Oriental Review

How Trump’s Trying To Win Back Turkey

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

It should be evident to all objective observers by now that “America First” doesn’t equate to international isolationism or peace. Rather, just as the author predicted in his Sputnik analysis on Trump’s foreign policy right after his election, the 45th President is taking a firm stand against Iran and China, and even making overtures to […]

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“Neo-Marxism” And “The New Middle East”

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

One of the most curious quirks of recent history is that self-proclaimed followers of the Cold War-era ideology of Marxism are on the upswing two and a half decades after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, and interestingly enough, they’re making on-the-ground progress in the Mideast of all places. This may come as a surprise […]

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What awaits Syria at the Astana talks?

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

The Russian-Iranian-Turkish Tripartite is preparing to mediate a new round of intra-Syrian talks in Astana sometime soon, and President Assad just announced that he is ready to negotiate on “everything” provided that the process follows the legal mechanisms laid out in the Syrian Constitution. Australian professor and prominent Syrian activist Tim Anderson is correct when […]

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The crisis for Christianity in the Middle East

By Kristian GIRLING (UK)

Introduction Christianity currently faces an existential crisis in its place of origin which is seeing an exodus of Christian migrants in the face of persecution and substantial socio-economic decline. The crisis is being overlooked or ignored by many states of Christian heritage and even by many churches. Few institutions have taken the opportunity to extend […]

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Political Uncertainty In Post-Daesh Iraq

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA) & Hamsa HADDAD (Syria)

The political future of Iraq is uncertain because of the intensified domestic splits between its constituent Shiite, Sunni, and Kurdish communities which were exacerbated by Daesh over the past couple of years. Post-2003 Iraq has been continually plagued by communal violence, but never before had each of its three communities been so divided from one […]

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Syria After The Latest Ceasefire

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

(Please read the first two articles, “Is the Tripartite really on the verge of ‘dicing up’ Syria?” and “Syria’s diplomatic ammo going into the Astana political fight”, in order to understand the relevant background and analytical forecasts pertaining to Syria’s situation after the latest ceasefire. This article is a summarized review of the two preceding […]

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Syria’s diplomatic ammo going into the Astana political fight

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

(Please read the first part of this series titled “Is the Tripartite really on the verge of ‘dicing up’ Syria?” prior to this article. It deals with the finer details about Reuters’ speculative report, which the author does not believe is validated or accurate, but nonetheless deserves to be addressed. In connection with this, it’s […]

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Is the Tripartite really on the verge of “dicing up” Syria?

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

Reuters just released a scandalous report jam-packed with statements from “unnamed sources” alleging that the Tripartite of Russia, Iran, and Turkey are conspiring to “dice Syria into spheres of influence”. Considering that it’s chock-full of unverifiable “statements” and rampant speculation, the article shouldn’t be taken too seriously and could very well be disinformation designed to […]

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Who planned the terrorist operation in Palmyra?

By ORIENTAL REVIEW

The unexpected militant attack on Palmyra on Dec. 10 was an unpleasant revelation for everyone who expected IS/Daesh to quickly succumb after its stinging defeat in Aleppo.  Around 5,000 terrorists overcame the resistance of smaller SAA contingent who were forced to withdraw toward the T4 airbase.  Fortunately, 80% of the civilians had been successfully evacuated […]

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Trump warning: the start of World War III and ISIS

by Gulam ASGAR MITHA (Canada)

The American lust for power and neo-con agendas has been causing catastrophes in the Middle East and the Muslim world now for over four decades. What is, however, a cause for greater fear is that this is leading towards a global conflict. The world just got another warning, this time from Donald Trump the US […]

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Last Stand For ISIS?

By Eric MARGOLIS (USA)

As a former soldier and war correspondent who has covered 14 conflicts, I look at all the media hoopla over tightening siege of Mosul, Iraq and shake my head. This western-organized “liberation” of Mosul is one of the bigger pieces of political-military theater that I’ve seen. Islamic State(IS), the defender of Mosul, is a paper […]

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Reassessing The Reasons For The Failed Turkish Coup Attempt

By Andrew KORYBKO (USA)

It’s been a little over 3 months since some rogue members of the Turkish military failed to oust President Erdogan in their spectacular coup attempt last July, and the passage of time has allowed many analysts to more calmly assess what happened during this dramatic time and fully investigate its origins. This review aims to […]

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