Vivekananda International Foundation | Seeking Harmony in Diversity

Syrian Unrest: A Decade of Misery for Syrians

18th March 2021 marks the 10th anniversary of the commencement of unrest in Syria. The arrest and ill treatment of 15 schoolboys in Darra, a town on the border with Jordan led to about 3000 people holding a demonstration after Friday prayers,...

March 17 , 2021

West Asia Review - November 2020

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 through the partially...

December 7 , 2020

Iran: US Sanctions and Regional and International Perspectives

The Vivekananda International Foundation (VIF) on 29 September 2020 organised a virtual discussion on the topic titled, “Iran: US Sanctions and Regional and International Perspectives”. Amb. D P Srivastava was the key speaker in the discussion. Dr....

October 7 , 2020

West Asia Roundup September 2020

Abstract: Jordan was the last Arab country in 1994 to have normalised relations with Israel. Even though over the years Israel has tried to informally engage with the Arabs especially GCC countries the formalisation of relations with UAE and...

October 5 , 2020

West Asia Round Up: August 2020

ABSTRACT: August witnessed monumental events in the region. US sponsored rapprochement between UAE and Israel; Pompeo’s visit to Khartoum; Beirut blasts; attempts to ceasefire in Libya; Iraqi PM’s visits to Iran and USA; Defeat of US proposal and...

September 2 , 2020

The Israeli-UAE Deal

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,...

August 19 , 2020

Now the Blasts in Beirut

On 04 August twin blasts rocked the Beirut skyline shattering the buildings and property around. The sound of the blasts was heard in Cyprus some 200 Kms away. According to the Lebanese authorities 78 people were killed and over 4000 injured and the...

August 6 , 2020

Iran’s Nuclear Quest in Recess

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...

July 16 , 2020

Mapping Israeli Sovereignty, Jewish Settlements, and a Future Palestinian State

July 1 has come and gone, and despite the hysteria in some circles, the world did not wake up this past Wednesday to find that Israel had become sovereign over large parts of Palestinian land. So what was all the hoopla about, and what lies ahead?...

July 8 , 2020

Refugees, not Settlements, are the Bigger Impediment to Israeli-Palestinian Peace

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s recent comments that his new government, with support from the Trump Administration in the US will annex parts of the West Bank have, as expected, caused quite a flutter in the international community....

June 24 , 2020