Autocratic vs. Democratic Islam = UAE vs. Indonesia
By James M. Dorsey Indonesia has emerged as a primary battleground between democratic and autocratic visions of Islam in the 21st century. The battle pits Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the world’s…
By James M. Dorsey Indonesia has emerged as a primary battleground between democratic and autocratic visions of Islam in the 21st century. The battle pits Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), the world’s…
By James M. Dorsey Three scantily dressed samba dancers wearing traditional feather headdresses laid bare the limits of social liberalisation in Saud Arabia when they earlier this year danced…
by Neville Teller Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has resulted in unprecedent unity of action by the Western world. Acting in concert, the West has imposed…
By James M. Dorsey The Ukraine crisis may constitute a more impactful, historic watershed than the 1989 fall of the Berlin wall in the mind of Singapore Foreign Affairs Minister…
By James M. Dorsey What did Russian President Vladimir Putin think when he ordered his troops into Ukraine? Ray Charles’ ‘Georgia on mind’ must have been humming in his head.…
By James M. Dorsey Struggling to remain on the sidelines of the 21st century’s watershed war in Ukraine, Middle Eastern nations are discovering that they may be fighting their battles…
Usaama al-Azami’s Islam and the Arab Revolutions: The Ulama Between Democracy and Autocracy (Oxford University Press, 2022) focuses on the responses of several prominent Muslim religious scholars towards the 2011 Arab popular…
by Neville Teller At present Israel is in a rather equivocal position on the African political scene. The issue cannot be resolved until 2023. The problem revolves around the African…
By James M. Dorsey The Russian Orthodox Church blesses rather than fires weapons. In doing so, it has emerged as a powerful weapon in its own right in President Vladimir…
by Neville Teller In what looks like a loss of will and abdication of responsibility, France’s President Macron announced on February 17 that French troops are being withdrawn from Mali,…