Section: Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Israel)
The Cost of Sanctions on North Korea
Children in North Korea, photo via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,269, August 28, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The sanctions imposed on North Korea have a humanitarian cost of which most members of the general public in the sanctioning nations are not aware, and which is almost never discussed. This cost, and its implications...
Refusing Entry to Foreign Nationals: How Common Is It?
Rashida Tlaib, photo via WikimediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,266, August 26, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: How unusual was Israel’s refusal to allow Congresswomen Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib to enter Israel to engage in hostile political activity? Not very, based on a comparison with the UK. Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib are both...
Belarus Could Be Russia’s Next Big Geopolitical Target
Vladimir Putin with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko (R) and Speaker of the Council of the Republic of Belarus Mikhail Myasnikovich, via Office of Russian PresidentBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,141, April 14, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Russia’s geopolitical projection has shifted over the past two decades. The country has tried...
Mariupol: An On-Site Report
Leni and Jiri Valenta with soldier in Mariupol, photo via the authorsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,136, April 9, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Although Vladimir Putin has not articulated the final objective of his proxy war in eastern Ukraine, his actions seem to indicate that he is determined to create a land bridge from Mariupol to Odessa –...
In Mideast Protests, Ultras Are Down but Not Out
El-Ahly AFC Ultras, image via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,116, March 19, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Middle East soccer fans played an important role in the 2011 popular revolts. Regimes across the region are determined to ensure that they will not have another such opportunity. Ali Issa Ahmad, a British soccer fan, lingered...
How Trump Should Counter Putin in Ukraine and Venezuela
USAF plane carrying humanitarian aid for Venezuela, February 22, 2019, US Air Force Photo by Maj. Wayne Capps via Gatestone InstituteBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,115, March 18, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: If Nicolás Maduro is removed from office in Venezuela, Putin might act as he did when a popular revolution overthrew Yanukovych in Ukraine...
The End of “Europe from Lisbon to Vladivostok”
European and Russian flags, image via PixabayBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,106, March 8, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The geopolitical divorce of Russia and Europe is not confined to the military or economic realms. Over the past several years, the differences have been ideological as well. A good example is the death of a once major political...
Russia’s Perpetual Quest for Military Modernization
Russian military honor guard, DoD photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Chad J. McNeeley via photostream of Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,097, February 26, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: One of the cyclical patterns of Russian history is the country’s perpetual quest for military...
Russia After the Ukraine Crisis: European, Asian, or Eurasian?
Winter in Siberia, photo via PixabayBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,061, January 11, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: As competition grows more intense between the US and China, Moscow must assess which side will do more to help it solve its problems across the former Soviet space. Moscow’s choice will affect Russia’s identification as...
The US Withdrawal from Syria: A Blessing in Disguise?
A US 746th Expeditionary Airlift Squadron loadmaster observes a jettisoned load of supplies in support of Operation Inherent Resolve, Nov. 14, 2018, DOD photo by Air Force Staff Sgt. Jordan CastelanBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,050, December 30, 2018 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: However misconceived, President Trump’s decision to withdraw US...
