Articles
International Media
Quoted among various Middle East specialists (including Jason Brodsky) in the Yemen-based Khabar Agency on the eternal question of why the US and the UK are not targeting the Houthi leadership. While there is a range of thought-provoking responses, the bottom line is that US continues to prefer half-hearted appeasement to deterrence, and fails to grasp Iran’s agenda and methods, i.e. the fact that it has been actually escalating unilaterally for the past 40 years and has no reason to stop.
I had a detailed interview with Stefanie S. in Cybernews regarding Russia’s arrest warrant and terrorism-related charges against Meta press secretary Andy Stone. I provide an analysis of Russia’s approach to lawfare and abuse of international law enforcement mechanisms, as well as talk about how Russia uses foreign nationals as political bargaining chips and opine on additional measures or potential escalations against Western targets that could imperil them in the eyes of the law, even if they are not directly engaged with Russia. I also talk about the chilling effect of Russia’s efforts to extend a “long arm” on the international business community.
US Media
Quoted in this article in The Drum by Kendra Barnett addressing pro-Israel ads airing on cable networks in an effort to attract attention to Hamas’ abduction of hostages and its destructive role in Gaza. Unfortunately, in the latter case, the ad on Hulu is a major PR fail due to the use of misleading AI imagery, which may be violating various regulations. Moreover, in my opinion, everything has a time and place, and putting politics into streaming ads on private cable stations generally is an invitation to disaster. What happens when inevitably pro-Hamas sponsors adopt the same strategy and we get inundated with graphic imagery sponsored by Qatar? Even if these ads get short-term attention and sympathy from the public, narrative storytelling needs to balance its creative appeal with truthfulness and avoid any implication of unethical overreach. In general, I think spending hundreds of millions of dollars on ads to fight antisemitism is a huge waste of time. And now, in addition to that, the current strategy may backfire completely. Israel supporters would have been better off negotiating with Hulu and other providers to adopt powerful documentaries instead.
Quoted in Newsweek article by Aadil Brar, which is building on the Power Magazine piece I was cited in earlier to discuss China’s increased use of coal plants, and how Beijing responds to the apparent contradiction between its commitment to greener policies and heavier use of coal. Can China have the best of both worlds?
Azerbaijan and South Caucasus Media and Issues
I comment on the Tucker Carlson interview with Putin and how Carlson was entrapped by the latter into supporting a propaganda line aimed at the audiences in Russia. I also explain why the US should not base its policies on anything that comes out from the Kremlin, but instead focus on a coherent policy on Ukraine, Taiwan, and Israel, and on regarding Russia not in isolation but as a part of a dangerous coalition.
TV Video Appearances and Podcasts
I appeared on Azerbaijan’s SVS TV to dispel concerns that the allegations of election fraud by some US election observers is a sign of ill will by Washington. We discussed how election observers are deployed around the world and how the recommendations by them are suggestions that a country is free to adopt or disregard. I also underscored that there is no sign of political tensions at top level bilaterally following these comments from the observers and emphasized that the previous incident with French intelligence operations, which were revealed by Azerbaijan’s security services have nothing to do with the US and there is no giant anti-Baku conspiracy or any sort of coordination among various political actors. I also discuss Russia’s foreign ministry statement, which indeed alleged such a conspiracy from the Western camp, and described it as self-serving and deliberately looking to exploit and exaggerate any criticism from anyone in the West just to draw Azerbaijan away from cooperation with the EU and Washington.
Here is the 10th episode of “The World According to Irina Tsukerman” on The KAJ Masterclass LIVE with Khudania Ajay. This time we go in depth analyzing Tucker Carlson’s interview with Vladimir Putin, its impact, and how Putin is using this discussion to consolidate his various bases of support around the world. I talked about why the interview should not be viewed in isolation but rather as part of other series of similar signals, including Tucker’s comments at the World Government Forum in UAE, and recent comments by Elon Musk and other perceived political iconoclasts. We also discuss the controversy around the recently passed Senate aid bill to Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, and the reasons for the opposition by the House GOP to moving forward with it. We talked about the Special Investigator’s report concerning Biden’s mishandling of classified documents and what his reported memory issues means for US elections in 2024. We discussed the Netanyahu-Biden standoff over the course of the Gaza war, especially the Rafa’ah operations, as well as the efforts to arrive at a ceasefire with Hamas in exchange for hostages - and what is most likely to happen. We delved into how politics is business and business is politics by discussing India’s growing role in the Middle East, PM Modi’s visit to UAE to inaugurate a stone-carved temple, and how, while the success of the economic blocs India is joining is too early to show, its bilateral relations with Middle Eastern countries is proceeding apace. Another example of that was India’s diplomatic success in security and the release of its 8 citizens - the members of the Navy accused of espionage by Qatar. We also discussed the India Energy Week, and India’s growing importance in the field of energy security as well as green energy efforts, in light of its competition with China, and how such events points to its growing importance for investors and the likelihood of it becoming a major spot for research and related industry as well. We also discussed the various explosive elections around the world, including the overwhelming victory for El Salvador’s President Nayib Bukele, the messy outcome in Pakistan and what that means for Imran Khan’s party, the postponed elections in Senegal, and how nearby African countries are handling it, as well as the elections in Indonesia, which threatened to upend the world’s third most populous democracy.
US aid to Ukraine hangs in limbo. The new army chief claims that the situation on the front line is becoming extremely difficult. I joined WION (World Is One News) to discuss why the House GOP is boycotting the recently passed Senate bill geared towards aid for Ukraine, Israel, and Taiwan, as well as US border security. I also discussed Biden’s resounding failure to address US interests in supporting Ukraine, and talked about why providing defense aid to Ukraine is directly related to US national security, both as a member of NATO, likely to be impacted by Russian aggression, and as a country facing Russia’s increasingly aggressive bilateral actions, such as active measures, lobbying, and cyberattacks.
The Washington Outsider Report on the Coalition Radio
-Ep. 129
Don’t miss the latest timely discussion with Col. (R) Jeffrey Fischer regarding Russia’s plans for Europe. We start off discussing the military challenges Ukraine is facing due to the holdup in the US aid, and what advantages Russia holds. We talk about what’s possible under the current circumstances and how Ukraine has gotten around major challenges with innovation and creativity. We touch on the controversy over Gen. Zaluzhny’s replacement and how Russia is turning everything into infowars. We address the drone wars and Russia’s efforts at electromagnetic and other forms of asymmetrical warfare since the Crimea invasion. Then we branch out to discuss the possibility/likelihood of Russia’s kinetic warfare against NATO countries, and whether the concerns are exaggerated. We address the expanded hybrid warfare in Europe, and assess NATO preparedness and possible response to attacks on its members. And we talk about Russia’s hand in active measures and political lobbying and how those actions lay ground for Russia’s stealth takeover of the European political system. Are the Kremlin’s cyber operations and possible EMP attacks just a phase in the war of attrition before combat breaks out? Or is Russia wary of NATO’s superior military might, even as it gets around sanctions, export controls, and military shortcomings, and prefers to focus on a more long-term political strategy utilizing inherent vulnerabilities inside individual NATO states? Watch the video to find out all that and more!
The Washington Outsider
Juicy update by Scott Morgan indicates that the US may be looking to implement its offer to displace Wagner in African countries, and that one private military company may already be in talks to relocate to CAR.