Section: Begin-Sadat Center for Strategic Studies (Israel)
Russia’s Troubles with Its “String of Pearls”
A Russia-backed rebel armored fighting vehicles convoy near Donetsk, Eastern Ukraine, May 30, 2015, image by Mstyslav Chernov via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,678, August 6, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: For geopolitical reasons, Russia has been building a chain of separatist states near its borders since the 1990s. However, as...
As US-China Competition Unfolds, Russia Watches Closely
Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,616, June 26, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Russia’s position is crucial in the unfolding US-China competition. There are two likely scenarios. In one, Russia is able to maneuver between the powers and score geopolitical goals in its neighborhood and in the...
Iran’s Anti-Israel Bill: Desperation Masquerading as Legislation
Iranian woman with cell phone outside Sheikh Lotfollah Mosque, Isfahan, Iran, photo by Adam Jones via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,603, June 11, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Iran’s new anti-Israel legislation has banned all contact with the “Zionist enemy,” however indirect, even going so far as to criminalize the use of...
The Abandonment of the South Lebanon Army: A Moral and a Strategic Failure
South Lebanon Army memorial in Marjayoun, later destroyed by Hezbollah, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,579, May 24, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: With the May 2000 abandonment of the South Lebanon Army, Israel signaled to its regional allies that it is not a reliable mainstay. This influenced the lukewarm response of the Golan...
The Return to the Era of Spheres of Influence in Eurasia
Map of Eurasia in a 1936 textbook, photo by Bryan Costin via Flickr CCBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,575, May 21, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Geopolitical trends of the last two decades show that pivotal states in Eurasia are working to recreate their zones of influence. In so doing, they are challenging the US, which implies a corresponding...
Iran’s Nuclear and Military Efforts in the Shadow of Coronavirus and Economic Collapse
Iraj Harirchi (left), Director of Iran’s National Center for the Fight Against Coronavirus, showing signs of infection at press conference on Feb. 23, 2020, photo via Wikimedia CommonsBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,568, May 17, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Notwithstanding the difficult challenges of the coronavirus crisis and a...
Russia, Saudi Arabia, and the US: A Slippery Oil Triangle
Muhammad bin Salman and Vladimir Putin, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,552, May 6, 2019 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Oil relationships are as unstable and volatile as romantic ones. Following a deadlocked OPEC summit in February, Moscow and Riyadh announced they would ramp up production, sending already low prices tumbling. Since...
Putin’s Religious Soft Power Hits Jerusalem
The Church of the Holy Sepulchre, Jerusalem, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,550, May 5, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: The recent “backpacker deal,” the Crimean Peninsula annexation, and Russia’s Sochi Olympic Games are all examples of Vladimir Putin’s global “smart power” strategy, which combines soft and hard...
Turkey and the Libyan and Syrian Civil Wars
Libyans protest GNC extension, photo via WikipediaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,548, May 4, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Turkey under Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is constantly looking for opportunities to enhance its status as a regional superpower and promote its Islamist ideology in the Arab Middle East. Libya is the newest arena in which Erdoğan is...
Erdoğan Battles on Multiple Fronts in Risky Regional Power Bid
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, photo via Office of the President of RussiaBESA Center Perspectives Paper No. 1,510, March 30, 2020 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is at odds with just about everybody. He is on opposite sides with Russia in Syria as well as Libya and is trying the patience of his US and European allies. Turkey and...
