Earlier this month, US President Donald Trump declared victory against ISIL and announced the withdrawal of approximately 2000 American troops from Syria – a move that has attracted controversy at home and abroad. His fellow Republicans have labelled it a ‘huge’ mistake that may lead to further insurgency, undermine efforts to counter Iranian and Russian influence in…
On September 7, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Recep Erdogan met with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani in Tehran for a trilateral meeting on the future of the war in Syria. The three major military powers meet as the Syrian Arab Army prepares to launch an offensive against the last major rebel stronghold in…
On 12 May, parliamentary elections were held across Iraq to decide the next holders of the 329 seats in the Council of Representatives. As the sole legislative body, parliament is responsible for appointing the country’s president and, by extension, the prime minister. This has been Iraq’s fourth national election since 2003, when then-President Saddam Hussein…
In 2011, foreign powers intervened in the Libyan Civil War with one aim in mind: to oust the Gaddafi government. Once the deed was done, a transition government was installed and the newly liberated nation was abandoned, left to handle the plethora of internal conflicts which would ensue. Historically, Libyans have never been tolerant towards…
When Saudi Arabia launched a diplomatic crusade against Qatar last June, it was widely speculated that the crisis would reach a swift resolution, as was the case with a similar situation three years prior. However, 2014 saw a quieter conflict in which the diplomatic impasse was relieved after a series of clandestine agreements were struck. The…
Threatened with a motion of no confidence, South Africa’s President Jacob Zuma announced his resignation with immediate effect on 14 February. Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa assumed the role of acting president and, the following day, was elected unopposed to succeed Zuma as president of South Africa. Since his youth Ramaphosa has been involved in the…
Exactly 40 years ago, in 1978, Deng Xiaoping took China by the reins and led it on a path of mass economic reform; dismantling the agriculture sector and encouraging foreign investment which revived an advanced economic system that had been stagnating and declining for nearly five centuries. Of course, such a rapid growth was in-part…
