Section: Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Israel)
Could Chernobyl Syndrome Take Hold in Iran?
Wreckage from Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, photo by Mehr News Agency via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,434, February 3, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The display of fundamental incompetence, followed by denial and a cover-up, that accompanied the recent shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger airliner by Iran are...
Chinese Biological Warfare: The Case of Dr. Xiangguo Qiu
Dr. Xiangguo Qiu, photo via Twitter feed of Public Policy ForumBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,430, January 31, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: In July 2019, a rare event occurred in Canada. Suspected of espionage for China, a group of Chinese virologists was forcibly evicted from the Canadian National Microbiology Laboratory (NML) in Winnipeg,...
With Putin’s Proposed Changes, Russia Begins Its Transition to One-Party Rule
Vladimir Putin, image via Office of the President of RussiaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,421, January 24, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Vladimir Putin’s proposed changes to the Russian constitution portend a shift toward one-party rule and lay out a framework by which he can continue to be a major power broker well beyond the end of his...
International Law and the Downing of Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752
Wreckage from downed Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, image via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,414, January 21, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Iran’s prevarications about its responsibility for the shooting down of Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 during the recent escalation of tensions with the US...
The Killing of Soleimani Will Not Stop Iranian Aggression
Qassem Soleimani in 2018, photo by Mahmood Hosseini via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,415, January 21, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The killing by the US of Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani will not temper Tehran’s intention to continue its aggressive regional policy, either directly or through its proxy...
The Leviathan Natural Gas Field Could Be a Game-Changer for Israel-EU Relations
view of the Mediterranean from Haifa, photo via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,411, January 19, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The vast Leviathan natural gas field off the Haifa coast could be a game-changer for Israel’s relations with the EU. Europe is currently dependent on Russian natural gas. A reliable and...
Takeaways from the US Impeachment Imbroglio
Impeachment protesters, photo by Master Steve Rapport via Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,402, January 13, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The three impeachments to date in US history (Andrew Johnson, Bill Clinton, and Donald Trump) and the Nixon impeachment inquiry and resulting presidential resignation shed light on the current...
More Distractions Loom for the US in 2020
Donald Trump, photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,378, December 22, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Impeachment hearings in the US have overshadowed important geopolitical developments in Eurasia that will affect Washington’s position in 2020 and beyond. The US’s failure to improve relations with Seoul and...
NATO Must Survive
North Atlantic Council meeting at NATO headquarters, 2018, photo via NATO Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,374, December 17, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The recent urgent push by NATO to provide a defensive framework to Poland and the Baltic states is by no means a false alarm intended merely to shore up a sense of common purpose during...
Straightening Out Russian Foreign Policy
Vladimir Putin and President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, 2017, photo via Office of the President of RussiaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,372, December 15, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Russian foreign policy since the mid-2000s tends to be perceived in contradictory terms: as either a negative for Russia or the product of a grand strategic...
