7 July 2012 — Strategic Culture Foundation

Russia, India and Pakistan-China Cooperation (I)

07.07.2012 | 00:00 | Andrei VOLODIN

Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to visit Pakistan. Reportedly the event is to take place in September this year. «Lull» is a natural thing for summer time that gives an opportunity to reflect on the reasons defining Russia’s policy in the southern part of Central Eurasia… Formally the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has two major strategic allies – The China People’s Republic and the USA. But in light of the 2011 events the Pakistan’s ruling circles lost trust in the USA placing greater value on China that is routinely called an «all weather friend»…
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EU: What Will The Presidency of Divided Cyprus Bring?

06.07.2012 | 19:32 | Pyotr ISKENDEROV

Cyprus is moving in the direction of joining “problematic” countries of the European Union by leaps and bounds… The Cyprus government has already announced its intention to ask not only Brussels but also Moscow for help… Nicosia doesn’t exclude the possibility of receiving loans from China… This way Cyprus may not just become another president of the European Union, but a new example of a country that solves the problems of the EU… Cyprus is becoming an even more illustrative example of “United Europe” losing ability to manage the problems…
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GCC, Iran: Another Middle East War Scenario

06.07.2012 | 00:00 | Andrei AKULOV

The leading world think tanks have already offered views on the way a possible Syria – Turkey clash may develop and implications to ensue. The new changes of balance in the larger Middle East make it expedient to consider another scenario involving different participants. The Syrian opposition forces are joined by militants coming from other Arab states (like mercenaries paid by Saudi Arabia and Qatar, for instance). On the other hand the Iranians and Hezbollah fighters side with the forces loyal to President Assad. The involvement of other actors may lead to confrontation between Iran and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states…
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US blinks but Pakistan won’t celebrate

05.07.2012 | 12:30 | Melkulangara BHADRAKUMAR

After months of tortuous negotiations with the United States, Pakistan has reopened the transit routes for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization convoys heading toward Afghanistan… These are straws in the wind but they signal that the Pakistani military would probably like to refrain from publicly identifying with the government decision to normalize with the US – although Kayani attended the meeting of the Defence Committee of the Cabinet that decided on the reopening of transit routes. The military will factor in the popular mood, which is overwhelmingly «anti-American»…
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Gentlemen Start Your Motors – Let the Race Begin!

05.07.2012 | 10:47 | Rafe MAIR

Predicting US presidential elections is a mugs game – you never know what the hell is going to happen which gives us election prognosticators a number of built in excuses if we’re wrong!.. A few weeks ago I was predicting Obama in a walk but now I’m not so sure – except I am sure if you get my drift. This schizophrenia comes because my underlying gut feeling is for Obama but he’s not been what I expected and hoped…
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Parliamentary Coup in Paraguay

04.07.2012 | 00:00 | Carlos Pereyra MELE

In the last couple of days, some of my colleagues have been arguing about the coup in Paraguay Republic, and they stated as follows, M. Riorda said: “Political Science has today included a new and pitiful category: “Parliamentary Coup”. Another speaker, D. Zovatto Garetto would describe it: If collective defense mechanisms of democracy, being these regional or sub-regional, are mocked by two of the weakest countries in the region, Honduras and Paraguay, the credibility of the latter is sentenced to death…
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Making Faces by «International Justice»

04.07.2012 | 00:00 | Alexander MEZYAEV

A new International crime tribunal with an abstruse name – International Residual Mechanism for Criminal Tribunals (MomUT), started to function since July 2. It took on the functions of International Tribunal for Rwanda. In July next year it will replace the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY). The creation of MomUT is a triumph of another international trickery…
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Syrian Crisis Escalating

03.07.2012 | 00:00 | Boris DOLGOV

Syria‘s crisis remains the focal point of the world politics as a new escalation in and around the country broke out last week. The root cause of the conflict unraveling in Syria since March, 2011 is that external forces provide crucial support to the armed opposition groups which unleashed a terrorist war against the Syrian administration and civilians. The groups receive large quantities of armaments and ammunition from Turkey, Lebanon, and Jordan with the assistance from NATO intelligence services and the financial backing from the Gulf monarchies…
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Russia – Belarus – Venezuela a Steady Trio in Latin America

02.07.2012 | 00:00 | Nil NIKANDROV

The Venezuelan leadership which has to endure constantly heightened US political pressure must be credited with an intelligent choice of international partners, with the East Slavic duo of Russia and Belarus as the key allies… A presidential campaign is taking off in Venezuela ahead of the October 7 elections. Visiting Caracas, Lukashenko expressed confidence that his friend and ally Chavez would prevail and said new bilateral projects would be coming online within years… President Putin talked to Chavez over the phone this June – as a part of the conversation, the Russian leader praised Venezuela‘s preparations for the presidential race… A Kremlin press release said Putin and Chavez intend to meet in the nearest future. Hypothetically, keeping oil prices stable is going to be an important part of the agenda…
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