The Iran-Azerbaijan standoff is a contest for the region’s transportation corridors

Sides are forming around the Iran vs Azerbaijan squabble. But this fight is not about ethnicity, religion or tribe - it is mainly about who gets to forge the region's new transportation routes.

India-Russia-Iran: Eurasia’s new transportation powerhouses

No longer just an 'alternative route' on a drawing board, the International North South Transportation Corridor (INSTC) is paying dividends in a time of global crisis. And Moscow, Tehran and New Delhi are now leading players in the Eurasian competition for transportation routes.

In Eurasia, the War of Economic Corridors is in full swing

Mega Eurasian organizations and their respective projects are now converging at record speed, with one global pole way ahead of the other.

St. Petersburg sets the stage for the War of Economic Corridors

In St. Petersburg, the world's new powers gather to upend the US-concocted “rules-based order” and reconnect the globe their way

Eurasia’s Middle Corridor: An Atlanticist frenzy to stifle Europe-Asia integration

Geopolitical interests between the Anglo-American establishment and the Sino-Russian-led axis will clash over the Trans-Caspian International Transport Route.

A Eurasian jigsaw: BRI and INSTC interconnectivity will complete the puzzle

Shrugging off western obstacles, Eurasia's ambitious connectivity projects helmed by China and Russia are now progressing deep into Asia's Heartland

Russia in Africa: Connecting continents with soft power

Rather than continental, Russian and Chinese-led infrastructural development in Africa should be seen as part of a grander project of Afro-Asiatic integration

West Asia transforms: Twenty Arab states in China’s BRI sights

‘A crisis is an opportunity riding the dangerous wind.’ So says a Chinese proverb, and nowhere is this truer than in crisis-ridden West Asia, now a major focus of Beijing’s BRI vision to bring infrastructure, connectivity and economic growth to this struggling region

Eurasia takes shape: How the SCO just flipped the world order

As a rudderless West watched on, the 20th anniversary meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization was laser-focused on two key deliverables: shaping up Afghanistan and kicking off a full-spectrum Eurasian integration.

Russia and its national Arctic passage: Pushing trade frontiers eastward

Ice-free Arctic routes created by climate change have opened up the first new global shipping route in a century. The Russian-developed water passage is bound to disrupt the lengthier Atlantic-centric routes for global commerce.

Predictions for 2023? Annus horribilis with some surprising upsides

The Cradle's writers offer up their predictions for 2023. The common theme is massive global shifts, some good, some bad.

Why BRI is back with a bang in 2023

As Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative enters its 10th year, a strong Sino-Russian geostrategic partnership has revitalized the BRI across the Global South.

Xi Jinping’s Visit to Saudi Arabia and the overthrow of Atlanticism

The historic China-Arab Summit currently underway in Riyadh symbolizes the emerging Eurasianism in the Persian Gulf.

‘Samarkand Spirit’ to be driven by ‘responsible powers’ Russia and China

The SCO summit of Asian power players delineated a road map for strengthening the multipolar world

Asia’s future takes shape in Vladivostok, the Russian Pacific

Sixty-eight countries gathered on Russia's far eastern coast to listen to Moscow's economic and political vision for the Asia-Pacific

Russia, Ukraine talks on grain exports yield results, final deal to follow

A final deal, while not imminent, is likely to be agreed upon and implemented in the near future

UN hosts talks between Russia, Ukraine, Turkey on securing grain exports

The UN-brokered plan seeks to alleviate a global food crisis that was set off as a result of the NATO-instigated war in Ukraine

The Empire is not done torturing Afghanistan

Despite its resounding defeat, NATO is not quite done with inflicting misery on the land of the Afghans

How Mariupol will become a key hub of Eurasian integration

Mariupol was battered by Ukraine's right-wing Azov battalion well before Moscow launched its military ops. In Russian hands, this strategic steelworks port can transform into a hub of Eurasian connectivity.

Azerbaijan blocks Iran-related Shia websites

In an unprecedented move, the Republic of Azerbaijan has blocked websites close to Iran, including state-owned network, Sahar TV's Azeri website

Iran bans trucks from entering the disputed Karabakh region, Azerbaijan responds by freeing two detained truck drivers

The announcements come as a show of good faith between the neighboring nations

Turkey’s existential choice: BRI or bust

Turkey may be where east meets west, but it can no longer afford to straddle two opposing geoeconomic agendas vying to define West and Central Asia's development. Ankara must choose, and soon.

Iran has joined the SCO, now it needs to turbo-boost its economy

With Iran's full accession to the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) complete, Tehran now needs to wrangle big trade deals with its new regional friends to offset US sanctions against its beleaguered economy.

If the Taliban plays smart, Afghanistan can transform West Asia’s Silk Road story

Once the 'proud pearl' of the ancient Silk Road, Afghanistan is today in tatters. But if the Taliban plays smart, the Asian Silk Road can utterly transform the war-torn country's fortunes.