Written by Dr Morris Mottale* | 08 May 2013

Contemporary international politics has seen a phenomenon in the Arab world that has been dubbed the Arab Spring. It began on December 17, 2010 in Tunisia where a young fruit vendor, Mohamed Bouazizi, committed suicide by burning himself to give vent to his grievances against the system that he thought had treated him arbitrarily and tyrannically in denying him economic opportunities. The episode sparked an uprising where the autocratic ruler of Tunisia, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, a military man who had taken over in a bloodless coup when the founder of the modern Tunisian Republic, Habib Bourguiba, became incapable of continuing his rule.

Written by Administrator | 14 March 2013

The U.S. administration and the leaders of some European countries continue to pay lip service to the absolute need to put an end to the disgraceful bloodshed in Syria which can only come with a ceasefire agreement leading to the long awaited start of the peaceful resolution of the crisis. It is unfortunate, to say the least, that Washington continues to secretly aid the militants fighting against Bashar Al-Assad, further fanning the flames of war. Recently it became known that the U.S. have plans to provide assistance to the Syrian opposition in the form of food and medicine. Secretary of State John Kerry also said that Washington will provide the Syrian opposition $60 million, allegedly "to the daily operations of the implementation of a peaceful transition".

Written by Prof Morris Mottale* | 25 February 2013

The internal conflicts in Syria, Iraq, Egypt, Libya, Yemen, and Shiite Iran’s confrontation with Sunni powers such as Saudi Arabia and Turkey, challenge any observer of modern Middle Eastern politics with the implications of the many theories that have characterized the study of the area. One of the most important premises in the approaches to the study of the region was the role of the military in the process of modernization, nationalism, and secularization. Beginning with Turkey and Iran in the earlier part of the twentieth century, the military establishment as a corporate body led by strong and charismatic leaders engaged in the structural modernization of the societies they were leading with the final aim of turning their states to a level of political and economic development comparable to France, Germany, or England. By the 1950s, in Egypt, Iraq, and Syria, this process was going to be repeated to the extent that Arab nationalism saw its embodiment in the sometime charismatic leadership of officers such as Nasser in Egypt who became an inspiration for military leaders in many parts of the Arab world. This was to be the case in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, and Sudan. The establishment of new military regimes in these Arab states saw, opposition to Britain and America as a cardinal principle, war against Israel, a shift toward a socialist economy inspired by the Soviet , and the eventual promise of return to ancient Arab glories.

Written by Administrator | 19 December 2012

On 4 November NATO Foreign Ministers Council took the serious decision to deploy US-made anti-aircraft Patriot missiles in areas of the Turkish territory which border with Syria. Speaking at a press briefing, NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen sought to portray that this grave decision is purely defensive in nature. Meanwhile, many in the West believe that the deployment of Patriot missiles in Turkey is the first step on the road to foreign military intervention in the Syrian conflict. See, for example, the opinion letter 'We must heed regional realities' by Michael Williams, House of Lords, UK, Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Chatham House, and former UN Under Secretary General, Middle East (The Financial Times, 15 Dec. 2012).

It should be recalled that in early December a U.S. carrier battle group led by the aircraft carrier "Eisenhower" came up to the coasts of Syria. It has acceded to the standing here for almost two weeks, the U.S. Navy amphibious group led by amphibious assault ship "Iwo Jima." The U.S. Navy presence in the eastern Mediterranean today consists of over fifteen ships, including cruiser and more than ten destroyers and frigates with cruise missiles on board. The total number of U.S. military personnel on ships in the vicinity of Syria, reached 10,000 soldiers. This fact speaks for itself, in the context of louder voices in the U.S in support of open foreign military intervention in the Syrian conflict which is continuing for almost two years.