Europe
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In November, Georgian Prime Minister Irakli Kobakhidze announced the ruling Georgian Dream Party’s decision to pause all accession talks with the European Union until 2028. This led to widespread public outcry in the small Caucasian nation, drawing support from Georgia’s President Salome Zourabichvili. The protests show no signs of slowing down. With a large section of the country’s populace out on the streets, the Georgian police have cracked down on the protesters. Countries such as Lithuania have called for wider sanctions against the Georgian PM and various other key figures associated with the Georgian Dream party.
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Recently, CounterPunch published an article titled “First English, Then American, and Now Muslim Francophobia”. In this article, the author Mr Liaquat Ali Khan stated that the Muslim world needs to be wary of indulging in Francophobia, and went to great lengths to state that a potential “Muslim Francophobia” is real. I disagree with this assessment.
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Recently, I visited Tbilisi, Georgia for a short business trip. This post enlists some of my major observations about Tbilisi during the course of my brief visit. A lot has been spoken about the natural landscape and stunning regions of Georgia, so I will bypass that. Plus, I will stick only to Tbilisi and no other Georgian city, simply because I couldn’t visit the others. Georgia is a small mountainous country. This ex-Soviet state has been making steady progress of late, and more and more visitors are nowadays heading towards Georgia for tourism.
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Few days back, Turkey witnessed an unsuccessful coup conducted by certain factions within the Turkish military. The Turkey coup d’état attempted to overthrow the Erdoğan government and install military dictatorship. Amidst all the hysteria and chaos, Turks took to streets to protect their democratically elected government. As a result, the coup failed, and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan is still in power. However, even though the Turkey coup attempt failed, it left several questions unanswered.
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Back in the early 1990s, a war broke out in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Over 100,000 people lost their lives, and over two million were displaced. Rape, prison camps and genocide of Bosnian Muslims became common during the war, and it would eventually be marked as the worst conflict in Europe ever since the end of the Second World War. Peace was established on November 21, 1995, as part of the General Framework Agreement For Peace, commonly known as the Dayton Accords. Formally signed on December 14 of 1995, the Dayton Accords are remembered today as an unfair treaty that ended…
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As we approach the end of 2014, world economy, the energy sector to be more precise, lies in a dismal state. Back in June, oil prices were at an all-time high. They have been slashed by nearly 40% since then. This rapid collapse of oil prices has had an adverse effect on various economies, such as that of Russia and Iran. Russia, in particular, is having a bad outing — shrinking energy prices are followed by a rather crucial monetary crisis. The exchange rate of Russian rouble in relation to the American dollar has fallen by over 50% this year, and…
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Scotland recently rejected freedom, and voted in favor of staying in the United Kingdom. Of course, this was not the last time we have heard from Scottish nationalism, and voices for self-determination and recognition will continue to be heard, until sovereignty is achieved and Scotland earns its rightful place among the nation-states of the world. However, apart from setting a paradigm in self-determination for the rest of the world, the Scottish referendum also gave us a lesson in the ground realities of history and nationalism.
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Scotland is barely a few months away from the all-important date of September 18, when its citizens will vote to decide the future of their country. The stakes are high: on one hand, there are supporters of an independent Scotland, whereas on the other hand, there is UK Prime Minister David Cameron who will be left “heartbroken” if Scotland chooses to be independent. To save his heart, and to keep Scotland in the United Kingdom, David Cameron is even willing to offer 500m British Pounds (roughly $850m) to Glasgow. But nothing seems to quell the spirit for freedom in Scotland.
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Every year in July, the memories of the Srebrenica Massacre swell anew and bring tears to not just Bosniaks but anyone who has even an ounce of humanity left in him/her. Years go by, debates keep happening, and we keep telling ourselves that humanity is not yet dead.
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Now that Crimea has decided to unite with Russia and Russians have welcomed Crimea’s move with happy hearts, the Western half of the world, especially USA and European Union, are talking at length about imposing sanctions against Russia in order to bring Vladimir Putin to his senses. However, the task seems easier said than done — Uncle Sam is simply not in a position to impose long-term sanctions against Russia. Economic and political ties between the United States and Russia are surely not exemplary. Yet, one key American industry relies heavily on a particular import from Russia: fuel for nuclear…
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Back on March 4, American President Barack Obama talked about the crisis in Crimea: There is a strong belief that Russia’s action is violating international law. I know President Putin seems to have a different set of lawyers making a different set of interpretations, but I don’t think that’s fooling anybody. On the basis of Obama’s words, one can assume international law to be nothing beyond a set of beliefs that are classified as acceptable or unacceptable, depending on which side of the spectrum one chooses to stand. As a result, when Crimean voters decided to secede from Ukraine and…
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The Sochi Olympics proved to be a big success — exactly what Russia wanted. Right from the opening ceremony itself, the entire event was a megalith in terms of popularity and success. If one wanted to catch a glimpse of Russia’s glorious past as well as its vibrant art, this year’s Winter Olympics were the thing to watch! But the Olympics at Sochi were not without their share of controversy. Take, for example, the case of the Pussy Riot protest performance. So success on one hand and chaos on the other. A mixed bag, probably? However, Russia’s mixed bag had…