Strategic Council Online-Editorial: With rising hopes for alleviating the Covid-19 outbreak, experts are studying the legacy and impact of this crisis on the global economy.
Iman Samadinia—researcher of the Economic Diplomacy Studies Office, University of Imam Sadeq (AS)
Strategic Council Online – In the nearly 60-year old history of the Munich Security Conference, which is held annually by the private sector on global security policy in the presence of international security and military politicians, this is the first time that a president of the United States has attended it, and for the first time since taking office, has addressed the European audience directly.
Mahmoud Fazeli – Analyst of international affairs
Strategic Council Online – An expert on Europe affairs believes that a series of developments occurred in the Russian-European relations over the past three decades since the collapse of the Soviet Union show that European and American governments see Russia not as a partner but as a rival.
Strategic Council Online – The former Director-General of the Middle East Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stating that the interests of governments and regional powers in the Middle East are in conflict and trans-regional players too are not interested in its stability and security, said: In case relations with Saudi Arabia are organized through diplomacy and differences are resolved through negotiation it would help improve the two countries’ position in the world.
Strategic Council Online – An analyst of Europe affairs said: The EU will definitely work in the future to persuade the United States to return to the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and by providing credit line, economic incentives and close engagement and cooperation with China and Russia as Iran’s allies will continue to encourage Tehran to stay in the JCPOA.
Strategic Council Online – A faculty member of the School of International Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that the short, medium and long-term impacts of the Coronavirus on international politics, security, and the economy will be significant. He noted: Competition in the field of vaccines and their distribution process in manufacturing countries and their allies has been emerged, creating new economic geography that may be used in future.
Strategic Council Online – An expert on the Middle East Affairs, referring to the recent policies of the French President, Emmanuel Macron to get closer to Saudi Arabia after Joe Biden took office, said France wants to fill the gap caused by the United States to reduce its strong presence in the Middle East.
Strategic Council Online – An expert on West Asia affairs said that the history of the Zionist regime is full of aggressive, terrorist and racist measures and it has so far paid no attention to UN resolutions, adding that declaring jurisdiction of the Criminal Court in dealing with crimes in Palestine, although psychologically significant, will have no tangible achievement for the Axis of Resistance, the Palestinian Resistance and the Palestinians.
Strategic Council Online-Interview: An expert of international affairs says Biden is intending, within the framework of his approach to the US foreign policy, to adopt a united policy towards Iran with Washington’s European allies.
Strategic Council Online – Former Iranian ambassador to Romania and Hungary, stating that some want to complicate the process of advancing the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and create the conditions for other parties to gain more concessions from Iran, said: Opponents of improvement of Iran’s economic situation are trying to raise issues and create new conditions to make the implementation of JCPOA difficult and even impossible.
Strategic Council Online – In July 2020, former US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper presented a plan to reduce the number of US troops in Germany by 12,000. The majority of the troops, estimated at about 6,400, should return to the United States, while about 5,600 troops would remain in Europe, based in Belgium and Italy, and several thousand would travel on US-European rotation plans. The headquarters of the United States European Command (EUCOM), as well as the US Army Special Operations Command in Europe, will be moved from Stuttgart in Germany to Belgium. The plan reduced the number of US troops stationed in Germany from 36,000 to 24,000. Based on US claim, the measure would “strengthen NATO”, “deter Russia” and “reassure US allies”. Even some US analysts have called the move a “revenge” against Merkel.
Mahmoud Fazeli – Expert on International Affairs
Strategic Council Online – Referring to the strategic dialogue between Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and French President’s diplomatic adviser Emmanuel Boone, a European affairs expert stressed that the recent meeting of high-ranking Chinese and French officials is important because we are witnessing escalating tensions between China and the United States, and somehow there is a deep rift between European governments and the United States on how to deal with Beijing.
Strategic Council Online – Note: Given Europe’s coordination with Biden’s administration, the West, including Europe and the United States in general, is likely to pursue a common policy toward Venezuela.
Dr. Hadi Aalami Fariman – Expert on Latin America affairs
Strategic Council Online—Opinion: The relations between Moscow and the European Union has reached its lowest since the Cold War after developments in 2014 which resulted in the accession of Crimea to the Russian soil, Russian intervention in the civil war of Syria, alleged interference of Russia in the 2016 US presidential elections which resulted in the victory of Donald Trump and ultimately allegations to poison Alexi Navalny the harsh Kremlin critic and his detention of imposition of sanctions.
Mahmood Fazeli-expert of international issues
Strategic Council Online – An analyst on Caucasus affairs said: It seems that one of the consequences of the Second Karabakh War and lack of the Russian support for Armenia was that Russia, under geopolitical and territorial pressure, influenced the energy transfer issue and brought the war to a point to play its role in the ceasefire.
Strategic Council Online—A member of the academic staff of the University of Tehran says France has shown a green light to Arab countries to provide them with full support in exchange for trade deals and commercial contracts.
Strategic Council Online – An analyst of the Caucasus affairs believes that in negotiations in the aftermath of the second Karabakh war, issues have been taken into consideration that is not in the interest of lasting peace in the region, but in line with addressing the targets and objectives pursued by regional and trans-regional players. According to him, now the main issue has been overshadowed by the secondary issues.
Strategic Council Online – The two governments of Iran and Turkey have been the two balanced, stable and important governments in the region for centuries, and these two governments, within the historical context, have always been the main players in the region.
Dr. Mohsen Eslami – Faculty member of Tarbiat Modarres University
Strategic Council Online – An expert on European affairs, saying that perhaps with Brexit in future, the unity among the EU countries with the focus on France and Germany will increase, added: Of course, these assumptions are in the theoretical field and on paper, and we should see how France and Germany intend to use the situation as an opportunity to develop convergence within the European Union.
Strategic Council Online—Editorial: The rivalry between Americanization and Chinanization may result in the emergence of a third power or it may convert one of these two powers to a player with the highest bargaining power.
Reza Majidzadeh—Researcher of the political economy of development
