Iran’s drone factory in Tajikistan: A boon for Russia or a challenge?

27 Jun 2022

Posted originally to MANARA Magazine on 27 June 2022. Iran’s recent opening of a drone factory in Tajikistan[i] is a significant development for Russia. As Dushanbe’s security and defense patron, Moscow…

MbS-Kushner investments could complicate vital Saudi regional diplomacy

5 Jun 20225 Jun 2022

Posted originally to The Cradle on 5 June 2022. Saudi Arabia is slated for a complete socioeconomic overhaul under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s (MbS) ambitious Vision2030, which aims to…

Were Iran’s Kurdistan strikes aimed at Turkish-Israeli entente?

12 Apr 202227 Apr 2022

Posted originally to The Cradle on 11 April 2022. Iran’s 13 March missile strikes on purported Israeli strategic centers in the Iraqi Kurdistan Region (IKR) was met with swift condemnation by Turkey. This is indicative…

The Iran-Azerbaijan gas swap deal: Did Tehran’s tough posturing pay off?

14 Dec 20211 Feb 2022

Posted originally to The Cradle on 14 December 2021. The deal ended the October-November escalation between Iran and Azerbaijan, which has featured unprecedented Iranian war games on their shared borders…

Will geoeconomics carry Saudi-Israeli relations into the future?

11 Nov 202114 Dec 2021

Posted originally to The Cradle on 11 November 2021. Saudi-Israeli relations presently stand in sharp contrast to the full normalization Israel achieved with the UAE via the August 2020 Abraham…

From Panjshir to Baku: Iran’s search for a new hard-power Strategy in Eurasia

3 Nov 202111 Nov 2021

Posted originally to The Cradle on 3 November 2021. Iran’s recent reactions to events in Afghanistan’s northern reaches and the Iran- Armenia-Azerbaijan border area were sudden and dramatic. Viewed in…

Will there be a China-driven evolution in Israel’s strategy toward Iran?

20 Jul 202114 Sep 2021

Posted originally to the Russian International Affairs Council (RIAC) on 19 July 2021. This author published an analysis in The Tehran Times in December 2020 titled “Is Eurasian integration Israel’s…