Analyses
Protests in Iran: A Reflection of the Islamic Republic’s Institutional Crisis
Nicola Pedde 22 January 2026
The history of the Islamic Republic of Iran—established in 1979 following the revolution that overthrew Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi—is marked by a dense sequence of developments that have progressively altered its political and institutional configuration. These changes, however, have only sporadically been recognized by Western analyses, which have instead tended to perpetuate a more functional and instrumental stereotype based on the image of a monolithic, highly verticalized religious autocracy. While such a characterization was broadly accurate during the first decade of the Islamic Republic, it has undergone a profound transformation since 1989.
  • Rebuilding Iraq Amid Regional and Domestic Crises
    Ilaria Romano 7 August 2024
    Since the end of the war of liberation against ISIS in 2017, Iraq has experienced a situation of relative stability, meaning the absence of open conflict, regularly undermined by internal and regional crises. Involved in the tensions between Iran and Israel since the beginning of the war in Gaza, due to the ties of Iraqi Shiite militias with Tehran, the country has also worsened its relations with the United States, which still maintains military outposts on its territory
  • Chinese-English Communication Risks: Can We Bridge the Semantic Gap?
    Seán Golden 5 August 2024
    Cultural plurality is the playing field of international affairs. Ignoring this fact runs the risk of continuous communication failure. Concepts and the terms used to express them have connotations that are rooted in their native context. Often there are cultural equivalents in other cultural contexts that share these connotations. But often enough, the equivalents do not exist, or the connotations do not coincide.
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    Hezbollah’s Gaza War Stance Deepens Divides in Lebanon
    Vanessa Breidy 31 July 2024
    Twenty-four hours after Israel’s declaration of war following October 7, 2023, Hezbollah’s Secretary-General Hasan Nasrallah announced a “war of support for Gaza” from South Lebanon. This declaration was made solely by the political armed party Hezbollah, not the Lebanese government, thus constituting a clear violation of Lebanese state sovereignty and the rule of law. This breach has elicited varied reactions from Lebanese parties, with some Christian parties declaring the inevitability of political system reform and emphasizing the necessity of opening up the debate as soon as the war ends.
  • Is Labour’s Victory in the UK a Turning Point After the Long Neoliberal Season?
    Seán Golden 26 July 2024
    Labour’s victory might be seen as the final rejection of the revolution begun in the 1980s by Margaret Thatcher in the UK and by Ronald Reagan in the US, loyal followers of the theories of Friedrich Hayek and Milton Friedman. The immediacy of current affairs impedes historical hindsight, but many of the problems that led to the Tories’ demise and brought Labour back to power have their roots in Neoliberalism. Today the social, economic, and political models that evolved from classical liberalism have entered into crisis.
  • Kamala Harris’s Brat Summer
    Sofia de Benedictis 25 July 2024
    Corners of the internet collided this week as Kamala Harris’s campaign to be the Democratic nominee for president took off. The sometimes incomprehensible absurdity that makes virality blew new air into what was turning into an uninspiring electoral season. Kamala’s folksy, unscripted comments regarding “the context” and coconut trees have propelled her into the arms of Gen Z voters.
  • Biden’s Move Follows Tradition of Selfless Leadership
    Hussein Ibish 23 July 2024
    Political heroism is typically framed in terms of the acquisition and retention of power. But the US has a long tradition of celebrating, even venerating, those who have voluntarily given up power to promote the general welfare. President Joe Biden – who announced on Sunday that, in the interests of the party and the country, he is surrendering the Democratic presidential nomination, which he has earned in the primaries and fully controls – is the latest heir to that noble tradition.
  • Rohingya Refugees Facing Exclusion and Deportation
    with India’s Citizenship Amendment Act
    Kristina Kironska 12 July 2024
    The Rohingya have been forcibly displaced throughout Asia, including India, with repatriation to Myanmar deemed impossible. How are they being treated in India, a country lacking refugee laws and international commitments? According to Indian laws and the policies of the current BJP-led government, they are viewed as “aliens” who pose a security threat and are excluded by the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act. Do Indians endorse this view?
  • The French Elections: Descartes, Where Art Thou?
    Massimo Nava 11 July 2024
    A republican jolt, a democratic tremor, a belated injection of prudence and wisdom. The descriptions of the historical and incredible result of the snap elections in France have been abundant. In just seven days, between the first and second rounds, the political majority shifted from the far right to the far left. The majority of the French, from a host of backgrounds, blocked the path of the National Rally, the party of Marine Le Pen and Jordan Bardella, who went from euphoria to despair in the same breath.
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