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The Arab League’s green flag to Syria opened a clearer path for more diplomacy by others such as India but it remains anchored in regional geopoliti

The recent Arab League Summit showcased Saudi Arabia’s attempt to bring change in its foreign policy approach

The Taliban story has only just resumed and could see a return of the US and other powers to this theatre in the future as global jihadist movements v

The revolutions were certainly inspiring — and for a time — made many Arabs and the world believe that the troubled region was finally moving towa

The Arab Spring taught everyone that democracy, transition and political movements are not a spectator sport, but require rigour, time, planning and c

Tolerance, both as a term and as a concept, is a commodity that has made strong headway over the past few years in the Gulf — a region more than oft

Erdogan’s boisterous efforts to revivify Islamist Turkey, viewed in conjunction with his equally headstrong approach to foreign policy has been dubb

As political ideologies fail to provide purpose and meaning to individuals, they are increasingly finding refuge in identity and religion. The thin li

As significant as the surge of multiparty politics has been, the decade since a social media boom started in Africa is driving even more transformatio

The 'Arab Spring' has given an opportunity to India to present itself as a model to other countries, feels Prof Gawdat Bhagat of the Near-East and South Asia Centre for Strategic Studies at the National Defense University, Washington DC.

Bush years were, of course, guided by more crude principles. But consider military action against Qadaffi's Libya keeping Albright's perspective in mind.

The tremors from the convulsions wracking the Arab world are being felt in India too, in the amplitude that the Hazare drama is acquiring. This may not be grasped immediately as independent India has an autonomous record of organising non-violent political and social protests

Saeed Naqvi, Distinguished Fellow at the Observer Research Foundation, traveled to Bahrain, Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, Baghdad, Najaf, Amman, Cairo, Jerusalem and Ramallah after the Arab Spring broke out. Earlier, he visited Tunisia, Iran, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Western Sahara and Libya. In this paper, he shares his first-hand experiences and discussions with leaders and diplomats, many of whom have requested anonymity. This paper follows

Tunisia, Eygpt, Syria?events may seem to be following a pattern but the changing dynamics in West Asia point to far more complex political and strategic games being played: The US role, Saudi phobia, Israeli and Iranian intrigues. Oil. And, to top it all, the Shia-Sunni face-off. Is Turkey being lured in as a possible Joker in the pack? Welcome to another Great Game.

The gentle Arab spring is a long way behind the region which has entered a phase of unprecedented turbulence, conflict and worse. In Libya, some European leaders are about to eat crow, not the best dish in Ramadan.

It is a pity the Spring ushered in by Arab youth has been willfully wasted by the West. Indeed, the shaken monarchies and the remaining dictatorships have rallied around the US and Europe to protect themselves.

The fact that a renewed idea of nation-building for Syria is now down to a non-traditional political entity with roots in extremism keeps the trajectory of the state’s future in suspension

A unique aspect of contemporary protest movements across the world is that they are, in fact, leaderless. The first decade of the 21st century witnessed an unprecedented mushrooming of “networked protests” fostered over the internet. In the early 2010s, the Arab Spring and Occupy movements showed that consensus over objectives and courses of action — key determinants of traditional people’s movements in the liberal-democratic world — ha

The Algerian protesters appear to have learnt the lessons of the Arab Spring

Though the 'Arab Spring' had dethroned the long serving President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak, there is still little scope for genuine democracy, according to Mr. Swashpawan Singh, former Indian Ambassador to Kuwait.

Like the Arab Spring, the netizen revolt was against a "perceived" threat to their empowerment. In this case, cheap access to the internet, which ironically is also one of PM Modi's promises to the entire nation.

Ties between Qatar and the three GCC members went downhill after uprisings in Arab countries that began in Tunisia, the beginning of the so-called “Arab Spring”.

Even as the 'Arab Spring' confrontations develop a sectarian character, the Saudi-Iranian relationship cannot be perceived through the dichotomous lens of sectarianism or of pragmatism. The evolving relationship between the two states incorporates both elements

Students spoke about the potential of social media in espousing causes like Arab Spring and #MeToo movements, and the Nirbhaya rape case.

It's easier to compare the Taksim Square protests in Turkey to an Arab Spring, or a supposed tale of religious dictatorship versus freethinking democracy. But what actually lies underneath is a nation going through a debate over several ideologies and multiple identities.

Libya, in the throes of a civil war, now represents the ugly facet of the much-hyped Arab Spring. 

Qatar is creating a large footprint for itself in the West Asian Qpolitical landscape. The Gulf state was previously known primarily for its oil and gas reserves, and compliance with US interests in the region. However, Qatar has in the recent past made significant efforts to assert regional pre-eminence through an aggressive foreign policy. Emir Shaikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, who recently handed over the reins of power to his son, Tamim bin

Turkey, which played a role in raising the stakes in Syria and now lowering it, deserves a close look. A mildly Islamised democratic Turkey ruled by its most charismatic Prime Minister ever, Tayyep Erdogan, was incorporated in the management of what had at one stage acquired the label of Arab Spring.

To understand the different perspectives of the UK and India on the evolving situation in Afghanistan and the implications of the Arab Spring, Observer Research Foundation organised an interaction with experts from the Foreign Commonwealth Office on March 21, 2013.

क्रांती नेहमी प्रेरणादायी असते. ‘अरब क्रांती’ही तशीच होती. हा अस्वस्थ प्रदेश लोकशाहीकडे जाणे, लाखो अरबांसह साऱ्या जगासाठी आशादायी होते. मग माशी कुठे शिंकली?