COMMENTARY

1. Background On 1 March 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin, in his speech to the Federal Parliament, gave an overview of the development status of several "new generation" strategic weapon systems specifically designed to escape U.S. missile defense systems. He...

Prime Minister Hassan Diab government has finally won the parliament’s confidence vote this Tuesday, with one of the lowest scores in the modern history of Lebanon, managing only 63 votes out of 128. The day witnessed massive popular protests, that tried to derail the...

56th Munich Security Conference (MSC) took place between 14-16 February 2020. Regarded as Davos of foreign and security policy circles, MSC serves as a platform to exchange ideas for high-profile decision-makers all over the world. Traditionally, a report is published...

Afghanistan is struck by severe armed violence and political impasse. Peace talks are seemingly going nowhere, circling around requests for; a reduction in violence by the U.S. (which has never happened), a peace deal between the U.S. and the Taliban before Taliban...

Blockchain technology began to occupy public agenda with the expansion of crypto coins as an investment and payment method. Blockchain, which has the support of smart contracts as well as mathematical algorithms, is speculated to have great potential in many areas...

Background                                             The Russian Defense Ministry stated that at least two service members were killed and four injured on 08 August 2019 following the blast at a testing ground on the northern coastline of Russia. On 12 August, the...

Merkel highlighted two main results of the Berlin Conference; the first one is continuation of a fragile truce, which could turn into a permanent cease-fire through military committee negotiations of the warring factions and the second one is the re-commitment of the...

Possibility of Turkish military intervention caused an increase in the external military support to Haftar. Despite his powerful words and Parliamentary approval to troop deployment plans, Erdogan is not able to send a decisive force to back GNA side. On the other...

Never-ending tension in the Middle East escalated once again when the U.S. killed a crucial Iranian military figure, Qasem Soleimani, in Iraq months before the U.S. presidential election. Soleimani’s death, of course, outraged the Iranian government, not only because...

A qaytusha attack killed one US contractor on an Iraqi base in Kirkuk on 27 December. To reciprocate, the US bombed three sites in Iraq and Syria belonging of Kataib Hezbollah, a designated terrorist group which US holds responsible. As retaliation to this US action...

The matter of the possible ‘closure’ of the Incirlik base, which has always been on the agenda in every turbulent period in Turkish-American relations, has come up once again in the previous days. This time, the new turbulent period started with the Turkish...

Background In the last couple of weeks, we have been witnessing the most active times of the Libya crisis According to news coming from front lines, defenders of the Tripoli are in dire straits in the eye of Haftar’s LNA. Increased Russian interference; US reactions...

When Turkey, while it was a non-permanent member of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) in 2010, voted “NO” to the resolution to impose sanctions on Iran, western media brought the discussion about Turkey changing its axis, once again. Such talks were outtalked...

In spite the geopolitical escalation and fiery rhetoric between the West and Iran in recent weeks, there are indications that lines of communications remain active with some hope of a window of opportunity opening to a new phase of negotiations and some sort of...

This week —thanks to superior air support and Russian mercenaries— Haftar’s LNA succeeded in gaining more ground in its endeavor to capture capital Tripoli. Witnessing significant impact of direct involvement of Russian fighters and weapons in the battlefield, the GNA...

The U.S has many times voiced concerns over the Europeans' will to develop a strategic autonomy in recent years. Arguably, the different defence initiatives the EU is undertaking could undermine NATO’s strength by creating duplications and discrimination between...

I have studied computer science and developed in the area of artificial intelligence and since then pursuing my research with an emphasis on creating support technology and specifically the support of decision making. To a large extend, my aim is to form a debate in...

The President of the United States of America (USA) Donald Trump has said that he wants to buy Greenland Island. This request surprised both the autonomous administration of Greenland and Denmark. Upon the reactions from both sides, Trump canceled the official visit...

Although the main objective of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) is to re-establish a Southern Arab State, Yemeni President Abdu Rabbuh Mansour Hadi tweeted shortly before the agreement, conveying the message that they have worked diligently to give the Southern...

Introduction As other countries are also working on next-generation missiles, China is pursuing a long-term strategy in order to build strategic technologies and bridging the capacity gap with the West, following Russia’s approach. Currently, the most powerful...

