Global Political Insight

Islamic State demonstrates enormous commitment to their cause with the public murders of American journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff, but the Western response indicates that lessons have been learnt from the Iraq War, and a coordinated, localised response is likely to produce an elongated struggle that will shape Iraq’s future. Another week goes by, […]

NATO’s Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen made announcement recently that North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) is for the first time looking to deploy its forces at new bases in Eastern Europe, in response to the Ukraine crisis and in an attempt to deter Russian President Vladimir Putin from “causing trouble in the former Soviet Baltic republics”. […]

Alexander Clackson, founder of Global Political Insight, took part in a debate on The Heat, a weekly news and current affairs talk show program on CCTV America, the English-language news channel run by Chinese state broadcaster China Central Television, based in Washington. The debate with Olexander Scherba, the Ukrainian Ambassador-at-Large focused on whether Ukraine should join NATO.

At three months since the beginning of the Kiev government military operation against anti-government rebels in Ukraine’s south-east, Europe appears to be acting to the detriment of its reputation as a peace and rule-of-law project, as well as its broader economic and trade interests and political goals in the region. The expansion of restrictive measures […]

Alexander Clackson, founder of Global Political Insight, was asked to appear on CrossTalk, a current affairs debate television program on RT. It focuses on global affairs, with host Peter Lavelle moderating conversation between multiple guests. This episode focused on the crisis in Ukraine. Ukraine is running out of many things: money, time and patience. There […]

The West’s increasing involvement in Iraq to combat the Islamic State (IS) insurgency has placed significant dilemma on its stance towards  Bashar al-Assad. The virtual none existence of the border between Iraq and Syria, and the apparent lack of Iraqi government authority in the Sunni dominated lands, has allowed the formation of the Islamic State and the […]

History illustrates that the recurring themes of a world with a fading hegemon are wars and instability. From Eastern Ukraine, to the South China Sea, current events signal a shift in the global strategic balance. Russia and China have become increasingly antagonistic towards the perceived interference from the West into their spheres of influence. These […]

On 4th August, the world marked 100 years since World War I, a conflict that resulted in 16 million deaths. A century later, a new conflict is brewing, this time between Russia and Western countries, with Ukraine being the hotspot of military activity. Ever since a wave of demonstrations and civil unrest broke out in […]

It has been three years since the civil war that engulfed Libya and resulted in the ousting of Colonel Qaddafi. The images of some citizens celebrating the end of a ruler who was in charge for more than 40 years was supposed to be the first of many promising moments in the new Libya. However far from becoming […]

The United States and Israel have always enjoyed an intimate relationship. Israel was a key ally during the Cold War and the security of Israel is one of Washington’s primary concerns. As a result, the US provides Israel with a lot of finances in the form of aid. Since World War II Israel has received […]

‘In Defence of Western Journalists in Africa’, an article published earlier this year by renowned journalist and author Michela Wrong, responded to suggestions made (in particular by Lucy Hovil and Nanjala Nyabola) that Western journalists continually fail to adequately understand and appreciate the complexities of conflict in Africa. As a consequence, Hovil and Nyabola argued, […]

The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict has stemmed from several disagreements that all have roots in the past, before spiralling into the current conflict we see in the news. We are constantly bombarded with images of soldiers and civilians, politicians and commentators, Israelis and Palestinians. And, most importantly, everyone tries to decide who is right, who has the […]

Despite the insistence of western governments on framing the conflict within the ‘war on terror’ narrative, recent events in Mali are part of decades long struggle for Azawadi independence and the geopolitical manoeuvrings of regional and world powers. Negotiations are underway between Tuareg and Arab rebel groups and the Malian government following the signing of the Algiers […]

The current outbreak of violence in Gaza follows a pattern which has engulfed the region for more than half a century. The particularly aggressive offensive currently being carried out by the Israeli military resulting in around 1000 Palestinian deaths has led to the UN accusing the nation of possible war crimes. Israel, however believes that it is […]

The crash of MH17 that took place on 17 July was a stark reminder of the horrific incidents that can occur during a civil war. Unfortunately, rather than contemplating on how to end the Ukrainian crisis and ensure that similar future catastrophes do not happen again, the Ukrainian government and separatists blamed each other for […]