EDITORIAL

By Glen Segell

(Professor at the University of Cambridge, and Visiting Professor and Research Fellow in the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State, South Africa. He is also Research Fellow at the Ezri Center for Iran & Gulf States Research, University of Haifa, Israel, and Editor of The Middle East Tracker and The London Security Policy Study. He is a Member of the Board of Directors of the Western Galilee College and serves as an Executive Advisory Board Member of the International Political Studies Association Research Committee on Armed Forces and Society. He holds the rank of Brigadier-General (Reserves) and is an expert for NATO STO)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 11 October 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Research Institute for European and American Studies

Introduction

One of the biggest dilemmas facing any army in the defense of a sovereign state is the difference between forecasting and predication. Prediction involves estimating an outcome with a high level of certainty, usually based on historical data and statistical modeling. Forecasting involves projecting future developments but with a certain level of uncertainty due to external factors that may impact the outcome. It is like the difference between climate and weather.... Read more

Shaul Shay
(Senior research fellow at the International Institute for Counter-terrorism (ICT) at the Interdisciplinary Centre Herzliya and former deputy head of Israel’s National Security Council)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 24 September 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Research Institute for European and American Studies

On September 18, 2023, U.S. and Iran finalized a prisoner swap after two years of negotiations through Qatar and Oman. Iran released five detained Americans accused of espionage in exchange for five Iranian nationals charged with sanctions violations and other federal crimes. In addition, Iran was given access to about $6 billion of funds previously held in South Korea. President Biden thanked the governments of Qatar, Oman, Switzerland and South Korea for their assistance in securing the releases.[ Henry Rome, The Iran Hostage Deal: Clarifying the $6 Billion Transfer, The Washington Institute, Policy Watch 3784, September 18, 2023.]... Read more

Błażej Sajduk, PhD
(Assistant Professor, Department of National Security, Jagiellonian University and Deputy Head, Center for Quantitative Political Science, Poland)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 27 August 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Research Institute for European and American Studies

It is becoming increasingly evident that technology will wield substantial influence within the ongoing competition between the United States and China, contributing significantly to the tensions on the geopolitical stage. The race to establish universally accepted technological standards has the potential to serve as a viable complement or even alternative to economic sanctions. ... Read more

Shaul Shay
(Senior research fellow at the International Institute for Counter-terrorism (ICT) at the Interdisciplinary Centre Herzliya and former deputy head of Israel’s National Security Council)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 20 August 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Research Institute for European and American Studies

In May 2023, a member of the Tunisian security forces opened fire on worshipers leaving the synagogue in Djerba, killing two of them and two members of the Tunisian security forces and injuring others before being killed by the force that secured the synagogue. In June 2023, an Egyptian policeman from Sinai entered the territory of the State of Israel and killed three IDF soldiers. In both cases, the attack was carried out by a member of the security forces, who acted alone.... Read more

Ron Schleifer, PhD
(Senior lecturer at the School of Communication in Ariel University, Israel)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 20 August 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Re-search Institute for European and American Studies

The results of Israel’s November 2022 democratic elections brought about an absolute parliamentary majority for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his coalition of fellow right-wing, nationalist parties, while at the same time involving losses for Israel’s left-wing camp. The Left declines to accept the new political reality as it fears major changes in the economic and bureaucratic fields, which it has managed to avoid despite the official political shift to the right when Menachem Begin came to power in 1977... Read more

Glen Segell (DPhil, FRGS)
(Professor at the University of Cambridge, and Visiting Professor and Research Fellow in the Department of Political Studies and Governance at the University of the Free State, South Africa. He is also Research Fellow at the Ezri Center for Iran & Gulf Studies, University of Haifa, Israel, and Editor of The Middle East Tracker and The London Security Policy Study. He is a Member of the Executive Committee of the Western Galilee College and serves as an Executive Advisory Board Member of the International Political Studies Association Research Committee on Armed Forces and Society. He holds the rank of Brigadier-General (Reserves) and is an expert for NATO STO)

Copyright: @ 2023 Research Institute for European and American Studies (www.rieas.gr) Publication date: 12 August 2023

Note: The article reflects the opinion of the author and not necessarily the views of the Re-search Institute for European and American Studies

Introduction

Iran interferes in the domestic affairs of other states in four distinct ways, sometimes a combination of these. I sum them up as Ideological affinity, Strategic convergence, Political expediency, and Transactional value. There are common elements as each has ideological, strategic, political, and logistical dimensions. .... Read more