The Report of the Amnesty International (AI) published this week is the first public investigation of the war crimes committed since the Haftar’s offensive upon Tripoli on 4 April. There were some United Nations investigations conducted by experts on some particular...

Eight years ago, on 20 October, Moammar Gaddafi was captured and killed in his hometown Sirte and buried to an unknown grave. Since his death, Libyans have been waiting for their dreams to come true. Developments of last week are not promising though, indicating that...

Introduction Technological developments are critical for the robust national defense industry, which is deemed an essential element of national security. The Chinese military has unveiled a new hypersonic ballistic nuclear missile that could violate all existing...

Yemen is overlooking the Strait of Bab al-Mandab and ranks 29th in the world in terms of oil reserves. Yemen is also overlooking two seas for two thousand kilometers and shares its border with the rich Gulf countries. With all these facts, Yemen will become the...

On September 25, China launched its first type-075-class Land Helicopter Dock. Following this event, a notable amount of coverage has been generated over the last weeks. Many experts and columnists may have over-emphasized the role of China’s new vessel regarding a...

Preparations and developments related to the upcoming Libya Conference in Germany are dominating the discussions on the Libya crisis. Mediators are working hard to manage the expectations to avoid disappointment at the end of the conference. Main discussion point will...

-Turkish Operation Peace Spring continues in full swing amid fierce criticism from international community and contradictory statements by different U.S. officials. However, there is no substance beyond ostentatious remarks or statements. Because, parties to the...

Ahead of a new international Libya Conference, the one evident thing is that both GNA and LNA propaganda machines try hard to persuade international community that they have the upper hand in the battlefield. The operations rooms of both sides frame the developments...

Following the G7 summit and statements of UN special envoy Ghassan Salame, major international actors were expected to come together to end the protracted civil war and initiate a new peace process in Libya. The 74th Assembly of the United Nations was the perfect...

In recent years Europeans have made important steps forward – PESCO, CARD, European Defence Fund – in developing a more unified and coherent European Defence Technological and Industrial Base (EDTIB). In an era characterized by strategic uncertainty, the EU is willing...

Background On August 10th, the Aviadarts 2019 international competition as part of the International Army Games 2019 took place at the Dubrovichi testing range in the Ryazan Region, Russia. In particular, Kinzhal air-launched hypersonic missile debuted at the...

Repercussions of the attacks on Saudi oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais on September 14 still keep global agenda busy. The attacks that caused highest rise in crude oil prices in one day and took down 5 percent of global production still continues to be a matter of...

Almost six months has elapsed since start of Haftar’s Tripoli offensive, an initiative that has costed thousands their lives and made many more displaced. Setting out with great promises,  Haftar’s LNA has so far suffered major setbacks to include one of the biggest...

Trump abruptly called off peace negotiations with the Taliban on Saturday (7 Sep 2019) after the Kabul suicide bomber attack on Thursday (5 Sep 2019). The attack that was claimed by the Taliban took the lives of 12 people including one American soldier. The United...

There was no surprise in what happened in Aden. Since the beginning of the transitional period, the Yemeni elites and their parties have dealt with the Yemeni situation without imagination, and in the same traditional ways of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh....

Introduction On 16 August, North Korea fired two missiles into the waters off its east coast. According to US and South Korean officials the two were short-range ballistic missiles (SRBM). They flew approximately 142 miles at a maximum altitude of 18.6 miles and top...

Background The office of Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yuri Borisov announced on 02 Jul 2019 that the production of Avangard hypersonic gliding vehicle (HGV) was proceeding as scheduled. Moscow refuted US media reports which suggested Russia could not produce...

Guided missiles are still one of the most strategic, destructive and powerful weapons for the above water warfare. For decades, scientists and engineers try to develop most skilful missile in order to catch the target from the weakest point. When one produced a...

This week was an especially bloody one for Yemen. The Houthi, ISIL and Al Qaeda attacks in a fashion outbidding each other killed more than a hundred and left many others in critical condition in hospitals. If we have to focus on the factual aspect of the events: a....

Background The UAE decision to draw down troops in Yemen has been on the agenda of international spectators since 22 June. In an article reflecting her consultations with Emirati officials, Elena DeLozier formulated the content of the drawdown as: Emirati units are...

