teaching and research disciplines
In the year 2017, during my visit to Cuba, I met the famous Cuban media personality, Arlene Rodrigues, who has long experience in the field of media and who worked at one stage as a media advisor to Cuban leader Fidel Castro. In an interview with her, she surprised me by saying: Do you know Read more
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Russia’s Complex Challenges: Secularism, Christianity, Islam, Wahhabism, and War For most of the last 1000 years Russia’s rulers have had a complicated history with religion, in general and with Islam in particular. While Islam has origins in the region that go back more than 1100 years, the relationship with the Ottoman Empire, Salafi Islam in Read more
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by Samaher al-Khatib * The Russian special military operation in Donbass constituted a new stage in the history of the modern world, characterized by new concepts, and with the arrival of this special operation to the date of signing the accession of Donetsk, Luhansk, Kherson and Zaporizhia to the Russian Federation, which preceded the accession Read more
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Months after the start of the so-called “Arab Spring”, a team of researchers became interested in this protest movement and its potential for bringing positive change in the Islamic world in the area of governance and economic development. To stay current the team developed a routine for checking major news outlets as well as social Read more
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A meeting among leaders of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) member states, during any other year in the past, would not make the news. This year’s meeting, however, should matters. Yet, it was hardly covered in Western media. There are important reasons for why the world should pay attention to this 21-year-old intergovernmental organization (IGO). Read more
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by Ahmed E. Souaiaia * The power of the United States was born out of the violence of the world wars of the 20th century. For nearly 100 years, the United States enjoyed economic and military supremacy, which enable it to lead the Western bloc and to enjoy unprecedented peace and prosperity. Another war in Read more
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A global pandemic is generally enough to trigger a broad transformation with significant impact. A pandemic, an “Arab Spring”, a war in Europe, a climate crisis, and a shift in energy sources and consumptions make global change a certainty. That certainty becomes clear when looking at how each nation-state is maneuvering to secure space in Read more
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by Nikita Smagin * Russia and Iran are finding more and more points of contact both in the foreign policy and economic spheres. It is no coincidence that this year has already become unprecedented in terms of the frequency of visits at high and highest levels between countries. The latest event in this context was Read more
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by Hoda Rizk Iran is trying to re-deepen the relationship between the Astana parties in light of the changes taking place in the region and the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian war on regional and international alliances, at a time when Turkey is reviewing its stances and foreign policy after a decade of failed projects, and Read more
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The energy and food crises are not direct outcomes of just the war in Ukraine. The energy and food crises are connected to many other unaddressed critical issues. Thereforre, they must be addressed holistically. The conflict between Russia and the West that was exacerbated by Russia’s military intervention in Ukraine must not be understood as Read more
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