A version of this blog appeared on Carnegie Endowment
On May 9, Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico met Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow to discuss energy cooperation and the war in Ukraine. The meeting highlights a broader trend in Central and Eastern Europe: Even after Viktor Orban’s fall from power in Hungary, several regional leaders continue to engage with Russia in search of economic...
Turkey’s path to the dictatorship
The first phase of Erdoğan’s plan to neutralize the main opposition party — carried out in cooperation with former CHP leader Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu — has been completed. The crisis escalated when figures close to Kılıçdaroğlu, along with individuals linked to organized crime, made their way to CHP headquarters. It intensified further after Kılıçdaroğlu submitted a petition to the Ankara Police...
Zbigniew Brzeziński notes that between 1914 and 1990 “mega-deaths” are estimated to have reached 187 million—roughly 9 percent of the world’s population at the...
One of the principal factors that has shaped the Muslim world’s general philosophy of history is the distinctive historical period known as Asr al-Saʿāda...
Just as sacred texts are subjected to tafsir, human-authored historical texts may also be interpreted through a similar process. Tafsir is a form of...
The Medina Charter — Introduction
The Medina Charter first drew my attention thirty-five years ago (1991). In the time since, it has regularly surfaced in...
In the ongoing debate in France about “republic versus democracy,” a common consensus has emerged: the republic answers the question “who will govern,” while...
Last month, a striking development emerged from the Turkish Parliament: a legislative proposal concerning Qur’anic translations (meals) was approved. One of the proposed amendments...
One of the most brutally felt dimensions of the sociopolitical crisis currently engulfing the Muslim world is the economy. Although economics is merely one...
It is evident that the Muslim world is experiencing a profound and widespread crisis. While the crisis manifests differently across regions, its core nature...
