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Opinion: The future of the China-US-Russia triangle after Pelosi's visit to Taiwan

Opinion: The future of the China-US-Russia triangle after Pelosi's visit to Taiwan

Since February 24, 2022, the international community's focus was concentrated entirely on the war in Ukraine and the growing Russia – West confrontation. It seemed that nothing could change the situation until the end of hostilities in Ukraine. However, on August 2 and 3, almost everyone’s attention shifted from Ukraine to Taiwan. As the Speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, stated her intention to visit Taiwan, up to half a million people were watching the trajectory of her plane on air flight tracking sites. The negative reaction of China, including the warning of President Xi during his conversation with President Biden that those who played with fire would be perished by it, created hype around this visit. Many were discussing the possibility of Chinese military jets closing the airspace over Taiwan and preventing Pelosi’s plane from landing in Taiwan, while some enthusiasts were even contemplating the possibility of a US-China direct military clash. As Pelosi landed in Taiwan and met with the Taiwanese President, the global social media was full of amateur assessments about the strategic victory of the US and the confirmation of the US global hegemony. However, as the dust settles down, and information noise and manipulation eventually decreases, a more serious assessment is needed to understand the real consequences of this visit.
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Opinion: Baku Trials Expose Armenia’s Role in the Karabakh Conflict

Opinion: Baku Trials Expose Armenia’s Role in the Karabakh Conflict

The trials of former Armenian separatist leaders in Baku mark a long-overdue moment of accountability for decades of aggression, occupation, and destruction in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan. The proceedings in the Baku Military Court are more than a legal exercise – they are a public affirmation of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty over its internationally recognized territory, a sovereignty that Armenia sought to undermine for over 30 years through both overt and covert support for the separatist regime. Courtroom testimonies of the former separatist leaders have reinforced what Azerbaijan has long maintained: Armenia was not a bystander but the architect of the separatist military apparatus that inflicted immense suffering on Azerbaijanis.
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EU is ready for more action against Georgia including sanctions

EU is ready for more action against Georgia including sanctions

The European Union is prepared to take further action against the Georgian government, including sanctions, to hold those responsible for violence against protesters accountable, according to a statement by the EU press service on Wednesday. In the statement, the EU said it has taken into account the decision by the Baltic states to impose sanctions against Georgian Dream on the basis that the ruling party's actions are aimed at violating fundamental rights and freedoms and further reducing the space for civil society to operate.
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US designates Yemen’s Houthis as ‘foreign terrorist’ organisation

US designates Yemen’s Houthis as ‘foreign terrorist’ organisation

The US State Department on Tuesday reinstated the “foreign terrorist organization” designation for Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi group fulfilling an order announced by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the department had restored the designation, which carries with it sanctions and penalties for anyone providing “material support” for the group.
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Majority of Georgians believe EU membership would be positive for Georgian-Abkhaz and Georgian-Ossetian relations

Majority of Georgians believe EU membership would be positive for Georgian-Abkhaz and Georgian-Ossetian relations

61 per cent of Georgians believe that the country’s integration into the European Union would have a positive impact on Georgian-Abkhaz and Georgian-Ossetian relations according to a new study by the Caucasus Research Resource Center on conflicts in Georgia. Additionally, 56 per cent think that NATO membership would also be a positive development. When it comes to Georgia’s rapprochement with Russia, 31 per cent of respondents believe it would have positive consequences. The study, “Conflicts in Georgia: Perceptions, Attitudes, and Expectations”, was commissioned by the Institute for Nationalism and Conflict Studies, the Levan Mikeladze Foundation, and the Caucasian House and conducted by the Caucasus Research Resource Center in 2024.
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EU backs North Africa hydrogen pipeline

EU backs North Africa hydrogen pipeline

Algeria, Tunisia, Austria, Germany and Italy have agreed to construct a hydrogen pipeline to bring clean fuel generated with renewable energy in North Africa to the European Union, in a move hailed as one of the bloc’s “most important renewable energy projects”. But analysis of Algeria and Tunisia’s green hydrogen strategies reveals that neither country is likely to be in a position to export the fuel in any meaningful quantity when the pipeline is due to start operating in 2030.
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NGO work for millions of displaced people in Somalia paralyzed by USAID freeze

NGO work for millions of displaced people in Somalia paralyzed by USAID freeze

In a desolate makeshift camp on the fringes of Somalia's capital, tens of thousands of internally displaced people sit under the baking sun not sure if they can have access to food rations and medication following U.S. President Donald Trump’s decree to freeze most of his country's foreign aid. Trump’s decision, which will remain in force for 90 days following his executive order of January 20, threatens to collapse the humanitarian aid economy that sustains the livelihoods of some of the world’s most vulnerable people. The U.S. provides more foreign aid globally than any other country, budgeting about $60 billion in 2023, or about 1 per cent of the U.S. budget.
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Badra Gunba elected President in Abkhazia with almost 55 per cent of the second round vote

Badra Gunba elected President in Abkhazia with almost 55 per cent of the second round vote

Badra Gunba has won a presidential election in the breakaway Georgian region of Abkhazia, state media said on Sunday, months after his predecessor was driven from office following protests over an investment deal with Russia. Gunba, currently acting President, took almost 55 per cent of the vote in Saturday's election in the Russia-backed territory, ahead of opposition leader Adgur Ardzinba on just under 42 per cent, Abkhazian state news agency Apsnypress reported, citing preliminary results from the electoral commission. Reports indicate that 70 per cent of the population took part in the elections - 100,412 people.