston Churchill famously described the Soviet Union as “A riddle, wrapped in a mystery, inside an enigma.” Many commentators and politicians say Vladimir Putin’s Russia is every bit as mysterious and enigmatic as its predecessor. An astonishing recent declaration by the president, however, at the Russian equivalent of the Davos conclave, in St Petersburg, casts a whole new light on the country's involvement in the Middle East, which in recent years has become more..
NICOS PANAYIOTIDES
The primary goal of any state is first and foremost to ensure its security, while other goals (social justice, prosperity, etc) are secondary. This is because of the anarchic nature of the international system, which has no supreme authority to safeguard the state’s national interests. Qatar is not an exception to this rule of international relations. Being in a threatening regional environment, it seeks to balance any threats to its security posed by local actors,...