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West Asia – 2020 in Retrospect
Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Article

Year 2020 will go down in the history not only for the adverse impact of Covid-19 on global and regional economies, lower oil prices, budget deficits, health hazards but when the West Asia region nearly came to a catastrophic war between Iran ....

January 06, 2021 International Relations and Diplomacy , West Asia , Article , India , China , Russia , Trump , Saudi Arabia , Arab Spring , Turkey , Deal of the century , Netanyahu , Abraham Accords , Al Ula Summit
West Asia Review - November 2020
Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Article

ABSTRACT:
Even though sunset on Trump Presidency has begun the Middle East continued to engage his attention. His Secretary of State Pompeo visited the region especially Turkey, UAE, Saudi Arabia , Qatar and Israel to follow throu....

December 07, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , West Asia , Article , Israel , Iran , Qatar , Saudi Arabia , al-Qaeda , G20 summit , UAE , Bahrain , Trump Presidency , NEOM , Palestinians , Belgium
West Asia Round up – October 2020
Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Article

ABSTRACT:
Normalisation of ties by someArab countries with Israel after UAE and Bahrain continued as Sudan’s transitional government, despite internal opposition, established diplomatic relations at the behest....

November 10, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , West Asia , Article , Saudi Arabia , Syria , Turkey , UNSMIL , Libyan , Russia-Georgia , Lebanese , Islamic separatism , French , Israel-Sudan
The Israeli-UAE Deal
Amb K P Fabian Article

On 13th August 2020, President Trump announced that he had brokered a deal between Israel and the U.A.E to normalize relations. It is rather strange that a third country should be the first to announce a deal between two other countries. Obviously, T....

August 19, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , Article , Israel , Palestine , Trump , Saudi Arabia , Oman , Netanyahu , UAE , annexation plans , Bahrain
Indonesia and the Growing Influence of Islam
Amb Gurjit Singh Article

Indonesia is the world’s largest Muslim country but is not an Islamic State. It is governed by its doctrine of Pancasila enshrined in the Constitution1. Besides its belief in One God, the Constitution also recognises six religions in Ind....

August 06, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , Article , India , democracy , Army , Saudi Arabia , Pakistan ISI , Tableeghi Jamaat , Hizbut Tahrir , Political Islam , Islamic Defenders Front (FPI) , Nahdlatul Ulama , Jemma Islamiyah , Jokowi
Iran’s Nuclear Quest in Recess
Amb Anil Trigunayat, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Commentary

On July 2, some explosions at the nuclear component facility at Natanz in Iran appear to have damaged the crucial centrifuges delaying its programme by at least two years as per Iranian officials. Earlier, there was yet another blast said to be at th....

July 16, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , Commentary , Israel , China , JCPOA , Saudi Arabia , Cyber Attack , Natanz , Joe Bidden
The Disarray in the Gulf Cooperation Council
Amb K P Fabian Article

The 5th of June 2020 marks a sad day in the annals of the 6-member GCC (Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, and Bahrain) founded in 1981. On 5th June 2017 the Crown Princes of Saudi Arabia and the U.A.E. broke off relations with ....

June 12, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , Article , Iran , Qatar , GCC , Saudi Arabia , Arab Spring , U.S. , Muslim Brotherhood , 13 Demands and Ultimatum , Gas Fields , Al Jazeera
Pakistan: Worsening Economic Condition
Amb D P Srivastava, Distinguished Fellow, VIF Commentary

Pakistan was already going through an economic slowdown when the COVID outbreak took place. It had received the US $ 6 billion of assistance from the IMF under Extended Fund Facility last year. The money came with conditions. The IMF policy of inflat....

June 12, 2020 Neighbourhood Studies , Pakistan , Commentary , China , Saudi Arabia , CPEC , World Bank , Covid , IMF , Inflation , negative growth , oil revenues
West Asia Roundup - May 2020
Hirak Jyoti Das, Research Associate, VIF Article

Abstract:

West Asia continued to suffer under the onslaught of Covid -19. While Iran despite its socio-economic problems and US sanctions remained the major victim in the region others caught up rather fast. Some took early c....

June 06, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , West Asia , Article , Israel , Iraq , Saudi Arabia , Libya , Turkey , Covid -19 , Haftar , Northern Yemen
The Agony of Yemen
Amb K P Fabian Commentary

In our pre-occupation with the coronavirus crisis, with a rising death toll, apparently unstoppable (27,370 on 28th March, 05 22 GMT), we should not fail to take note of an unhappy fifth anniversary of the war in Yemen, or more accurately, the war on....

March 31, 2020 International Relations and Diplomacy , Commentary , Iran , Saudi Arabia , Houthis , Operation Desert Storm (ODS) , Military situation , Humanitarian aid , Stockholm Accord
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