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Are the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea a Solidarity Campaign or a Ruse? – or is not the Right Question
Recently, there has been a surge of interest in Yemen following the Houthi military campaign attacking ships traversing the Red Sea. But why and how have their campaigns increased the groups popularity both regionally and beyond?
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Qatar-UAE as rivals in the Horn of Africa
One effect of the rift between Qatar and its GCC neighbours Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE has been the exportation of this division since 2017. Emirati and Saudi allies Eritrea, Comoros, Mauritania, and Senegal in the Red Sea severed diplomatic ties with Qatar at the beginning of the crisis, and cross-regional divisions only became…
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Security as strategy? Israeli Arab Gulf states alignment
A few months after the Abraham accords were signed between Israel, Bahrain and the UAE, the Pentagon announced the transfer of command oversight of Israel from the US European Command (EUCOM) to its key military command outpost in the Gulf, CENTCOM. While the transition may be seen to pave the way for an overt regional…
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Uzbekistan’s economic challenges under President Mirziyoyev
For 25 years after independence in 1991, Uzbekistan was ruled by the former First Secretary of the Uzbek Soviet Republic, Islam Karimov. Karimov’s rule was characterized by ruthless political leadership and gradual economic reform. While some commentators lauded the economic achievements under Karimov, a more common view was that the economy had underperformed in improving…
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Third restart? Kyrgyzstan’s latest ‘revolution’
Protesting parties were a diverse crowd, from the liberal Reforma, to the market-liberal BirBol, the liberal-socialist Ata-Meken, the conservative Mekenchil, the radical Chon Kazat, the religious Yiman Nuru, and others in between. The ideological leanings of Kyrgyz political parties tend to be mostly declarative and matters of convenience than of conviction, but still, their general…
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Iran in a Shifting US Foreign Policy
Following Biden’s election as President of the United States, many officials who served under the Obama administration returned to senior positions. With them, they brought familiar approaches to the same pressing issues which continue to plague the Middle East. Iran sees this as a golden opportunity for rapprochement with the U.S, but on its own…
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Central Asian Migration Patterns and Their Implications for Australia
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Only small numbers of Central Asia migrants make their way to Australia yet the experience in the broader Asia Pacific suggests that this could be a missed opportunity for Australia…
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Turkmenistan’s Political Future amid Growing Australian Ties
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The strengthening of ties between Australia and Turkmenistan comes as domestic politics in the Central Asian states settles into a new pattern following last year’s leadership transition.
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The Assassination of Haniyeh and the Fragility of Iranian Security
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The assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran not only underscores profound vulnerabilities within Iranian intelligence but also could potentially mark a shift in the geopolitical landscape of the Middle East.…
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A Weaker Taliban After Three Years in Power
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Is the Taliban as strong as it looks? The group continues to face several problems it is either unable or unwilling to solve. While seemingly secure in the short-term, it…
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Are the Houthi attacks in the Red Sea a Solidarity Campaign or a Ruse? – or is not the Right Question
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Recently, there has been a surge of interest in Yemen following the Houthi military campaign attacking ships traversing the Red Sea. But why and how have their campaigns increased the…
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Central Asia and the Conflict in Ukraine: Russia-Friendly Neutrality
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Since the onset of the war in Ukraine in February 2022, the Central Asian countries of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan have adopted a neutral stance towards the conflict.…
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Political fragmentation and slow diplomacy: Yemen’s long road to peace?
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In April this year, the Omani-mediated peace talks between Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthis and Saudi Arabia marked a hopeful move towards finally ending the proxy war in Yemen. This was an…
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Taliban’s Water Claims Ignite Tensions with Neighbours
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When the Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan in August 2021, it raised concerns in neighbouring countries about their own security. The governments in most of the Central Asian countries,…
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Indigenous – Palestinian solidarity networks challenging settler colonialism in Australia
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Increasingly networks are forming between Indigenous and Palestinian groups through a shared experience of colonisation. In recent years, there has been a shift at the grassroots level in Australia in…
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Egypt COP 27: Projecting freedom and openness against a record of repression
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In November, Egypt’s Red Sea resort town of Sharm el Sheikh will be hosting the 27th annual Climate Change Conference of the Parties. When it does, if the glossy promotional…
