Despite an unprecedented global slump, this is hardly an ideal time to cut into social spending.
A perceived lessening of the U.S. security umbrella would leave the Saudis far more vulnerable regionally and could force additional policy adjustments.
During his visit to Israel this week, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is slated to give Netanyahu the green light.
The central bank has depleted its reserves dramatically by funding state bank interventions in defense of the lira.
For too long, Washington has been an accomplice of the rampant corruption in Lebanon, choosing to look the other way as it deals with officials known to be implicated in various corrupt schemes.
In recent weeks, a flurry of commentary from prominent voices and publications in Russia has seen a wave of criticism directed at Syria’s Assad regime. Accusations have been leveled against the regime of corruption, warlordism, and incompetence, as well as an obsession with achieving unrealistic military objectives at the expense of dwindling resources, reconstruction, and political and economic reforms.
In a series of videos posted on Facebook this week, Rami Makhlouf called out the upper echelons of Syria’s political establishment, of which he had been an integral part for over two decades. By making his feud public Makhlouf has created an unprecedented rift within loyalist ranks, transforming his dispute with Syria’s ruling elite from one that was tightly controlled and behind closed doors to an out in the open, nationwide row the likes of which haven’t been seen since Hafez al-Assad’s standoff with his brother Rifaat in 1984.
Officials in Damascus say reconstruction plans for what was once Syria’s largest Palestinian refugee community will pave the way for the return of large numbers of displaced residents “as soon as possible.” But with plans beset by delays and vague statements from those same officials, the available evidence suggests otherwise.
The fact that Makhlouf chose to go public heightens the stakes at play at the top of the regime and within the Alawite clan, arguably more than ever.
For Jordan Israeli annexation of Jewish settlements in the West Bank, as well as the strategically important Jordan Valley, constitutes an existential threat to the kingdom. But now Jordan faces unprecedented economic hardship as a consequence of the coronavirus crisis, and this could limit its scope for action.
It’s difficult to overstate the importance of the Canal to the international shipping trade, but it’s importance to Egypt economy is even greater still.
It is not yet clear who will emerge as the winners and the losers from this latest crisis in a country that has experienced so many.
Rather than seeing the spreading virus as a common enemy, the Taliban seem to be viewing the health crisis as opening new military opportunities.
In a country already beset by economic and financial crises, COVID-19-related lockdown measures, without accompanying government assistance, are increasingly pushing impoverished residents to the brink. Lockdown measures will gradually start to lift this week. But the lockdown only accelerated the inevitable economic freefall and lifting the measures will not solve the country’s economic woes. “There is a predicament coming that is much bigger than corona … the economy is the bigger crisis,” a political activist in Dahiyeh says.
While there is no shortage of rhetorical opposition to Israeli annexation from all corners, the question now is whether any of them intend to follow up their strong words with concrete actions.