Undermining the KSA is not a US Interest

Are there currently negotiations underway for a KSA-USA defense pact? There are strong indications that this is indeed the case as this is very strongly in the interest of both nations, not to mention other regional nations. However, negotiations appear to be delayed by US human rights demands. The US needs to be cognizant thatContinue reading “Undermining the KSA is not a US Interest”

Tehran is Intent on Domination

Iran was thoroughly Westernized during the reign of the last Shah and Iran remains a sophisticated state adept at communicating with other cultures and fooling their diplomats. For example, did Iranian diplomats astonishingly succeed years ago in convincing Chinese diplomats that Iran ostensibly does not intend to destroy Israel despite constantly declaring the intention toContinue reading “Tehran is Intent on Domination”

Liberalization without Suppressing Religion

Secularism in Turkey and Iran during the 20th century was anti-religious in actively trying to limit the extent of religion in society. This led to a backlash in Islamists coming to power. The secularization policies of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi were in this sense clearly counterproductive. However, their respective heritage remains aliveContinue reading “Liberalization without Suppressing Religion”