Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel wants to avoid an adversarial relationship with Moscow and is unsure how Russia's recent military intervention in Syria will affect the situation there.

• October 3, 2015

The world's largest makers of tractors and combines are finding a rare opportunity for growth in China despite a sharp slowdown in the world's No. 2 economy, with big farm machines in demand as the rural labor force shrinks and plot sizes grow

• October 2, 2015

Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moualem on Friday questioned the value of political negotiations and said air strikes against militants in his country are useless if they are not coordinated with his government.

• October 2, 2015

Across the Middle East, America’s traditional allies are watching with disbelief as Russia and Iran mount a show of force in Syria, and they are wondering how it will end.

• October 2, 2015

Iraq's government would welcome Russian air strikes against Islamic State and was receiving information from both Syria and Russia on the militant group, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said on Thursday.

• October 1, 2015

World economic growth lost momentum in September, with China's factory output shrinking again, euro zone manufacturing growth slowing, and U.S. activity steady.

• October 1, 2015

Hundreds of Iranian troops have arrived in Syria in the last 10 days and will soon join government forces and their Lebanese Hezbollah allies in a major ground offensive backed by Russian air strikes, two Lebanese sources told Reuters.

• October 1, 2015

Insights into Turkish Domestic and International Politics
June - October 2015
By Ben McPherson, Principal Editor and Standing Expert on the Black Sea Region

Key Points:

• Surprising 7 June election results have led to extreme political measures, as President Erdoğan forces a do-over in an attempt to get a better result
• The PKK/government ceasefire breaks down, which offers political opportunity for Erdoğan and the AKP but comes at a steep price:
  • The outbreak of violence has killed between 150-500 soldiers and police, and reportedly over 2,000 PKK members
  • Sources differ on whether Erdoğan or the PKK deserve blame for the re-ignition of hostilities, while all parties attempt to use it to their advantage
• The Kurdish HDP and Selahattin Demirtaş walk a tightrope as they try to maintain their place as an accepted political party, while keeping their base of support
• The situation over the border in Syria threatens to overwhelm all plans, as both the US and Russia make recent moves that are taking the conflict out of Erdoğan"s control

• October 1, 2015