Section: Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Israel)
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 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...
The Phenomenon of “Global Russia”
The Kremlin at night, image via maxpixel.netBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,360, December 1, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: As Russia increases its geopolitical involvement across the globe, the concept of “Global Russia” has been gradually taking hold. Though Russia is inherently weak, it is likely that Moscow will continue its global initiatives...
Putin’s Policies Are Not New
Meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council, photo via Office of the President of RussiaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,329, October 30, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: It has become fashionable to link Russian foreign policy moves of the past 20 years solely to President Vladimir Putin and his close associates. But what is viewed as innovative...
The Purge of John Bolton
John Bolton, photo by Gage Skidmore via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,327, October 29, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: In Syria, President Trump, like Obama before him, seems oblivious to the reality that when the US withdraws, its enemies advance and fill the vacuum. Ousted NSA John Bolton has said that America is constraining its range...
In the Aegean, Energy Sustainability = Increased Security
Tasos Aliferis, Tilos, Greece, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,325, October 28, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The challenging geography of Greece makes it hard for the country to take full advantage of its natural resources and expand its energy grid. Though it has doubled its share of renewables, it needs to redouble those...
