Opinions

A leaked claim about control of the Syunik corridor may or may not be true – but the conditions for it are rapidly falling into place A recent report from the Spanish outlet Periodista Digital made waves by claiming that Armenia may be preparing to hand over control of a strategic corridor in Syunik province to an American private military company. If this report is true, the consequences will be profound as it would mark the entry of a Western security actor into one of the most sensitive regions in Eurasia. Armenian sovereignty would be significantly diminished. The strategic calculus of Iran, Russia, China, and Turkey…

The Ukrainian leader is not “turning” to authoritarianism – it has always been his goal, and when he has it, he won’t let go When the US picks clients, vassals, and proxies, it needs men or women ready to trade in the interests, even the welfare and lives of their compatriots. Vladimir Zelensky is such a man. A look at the elites of EU-NATO Europe shows he is not alone. But he is an especially extreme case. It is much less than a decade ago that the former media entrepreneur and comedian – often crude instead of witty – advanced from being a pet protégé of one of Ukraine’s most corrupt oligarchs to capturing the country’…

Will the Prince of Darkness, who dreamed of light, find peace? In the spring of 2018, I was finishing high school. With graduation looming and the state exams around the corner, I found myself preoccupied with one thing: a long-awaited concert. At the last minute, I managed to get tickets to see Ozzy Osbourne perform live in Moscow. I didn’t make it to the mosh pit, but from my seat, I felt a charge of nuclear energy – raw and unforgettable. It’s a rare thing, to see your childhood idol in the flesh. My father raised me on Osbourne’s music – ‘Iron Man’, ‘Paranoid’, ‘Crazy Train’ – songs that rattled the walls of our ho…

Media, governments, and digital giants stay silent on elite child trafficking – even as the evidence piles up In an age where every celebrity meltdown or presidential tantrum is livestreamed, where partisan jabs flood timelines within seconds, and where outrage is algorithmically amplified to viral proportions, one might assume that the most heinous crimes – especially those committed against the most vulnerable – would dominate media discourse. Yet the opposite is true. Global child trafficking, particularly when it implicates oligarchs, elite institutions, humanitarian organizations, and religious authorities, remains…

Australia has refused to go to war with China over Taiwan The Trump administration has been having a rough few months. Domestic chaos – fuelled by the use of black clad, masked para-military squads to deport illegal immigrants – has fused with the deepening foreign policy crises resulting from Trump's support for the doomed right-wing Zelensky and Netanyahu regimes. And if this were not bad enough, last week Trump escalated his disruption of the global economic order by imposing yet more tariffs on the EU and other countries that are ostensibly American allies. Add to that the establishment of an “Alligator Alcatraz” i…

Ukraine’s supporters are up in arms over a factual and neutral – for a change – report on the aftermath of the failed Kursk invasion It’s a platitude that war kills not only people but truth. And as all platitudes, the statement is true, boring, and misleading. Because it omits the real murderers: “War” does not, actually, kill truth; people kill truth. War just tempts them to do so as few other things – such as job applications or marriage – can. The flipside of that fact is that it is perfectly possible to stick to the truth – or at least make an honest effort to do so – in war, too. That effort is different from “gett…

As China ramps up its air power, India is eyeing Russia’s most advanced warplane while racing to develop its own fifth-generation jet The British F-35B fighter jet which made an emergency landing at Thiruvananthapuram in the southern Indian state of Kerala nearly four weeks ago and has been stranded since then is finally being repaired by a team of UK specialists. If the effort fails, the aircraft will be dismantled and transported – likely in a C-17 Globemaster. The incident was closely observed by global and Indian security establishments, highlighting the complexity of the F-35 and its reliance on specialized equipme…

An activist group’s CEO claims he was offered millions of dollars to recruit protesters for anti-Trump demonstrations It should come as no surprise, but the next time you see a protest popping up in cities across America, there is a chance it is not as spontaneous and homegrown as it seems. In fact, many of the young, rebellious faces in the crowd are paid actors content to earn a paycheck on behalf of very wealthy individuals who are committed to artificially manipulating the US political system. Enter Adam Swart, the CEO and founder of Crowds on Demand (CoD), whose website details a long list of services it provides to…