While the armed conflict in and around capital Tripoli escalate to a full-blown civil war destroying the physical and social infrastructure of Libya and making a democratic and peaceful Libya a more elusive vision, Beyond the Horizon ISSG had a chance to take a closer...

The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty had its origins in the Euromissile crisis of the mid-1970s when the Soviet Union had deployed newly-developed SS-20 intermediate-range missiles, replacing older intermediate-range SS-4 and SS-5 missiles. The...

It was clear from the outset that this month’s Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) would be one of the longest as stated by the High Representative/Vice President (HR/VP) Federica Mogherini. The agenda was full, including controversial items like Joint Comprehensive Plan of...

If the news from Doha is true, peace is closer than ever. At 29 Jun 2019, the U.S. and the Taliban came together for the seventh round of discussions which will hopefully bring an end to the 18-year-long war between U.S.-led coalition and the Taliban. According to the...

Already strained relations between LNA and Turkish Government gradually escalated to an open hostility after statements and actions from both sides since Friday. This means a new crisis in the MENA, which is already on tenterhooks with current Iran-USA tension. As a...

Fatih Celenay*, Onur Sultan** Introduction International society has been watching a duel of words and actions between Iran and US since May 2018 when President Trump declared the US would unilaterally withdraw from the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) or...

Nearly six months since the so-called Stockholm agreement was signed by Yemen’s warring parties in an effort to prevent a deepening humanitarian crisis, any semblance of progress is almost dead. The agreement, signed on Dec. 13, stipulates the redeployment of forces...

  The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty is worth preserving and expanding. In August, the landmark Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces (INF) Treaty between Russia and the United States will terminate unless both sides can resolve their differences over the...

NATO responded to Russian intervention in Ukraine by launching several initiatives in multiple domains. One of them is the NATO Readiness Initiative. As part of a broad deterrence and defence related measures,  Allies will make available ‘additional 30 major naval...

The anti-United Nations campaign - and talk about its dubious role in Yemen - has become increasingly popular recently. This coincides with claims of conspiracy, a rhetoric mostly used by the helpless party in an indirect attempt to justify self-insufficiency. Calls...

Yemen’s Houthi rebels are not just Iran’s proxies On May 14, Iran-aligned Houthi rebels in Yemen launched multiple drone strikes against Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. These drone strikes targeted a major oil pipeline located just west of Riyadh and sparked fears of...

The rivalry between British and Russian Empires over the control of Afghanistan named as “the Great Game”. Some 190 years after, Afghan soil witnesses a similar “game” being played by global and regional actors. This landlocked country, lying at the centre of the...

The transatlantic security and defense debate has been challenged by a recurring paradox over the past decade: Europeans are expected to take on more responsibility for their own defense and step up their defense investment, yet there is still an expectation from the...

According to Montreux Convention, Black Sea littoral states have the right to use the Turkish Straits if the submarines have been constructed, purchased or sent for repair outside Black Sea with the stipulation that they inform Turkey in advance. In the case of...

Anne Speckhard* & Ardian Shajkovci**   The sound of an explosion echoed through the Green Zone on Sunday (May 19, 2019) night around 9:00 p.m., a reminder that this most secure part of the Iraqi capital is not, in fact, all that safe. The projectile appears...

Despite calls from the US, the EU, and Egypt, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey Mevlut Cavusoglu announced that in addition to the Fatih drill ship, which is currently in the west of Cyprus, Yavuz drillship would be sent to the region. He declared that Turkey had...

Three days after the presidential elections in Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decision to grant Russian passport to the separatist Ukrainians in Donetsk and Luhansk in the east of this country. Former President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko has...

On 2 May 2019, an article with the subject “A Real Plan to End the War in Yemen” was published in Foreign Affairs. The article is purposeful and well-written in terms of clarity of the arguments and got quite  positive feedbacks from those following the crisis....

As Haftar’s offensive toward Tripoli stalled, the conflict does not cease to reproduce itself in other realms or dimensions. This week, Haftar and his international backers increased their level of engagement in propaganda to dominate or shift opinion in favor of...

General Khalifa Haftar, the military commander of the loosely affiliated Libyan National Army (LNA), a militia that receives military support from the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), and Egypt, has engaged with the world’s top leaders in...

