Salman Rafi Sheikh
On the Emerging Rival Blocs in the Middle East
If violence begets violence, alliance produces a counter-alliance. The UAE-Bahrain-Israel agreements, called Abraham Accords, marks the beginning of an unholy alliance that aims to bring a decisive shift in the geo-political chessboard of the Middle East, allowing the UAE to increasingly project itself as the new ‘ring leader...
How China is Unwinding the US’ Middle East Supremacy
Whereas the last two US presidents campaigned for withdrawal from the Middle East—and both of them did so in the wake of ‘shale oil revolution’ in the US itself---doing so has not only been difficult due largely to the geo-strategic setback that this withdrawal will give to the US supremacy in the Middle East, but also to the increasing competition the US is already...
Russia-China Switch to Counter US-Indo-Pacific-Strategy Mode
Big power rivalry is often characterized by alliances and counter-alliances, involving smaller countries on both sides of the rivalry. Big powers thus tend to engage in a race for winning more and more allies to their side. This is precisely what is happening in the Asia-Pacific region where the US’ so-called “Indo-Pacific Strategy” has triggered forces of alliances...
