By Vestnik Kavkaza
An analysis of the situation in the Syrian town of Kobani appeared in the Guardian under the title "Kobani: destroyed and riddled with unexploded bombs, but its residents dare to dream of a new start." The article describes the dire situation in Kobani in the aftermath of the departure of ISIS forces. There are still bodies of ISIS fighters on the streets, "everywhere there are bullet and shell casings, the twisted metal of spent mortar rounds and, often, the alarming outline of an unexploded shell, bulbous nose to the ground and tail fins spiking into the air." "While Kobani has been freed, it is no longer a town in anything but name. Salvation from Isis came at the price of Kobani itself," the article reads. It might take years, perhaps decades to rebuild the city. Due to the bad damage, some question if the city even should be rebuilt, but many people see its revival as a symbol of victory over terrorism.
"Rebel 'foreign minister' of Donetsk looks to Texas for union of separatists," the British newspaper the Telegraph reports. "The Texas Nationalist Movement confirmed a meeting with a DNR representative in Moscow in December and said “Novorossiya” - another term for rebel-controlled parts of Ukraine - had a “fundamental right” to self determination," the article reads. The aim of Aleksandr Kofman, the foreign minister of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Republic is "to unite a flock of unrecognised republics and breakaway lands into a mighty coalition." Among the lands that Kofman is interested in are Texas, Scotland, Flanders, Venice and Bohemia among others.
"Ukraine’s ability to fight separatist forces is tested by economic and military challenges," the Washington Post writes. "The country’s economy is reeling from rampant inflation, worsening debt and a currency that lost more than half its value in the past year. The public is increasingly frustrated that government-promised reforms — chief among them an anti-corruption effort — have yet to be realized. And in the ranks of a rapidly expanding military, there are signs of disorganization and frustration with commanders as the conflict in the east wears on," the article reads about the situation in Ukraine. The newspaper notes a clash in opinions among Ukrainians, some of whom are tired of the war in the south-east of Ukraine and are beginning to think that giving up the territory will be a better option. "Still, many Ukrainians are patient with leaders in office less than a year who are trying to fight a war as they figure out how to run a country," the article reads.
"How Iran Is Making It Impossible for the US to Beat ISIS" is an article which was published by the Daily Beast, an American news portal. "There was no question there and then on the ground in Iraq that Iran was a very dangerous enemy. There should not be any question about that now, either. And the failure of the Obama administration to come to grips with that reality is making the task of defeating the so-called Islamic State more difficult—indeed, more likely to be impossible—every day," the article reads. "Iran’s influence in Iraq since ISIS sacked Mosul last June has resulted in a wave of sectarian bloodletting and dispossession against the country’s Sunni minority population, usually at the hands of Iranian-backed Shia militia groups, but sometimes with the active collusion of the Iraq’s internal security forces," the article claims.
"In the nuclear talks, what if Iran can't get to yes?" asks the LA Times contributor, Doyle McManus. McManus writes that Iran's president, Hassan Rouhani, and his foreign minister, Mohammad Javad Zarif, seem to be willing to make a deal, whereas the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, insists on the lifting of all economic sanctions from Iran. "But what if Iran still can't get to yes under terms acceptable to the United States and its five diplomatic partners — Britain, France, Germany, Russia and China? At that point, the goal will be to keep restraining Iran from developing nuclear technology that can be used for weapons. That means maintaining — even strengthening — international economic sanctions," McManus writes. However, McManus believes, another option will be very likely: an extension of the interim agreement with Iran in exchange for a partial lifting of sanctions. The agreement would allow both sides to keep the prospect of further negotiations, McManus concludes.