Introduction Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim nation, began transitioning to democracy after fall of Suharto in 1998. Immediately after the event, Indonesia witnessed the rise of radical militant Islamic factions. Many security and military experts...

Background On 29 April 2019, al-Furqan Media Center of Daesh posted a 18.22 minute video with the name: “In the  Hospitality of the Emir of the Believers”. The timing of the video message, the medium it was posted through and its content are all extremely important....

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro and US President Donald Trump's message at the White House during the press conference on March 19 attracted international attention. Particularly in the areas of terrorism, drug and human trafficking, cybercrime and money...

A Critique of Hybrid Warfare Concept It was retired Marine Officer Frank Hoffman who popularised the Hybrid warfare concept in a series of articles and books since it was first publicly used in 2005 in a conference, by General Mattis, the U.S. General Secretary of...

  There are many labels to describe the issues linked with the return of great power competition in the cyber era in search for conceptual clarity. I am going to talk briefly about two of them - political warfare and hybrid warfare. The definition of hybrid...

Operation Sophia was quietly and officially extended until 30 September 2019 following longstanding negotiations among member states. Political and Security Committee (PSC) reached a flawed last-minute compromise on March 29th, the last working day for an extension of...

I would like to touch upon the global geopolitical challenge – temporary occupation of Crimea that will be discussed in the framework of today’s conference. Since beginning of the so-called Referendum in Crimea in March 2014 which fully contradicted with the...

Disinformation is used as a political weapon. It’s not a new phenomenon, it used to exist and it will be in the future. It is just one of the tools from the toolbox of a wider effort that is called influence operations which is probably part of the hybrid warfare....

Concept of Political Warfare stems from Clausewitz: Condensed Version: « War is a continuation of politics by other means... war is therefore an act of violence to force the opponent to fulfil our will. A deeper reading of Clausewitz implies that war represents the...

Drilling operations in East Mediterranean; specifically issues such as how to transport the extracted gas and on which route has changed security environment of the region and its geopolitics. New actors and mechanisms are involved in the game. Well then, what caused...

Two main dynamics are at work in the international level. The first is the state-centred “great power dynamics”. And the second is pluralist “global governance” in which a plethora of different actors exist alongside states. A main feature of the latter, non-state...

As any observer can notice, all great and regional powers are building up their weapons arsenals. Some are proud of it and like to show it both to the outside world and to their own people like Putin’s Russia or Kim Jong Un’s North Korea, and also Trump; others do it...

The distance – physical and psychological distance of many European capitals from Crimea dwarfs the sense of danger many Europeans tend to feel about the annexation of Crimea. Despite the fact that Crimea is a part of natural-Mediterranean – Black Sea security area...

  There is a revolution in progress that is shifting responsibility for governance and sovereignty away from the state to cities. This revolution even has a name: the fourth industrial revolution. In many parts of the world, cities are growing exponentially and...

The recent attacks on mosques in Christchurch that killed 50 worshipping Muslims and injured scores more have brought global attention to white nationalist terrorism. This phenomenon could not only grow into an international security threat akin to Islamist terrorism...

The developments following the suicide bombing of the Indian-controlled Kashmir on February 14, which resulted in the deaths of at least 40 Indian soldiers, caused the attention of the world's public to focus on the region again. New Delhi blamed the Pakistani...

Turkey is a key regional player at the gateway between Europe and the Middle East, bordering Iraq and Syria. Particularly during the Syrian conflict, Turkey experienced rockets and shells landing on its side of the border injuring and killing civilians. Moreover, in...

By Anne Speckhard*, Ardian Shajkovci** Unmanned and remote-controlled aircrafts, i.e. drones, continue to change the character of contemporary warfare.[i] It was satellites and drones, alongside a good deal of human intelligence, that located Osama bin Laden...

Defence Ministers of NATO members discussed pressing security challenges in Brussels between 13-15 February 2019, prior to annual Munich Security Conference. Defence Minister of the Republic of North Macedonia Radmila Sekerinska, attended NATO defence ministerial...

If you followed certain Indian media outlets in the early hours of Tuesday, you probably heard that Indian Air Force jets swooped into Pakistani airspace and carried out devastating strikes on militant camps, killing roughly 300 fighters. If you were watching in...