Tag "Ghassan Kadi"
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker Blog If my previous article (http://10.16.86.131/the-lebanese-style-of-democracy-of-no-winners-or-losers/) dissected Lebanese style democracy and mentioned Western style democracy in passing, then we should perhaps have a closer look at Western democracy; or what is left of it. The word “democracy’ comes from the Greek word demokratia; from demos ‘the people’ and kratia ‘power’. In other words, it means the power of the people. Different dictionaries give slightly
by Ghasssan Kadi for the Saker Blog On the 6th of May 2018, Lebanese voters went to their polling booths to vote for members of Parliament. This was the first Parliamentary election since 2009, nearly a decade ago, even though the regular parliamentary term is only four years. And for the first time in Lebanon’s history, the Lebanese diaspora were able to vote in their representative embassies. So why did
by Ghassan Kadi for The Saker Blog When Chinese Defence Minister, General Wei Fenghe visited Moscow on the 4th of April 2018 and made his historic comment that he was in Moscow to give a message to America that China stands by Russia (http://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-04-04/chinas-new-defence-chief-visits-russia-to-send-a-message-to-us/9616216), he put China in a new and unprecedented global position, because China had never made such direct statements about the USA since the early days of
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog In his article (http://10.16.86.131/listening-to-russian-experts-short-report-about-the-mood-on-russian-prime-time-tv/), The Saker relayed the mood of Russian experts regarding the recent Western acts of brazen intimidations and unsubstantiated allegations against Russia. According to this analysis, some Russians seem to see that war with America, even a full-scale war, is inevitable. And just a few weeks ago, President Putin made his historic 1st of March speech in which he demonstrated
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog March 2018 seems to continue to be full of surprises, and when we speak about the imminent and inevitable collapse of the Empire, and the consequential demise of global Western influence, we often forget who is the biggest loser, or rather victim, of this forthcoming event. Without a speck of doubt, the biggest loser will be the Western civilian. The time has come
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog Much has been said about Putin’s 1st of March 2018 speech; a speech that should well and truly be known in the future as the “Putin Manifesto”, and no analysts have been better able to examine its political and military repercussions, respectively, than The Saker http://10.16.86.131/newly-revealed-russian-weapons-systems-political-implications/, and Andrei Martynov http://www.unz.com/article/the-implications-of-russias-new-weapons/ Those articles examine the implications of the speech from a global perspective. In
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog Inspired by the Saker’s article regarding how far can the Russians be pushed, (http://10.16.86.131/escalation-in-syria-how-far-can-the-russians-be-pushed/), I ask, how far can the Americans be pushed, not specifically only in Syria, but in general? In his article, the Saker articulated in his regular rational and captivating style, the issue of Russian patience, or should we say frustration, with America’s actions and inactions in Syria. And, as
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker Blog In my previous article (http://10.16.86.131/who-is-doing-what-in-syria-and-why/), I expressed my take on the highly unlikely possibility of an all-out war in Syria. As a matter of fact, I had been expressing this very same view for years, against all war-mongering theories that implied that America was just one step away from leveling Syria to the ground, http://10.16.86.131/war-on-syria-not-quite-according-to-plan-part-3-a-usa-unable-to-bomb-syria/ This is because I had always believed that
by Ghassan Kadi for The Saker Blog It seems that every time a chapter in the war on Syria comes to an end, a new factor surfaces. Just like the 1975-1989 civil war in Lebanon before it, and which started off with a clash between the PLO and the Lebanese rightwing Phalangist militia and then ended up with an Israeli invasion and its aftermath, the war on Syria is now
by Ghassan Kadi for The Saker Blog Russia has put herself, for better or for worse, in a position that requires a huge role in the Levant; perhaps much bigger than what Russia bargained for on the eve of the Russian “intervention” in Syria on the 28th of September 2015. The initial Russian-led attack on ISIS in Syria was highly successful until a glitch was added to the picture when
by Ghassan Kadi for The Saker Blog It seems that Erdogan has already made up his mind, but the speculations about what deals have been and haven’t been done seem muddied, to put it mildly. In the Levant, the Kurds always lose in the end, and regardless of what alliances they make and with whom, they always end up getting stabbed in the back; or at least abandoned. But when
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog The security zone America intends to establish in Syria is doomed to fail sooner or later. How can this assertion be made and what can it be based on? Well, two main things really; history and facts on the ground. America’s seven-decade long post WWII intensive and consecutive military gambles have all failed, and without a single exception. And even though America has
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker Blog No man has possibly served the American Empire as much as Henry Kissinger did, and with all the literature, including screenplays, that have been written about him and his “shuttle diplomacy”, none probably described his biggest ever performance than Patrick Seale in his book “Asad”. After all, even though Kissinger is always remembered as the diplomat who has negotiated terms of settlement with
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog Mohamed Bin Salman’s (MBS) royal Saudi coup is still in the making and its stories of mystery and intrigue are unfolding. Some recent articles written about this unprecedented Saudi development have focused on whether or not MBS was actually desirous of instigating reform within the kingdom of sand and capable of putting together the infrastructure that made such reform possible and how. Other
by Ghassan Kadi for the Saker blog Ironically, the first three words of my first article regarding the “War on Syria” were 1) Bandar, 2) Bin, 3) Sultan. http://intibahwakeup.blogspot.com.au/2013/09/the-anti-syrian-cocktail-by-ghassan-kadi.html Back in June 2011 when that article was written, Bandar Bin Sultan was clearly the head of the serpent and the architect of all attacks that were plotted and conjured up to destabilize Syria and turn her from the pivotal state
by Ghassan Kadi Love him or hate him, Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman (MBS) is like no other prince that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has seen since its inception under the rule of his founding grandfather King Abdul Aziz in 1932 and the establishment of the Al-Saud dynasty that changed Arabia; including its name. Some argue that even the worst of humans can do a bit of good.
by Ghassan Kadi The sudden resignation of Lebanese Prime Minister Saad Hariri raises a number of questions. To fast track the main relevant events of the last decade or so, Hariri was Saudi Arabia’s favourite kid on the Lebanese block. After all, his father was a close friend and a business partner of Prince Fahed, who later on became King Fahed. And because he harbours similar anti-Shiite passions like his
by Ghassan Kadi Much has been said about the Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed Bin Salman (aka MBS), and most of it, has been in the form of criticism from different analysts and individuals including some members of the Saudi royal family itself. The relatively few voices of support come only from sources close and loyal to him. The famous Saudi blogger who calls himself “Moujtahid” has been taunting the Saudi
by Ghassan Kadi Political analysis is often based on speculations in an attempt to explain the news; past, present and future. Future analyses are not meant to be predictive per se, but sometimes indicative of a worst case scenario, certain plausible and even far-fetched agendas. Likewise, digging into the past does not provide answers, but it rather enables us to look at the past with different binoculars. The “killing” of Bin
by Ghassan and Intibah Kadi In a previous article titled “A Muslim Spring” published on the Saker, on the 12th of June 2017, the analysis of the then recent Qatar standoff took us into the direction of whether new Middle Eastern alliances were taking form and old ones dismantling. Developments since then reveal that the distinctive parts of the new embryos are already differentiating and emerging. The initial article foresaw
