Jacques Delors once defined the first-ever project of long-lasting peace and cooperation between a union of sovereign states, i.e., the European Communities and subsequently the European Union (EU) as an “identified political object” characterized by uncertainty and inexplicability (Zielonka, 2006, p.4). Just like many of those cooperative projects aiming at developing integration and closeness between member states (hereafter MSs) …

August 23, 2021 marked the day of launching the International Crimean Platform which has been initiated by the president of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky  as an international response and moreover, foreign policy instrument against the occupation of Crimea by Russia. The summit was solely dedicated to the illegal annexation of Crimea and to bringing the issue back in the agenda of the …

Morocco and Algeria have been rivals for decades since the end of the Spanish and French protectorates in Morocco (1956) and the independence of Algeria between 1954-1962. The first, Morocco, a parliamentary monarchy that has resolved its fit with rising Islam through the political-religious figure of King Hasan. The second, Algeria, a republic of socialist origin that has been veering …

The 54-year Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territory, namely, Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem is a sign of the international community’s lack of accountability in front of grave and repeated breaches of international law, including serious human rights violations.  Since the occupation began in 1967, Israel has gradually developed a dual legal regime that favors Israelis and their …

The peace process in Tibet ceased to be an internal affair of China from the moment when the Dalai Lama, the highest Tibetan authority, had to go into exile in 1959. Since 1959, China and Tibet have competed internationally to legitimize their own interpretation of history. The Chinese Government argues that Tibet lived under the extreme abuse of a feudal …

For Australian government ministers to harness the economic benefits of refugees for both Australia and refugees’ host countries, the impediments of securing meaningful employment must be recognised and addressed. These include: the extensive time in Australia’s offshore detention centres which not only reduces education and employment capabilities but also costs the Australian government over A$400,000 a year per person (Button …

The fall of Kabul to the Taliban came as a shock to most observers. Besides the unknown future awaiting the Afghan population, especially the female part of it, which rose quickly to the attention of the international community, French President Emmanuel Macron warned of a new wave of refugees to the EU (Euronews, 2021). Another recent example where a government …

The presidential election in Belarus on August 9, 2020 was followed by an extraordinary surge of social protests against Aleksandar Lukashenka’s regime. The flagrant fraud of election results, which declared Lukashenka the winner with approximately 80% of the vote, was the catalyst for these protests. As a result of widespread protests and strikes, the government responded with brute force, beatings …

A potentially tide-changing development has been taking place in Albania in recent times. Tirana and Ankara are keen on increasing their cooperation in various areas from security to trade and investments, however,  in particular in the defense and military sector (Exit News, 2021). For later this year, a state visit by Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is planned as the …

The foundation of the modern state of Saudi Arabia has been based on the idea of an expansion of the territories controlled by the Saud family with the help of the Wahabit beduins. But as the Wahabit forces grew stronger the monarch Abd al-Aziz ibn Saud sought the cooperation of the British who were in Kuwait and Iraq. This unprecedented …