Tag: Foreign Policy
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Who wins the Iran war?
On February 28th, a new war broke out between the US and Israel on one side and Iran on the other. It has until now consisted of two parallel bombing campaigns: a US-Israeli bombing campaign on Iran, and an Iranian bombing campaign on most of the Middle East. The US and Israel have been preparing…
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Politique of the Françafrique
On the night of September 25th, 2025, mass youth protests began in Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar. The protests were fueled by anger at frequent power cuts in the capital, but quickly turned into a wider social movement against the ruling elite.[1] One man in particular got much of the blame, that being president Andry…
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French pullout of Africa
Ever since the end of the French colonial empire in the 1950s and 1960s, France has remained an important partner to most of its former African colonies. The system of military, political and economic cooperation of France in Central and Western Africa has been dubbed the “Françafrique”. French influence is maintained through the use of…
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Economy of the Françafrique
In 1960, 17 African countries achieved formal independence, in what is known as the “Year of Africa”. Of these 17, 14 were French colonies, and while France would still maintain some colonial outposts for years after (some even until today) the Year of Africa was also the death of the French colonial empire. Since then,…
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Military alliances of the United States
The United States is currently the most powerful country in the world, and the most influential in global politics. Part of this influence is exerted through the US’ network of alliances, which covers much of the globe. The many allies of the US both provide the US with support in conflicts, deterrence and power projection,…
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An end to the war in Ukraine?
As the invasion phase of the Russo-Ukrainian war enters its fourth year, there is a growing popular and political demand to find some way to resolve the conflict in all countries directly or indirectly involved. With the election and inauguration of US president Trump it seems more likely than before that some sort of ceasefire…
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Who must go?
Bashar al-Assad’s Syrian regime just collapsed. After 24 years in power and 13 years of civil war, Assad would fall to an opposition offensive that lasted just 11 days. The opposition advances were so fast that they have forced me to do rewrites on most of the article, with Damascus falling before I was able…
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Armenia freezes membership in the CSTO. Why, and what does it mean?
On February 22nd the prime minister of Armenia, Nikol Pashinyan, announced that Armenia would freeze its membership in the Collective Security Treaty Organization, the Russian-led military alliance.[1] The future of Armenian membership in the alliance is uncertain. The decision to freeze Armenian membership comes in the wake of increased Azerbaijani pressure, improved Armenia-NATO relations,…
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Iran’s international influence
In the background of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas there have been increasingly escalating tensions between the United States on one hand and a series of “Iranian proxies” on the other, chiefly the Ansar Allah party in Yemen (commonly known by the name of the group from which many of their members originate,…
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A study of the failures of Russian foreign policy in Georgia
A study of the failures of Russian foreign policy in Georgia The history of Georgia since independence can serve as a demonstration of every Russian method of exercising power in the Near Abroad.[1] Georgia has been a victim of Russian-backed separatism, misinformation campaigns, invasion, and partial occupation. Despite this, Georgia proper has remained outside…