Omer Onhon

On July 19, three sets of meetings were held in Tehran involving Presidents Ebrahim Raisi of Iran, Vladimir Putin of Russia, and Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey. The first meeting was the 7th High Level Cooperation Council (HLCC) meeting between Iran and Turkey. The second was a bilateral…

By now, everyone is well aware that Russia and Ukraine are top global producers and exporters of wheat, maize, barley and sunflower oil, as well as other grains. Russia is also a basic provider for fertilizers. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the ensuing war disrupted their export. The…

Important back to back international summit meetings have been taking place; in Asia (the BRICS Summit) and in Europe (EU Council and the Group of Seven Summit). The last of the series, 2022 NATO Summit, will begin Wednesday. All these meetings are held in the midst of what almost everyone…

An international organization is relevant and effective to the extent that it can respond to needs and requirements and adapt itself in time. NATO, which is world’s leading political and military alliance, was founded in 1949 after the Second World War. At the time, Nazi’s were defeated and a…

Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov continues his diplomatic rounds in and beyond the region. Recently, he met with foreign ministers of Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) as Russia regards the stance of Arab countries, in general, as balanced. Lavrov is going to visit Turkey on June 8. There…

The war in Ukraine may have dominated international political agenda, but Syria file is also very much active.  Most recently,  President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s statement on May 23, when he said that Turkey is on its way to carry out a new military operation in northern Syria, made headlines…

Russia could not have foreseen such strong military resistance on the ground. The resolve and solidarity in the West and sanctions have also been well beyond Russia’s expectations. Russia has finally broken the defenses in Mariupol's Azovstal steelworks. Ukrainian soldiers have left the grounds…

President Joe Biden continues to announce military aid packages. Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin have visited Kyiv and reiterated their country’s resolve to stand with Ukraine against Russia’s aggression. Among all political declarations, Secretary of…

It is now clear that Russia has failed to inflict a speedy and crushing defeat on Ukraine. It has suffered too many casualties including loss of top generals. The Russian General, who was in charge in Syria, has now assumed command in Ukraine. His reputation leads to concern that things on the…