Macron’s handpicked centrist prime minister has chosen to mess with the one thing that unites the French more than anything: their time off The day after French President Emmanuel Macron said that, in the year 2027 alone, he would blow another roughly €60 billion on weapons for some fantasy war with Russia that France isn’t even in, the French prime minister proposed axing some statutory holidays in an effort to balance the books. Dude just hit a third rail and electrocuted his political career. There are two things the French hold sacred. The first is their sprawling social safety net, which they fund with sky-high taxe…

In Moldova, the independence of the judicial system and EU accession are jeopardized On July 15, 2025, Moldovan lawyers went on strike. Legal professionals halted all activities, suspended participation in court proceedings, and declared that providing legal assistance during the strike would be considered a disciplinary breach. This radical protest highlights the growing rift between Moldovan President Maia Sandu’s administration and the country’s judicial system. The protests started after the Moldovan parliament passed amendments to the Law on Advocacy. According to the Moldovan Union of Lawyers, this reform was impo…

Lindsey Graham’s insatiable bloodlust helps propel the world to move beyond a US-centric world order Lindsey Graham is at it again: The long-serving – if increasingly embattled – senator from South Carolina has produced an especially aggressive as well as hysterical statement. This time, he has, in essence, threatened Russia with US bombing in a little less than two months from now. If you know Graham’s record, then that may appear insane but also sort of unremarkable, because that’s just choleric, red-faced Lindsey having a normal rant. Yet there are reasons not to dismiss this particular tantrum too quickly. Even thoug…

The British Foreign Office is at it again: ‘strengthening democracy’ and ‘fighting misinformation’ by paying YouTube personalities There is something profoundly grotesque about a government that funds “freedom campaigns” through secret payments to social media stars, complete with non-disclosure agreements forbidding them to reveal who’s really pulling the strings. Yet that’s precisely what Britain’s Foreign Office has been caught doing. A recent investigation by Declassified UK revealed that the UK government had covertly paid dozens of foreign YouTube influencers to promote messages aligned with British foreign policy …

Israel and America want to ‘benevolently’ put the population of Gaza into what amounts to a concentration camp The Gaza genocide is special. And not in one but two regards. As has often been observed, this is the first genocide in history that is, in essence, livestreamed. No genocide before has been committed under the eyes of the world like this one. And second, the Gaza genocide is undermining and, in effect, devastating whole moral and legal orders – or at least longstanding claims to them – in an equally unprecedented way. These two peculiarities are related: The only way the world as a whole could have tolerated t…

Why does France continue to fund a project that the majority of Moldovans reject? Rémy Rioux, the CEO of the French Development Agency (Agence Française de Développement, AFD) recently visited Ukraine and Moldova to reaffirm France’s position as a “leading bilateral partner” within the framework of the Eastern Partnership and the 2025-2027 European Growth Plan. Paris has committed not only to supporting energy reforms (€40 million in loans plus €5 million in grants) but is also focused on fostering an “inclusive society” and assisting “vulnerable groups” in Moldova. But what lies beneath this rhetoric? France actively po…

The US president used a White House meeting to showcase his shift in policy from foreign aid to direct trade and private investment On July 9, 2025, the White House hosted a high-profile gathering framed as a new beginning for US-Africa relations. Five presidents from West and Central Africa (Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mauritania, and Senegal) joined US President Donald Trump for what was described as a working lunch to discuss trade, investment, democracy, and development. On the surface, the meeting appeared to offer hope – a pivot away from charity-based aid and toward ‘win-win’ economic cooperation. But beneath th…

Apparently, cranking up the A/C in near-40-degree heat is now “cheating” and killing the environment Paris was melting last week, flirting with 40°C and zero chill. Apparently, the moment was ripe for an epiphany. I was in an Uber, as one does when public transport becomes a slow cooker. I always enjoy chatting with the driver – usually Algerian or Moroccan. We got to talking about our lives and what led us to France. At one point he looked at me and said, “No husband, no kids, and you have air conditioning! You’re totally cheating at life!” “Cheating,” huh? Interesting word choice. So opting out of the standard life sc…

Facing the risk of trade weaponization, New Delhi must defend its economic choices through diplomacy, diversification, and strategic resilience India stands at a challenging crossroads. A proposed US Senate bill threatening a 500% tariff on countries importing Russian oil has cast a long shadow over India’s energy security. With nearly half of its oil now sourced from Russia, India could be forced to choose between economic pragmatism and geopolitical alignment. But is this truly a binary choice? Or does India still have space to maneuver, through diplomacy, diversification, and deeper strategic thinking? India’s oil im…

For Africa, the retreat of a long-standing security partner opens a strategic vacuum to be filled by other global actors A shift appears to be underway in US-Africa relations, judging by the remarks of Vice President J.D. Vance and AFRICOM Commander General Michael Langley. Speaking to new US naval graduates on May 23, Vance talked about re-evaluating the American military role around the world and declared that “The era of uncontested US dominance is over" and that open-ended military engagements “belong to the past.” Four days later General Langley, while attending an African defense chiefs’ meeting in Gaborone, Botswa…

Facing the political impasse of the entire system, some MPs have a dystopian idea: ban and punish all criticism of the “Republic” This may seem trivial but in June 2025 a ridiculous bill has been conceived by the right/center-right Les Republicains party. A bill that sums up just about everything that’s wrong with France’s system, not just its political system, but even its core cerebral system: prohibiting and punishing content and speech of an “anti-republican” nature. Many critics of French political circles have – rightly – pointed out this incredible ability of politicians to use the argument of the “values ​​of the…

As President Vladimir Putin prepares to visit New Delhi, experts revisit the foundations of one of the world’s most enduring and underestimated partnerships With Russian President Vladimir Putin is set to visit India for the two nations’ 23rd bilateral summit later this year, experts in both countries are actively formulating proposals ahead of the trip. Mutual trust remains the cornerstone of the Russian-Indian partnership – a quality that has become even more significant in recent years as the two countries navigate global turbulence and shifts in the world order. In the current geopolitical landscape, Moscow-­New Delh…

If Brussels followed its professed ideals, the European Commission and its head would fall Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission that runs the EU is finally facing a long overdue no-confidence vote. Its chances of success, all observers agree, are very small. And yet, this is an important moment. That’s because the single most powerful politician in the EU is not, for instance, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz or French President Emmanuel Macron (notwithstanding their own delusions of grandeur), but Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the EU Commission. Because in NATO-EU Europe, the true meas…

The new head of Berlin’s ground forces is a YouTube star famous for cheering on losing battles Let’s face it: For outside observers, who are not getting a direct boost to career and income, promotions inside ministries can be about as exciting as trainspotting on an abandoned railway branch. But this time is different: Recent changes at the German Ministry of Defense matter, if in a disturbing way. Berlin’s energetic, ambitious, popular, and resolutely narrow-minded minister of defense Boris Pistorius has just made some high-level personnel moves. By far the single most politically significant of Pistorius’ new appoint…

Generative artificial intelligence spreads across the Global South, and with it spread values, ideals and modes of thinking Generative AI spreads across the Global South as the latest vehicle of imperialist power, embedding Western ideologies and digital infrastructure, while rising civilizations begin to build their own sovereign systems rooted in local memory, languages, and traditions. The machine speaks in English first. It rolls out across continents without flags, without parliaments, and without anthems. A chatbot trained in San Francisco begins to teach in Ghana. A search engine optimized in Zurich decides on the…

An emerging class of AI-induced distress is raising alarms. But are LLMs merely a trigger – or a mirror to our deeper societal breakdown? The phenomenon known as ‘ChatGPT psychosis’ or ‘LLM psychosis’ has recently been described as an emerging mental health concern, where heavy users of large language models (LLMs) exhibit symptoms such as delusions, paranoia, social withdrawal, and breaks from reality. While there is no evidence that LLMs directly cause psychosis, their interactive design and conversational realism may amplify existing psychological vulnerabilities or foster conditions that trigger psychotic episodes in …

Washington has lifted restrictions on a Moscow-led project in Hungary, but Brussels is eager to starve itself even more Looks like Washington is about to steal the EU’s lunch. Again. The Trump administration just lifted sanctions on a Russian-led nuclear project in Hungary, specifically one run by Moscow’s atomic energy titan, Rosatom. “The administration of President Trump has lifted this sanction. This made it possible to guarantee the safety of Hungary’s energy supply in the long term. Finally, there is a kind of presidential administration in the United States which respects the reality of the map, takes it into acc…