Russia-Ukraine Conflict Impact on Arab Economies

China-US Competition Is Not a New Cold War

French Elite Are from Mars, Youth Are from Venus

A Weekly Political News Magazine

A Weekly Political News Magazine

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Issue 1897- March- 25/03/2022

Liz Truss: UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs

Issue 1897- March- 25/03/2022 www.majalla.com

Russia-Ukraine Conflict Impact on Arab Economies www.majalla.com

Editorial The Russian invasion has forced %30 of Ukraine’s economy to stop working, Finance Minister Serhiy Marchenko said in a televised interview this week.

“Our tax revenues do not allow us to cover our needs, (therefore) the main revenue stream is borrowing,” Marchenko said.

The Russia›s invasion of Ukraine also sparked sweeping sanctions that ripped Russia out of the global financial fabric and sent its economy reeling.

A month on, Russia›s currency has lost a large part of its value and its bonds and stocks have been ejected from indexes. Its people are experiencing economic pain that is likely to last for years to come.

In the cover story, Motasem Al Felou looks at how the Russia-Ukraine conflict is impacting the Arab economies and who the losers and winners are.

Arab economies were negatively affected by the conflict and Arab citizens saw higher prices of goods. Food, gas and iron prices spiked in a relatively short period of time.

Due to oil price spike, Arab oil exporting countries will be the biggest winners, and are projected to have huge revenues and economic advantages as tension intensifies.

In the politics section, Sama Mamdouh El-Sheikh delves into how France is witnessing a clash of generations rather than identities.

She said that it is seemingly possible to borrow the famous headline of the wellknown John Gray book “Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus” to describe the current French political/cultural situation.

While the general atmosphere is charged with myriad identity debates, statistics show that France is preoccupied with greater significant and more crucial concerns.

While vast circles of the French elite are engaged in “Byzantine arguments”, the young French generation has transcended them.

In the report section, Suzan Quitaz covered the annual Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) which was moved online following the outbreak of covid19-. But with lockdown measures been lifted in the UK, campaign groups like Palestine Solidarity Campaign is holding a number of debates and rallies in the month of March. A well-planned anti-Israel program has been put in a place all marked by allegations that Israel is an “apartheid state” and that the Israeli government oppresses Palestinians in a manner comparable to the repression of the Black majority in apartheid South Africa.

In the culture section, Sara Gamal writes about the Royal Jewelry Museum in Zizinya district, east of Alexandria, which is considered an eyewitness to 150 years of Egypt’s history with its spectacular holdings.

It contains 11,500 pieces belonging to members of the Alawite family who ruled Egypt from 1805 AD until the July Revolution of 1952 AD. The museum is one of the most beautiful tourist attractions for the Mediterranean bride, as it includes a rare and wonderful collection of antiques, jewelry, ornaments, gold works, precious stones, bejeweled watches and diamonds.

Read these articles and more on our website eng.majalla.com. As always, we welcome and value our readers’ feedback and we invite you to take the opportunity to leave your comments on our website.

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

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A Weekly Political News Magazine

24 Was It Possible that Putin Had Not Been ?Involved in His Battle Against Ukraine

Issue 1897- March- 25/03/2022

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Governing Coalition in Turkey Introduces Amendments to Party, Electoral Laws

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UK– The Carnival of Division, Hatred and Antisemitism Kicks Off

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The Metaverse is Just an Idea, but Adobe Says It’s Time to Prep For it

46 A Journey to the Most

Expensive Place in the World

Lost City’ a Triumphant Rom-com 50 ‘The Return by Sandra Bullock 5

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56 Get Back Your Social Life to Boost Thinking, Memory, and Health

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Nooruz celebrations in Kyrgyzstan

Kyrgyz girls dressed in national costumes dance during the celebration of Nooruz in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, 21 March 2022. Nooruz is traditionally celebrated by Central Asian people as a New Year holiday. BISHKEK, , KYRGYZSTAN )EPA Photos(

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Celebrations Persian New Year in Diyarbakir A woman plays a daf drum as people peform the Halay folk dance during a gathering of Turkish Kurds for Newroz (or Nowruz) celebrations marking the Persian New Year in Diyarbakir, southeastern Turkey, on March 21, 2022. - Newroz (also known as Nawroz or Nowruz) is an ancient Persian festival, which is also celebrated by Kurdish people, marking the first day of spring, which falls on March 21 )AFP Photos(

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SAU

LEBANON.

EGYPT Leaders of Egypt, Israel, and the United Arab Emirates met in the Red Sea resort of Sharm el-Sheikh on Tuesday for talks on the economic impact of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the growing influence of Iran in the region.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi hosted the meeting with UAE de facto leader Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan and Israel's Prime Minister Naftali Bennett their first three-way summit since the UAE normalized relations with Israel.

Egypt's presidency said they discussed energy market stability and food security, two acute challenges for Cairo after Russia's offensive in Ukraine sent wheat and crude oil prices soaring, as well as international and regional issues.

Saudi Arabia's foreign ministry said on Tuesday it welcomed the "positive points" in a statement by Lebanon's prime minister, in a sign that Beirut's tensions with Gulf Arab countries are easing.

Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati stressed in a statement on Monday the need to stop all Lebanon-originated activities that affect the security and stability of Saudi Arabia and other Gulf Arab countries.

He added the Lebanese government is committed to strengthening cooperation with Saudi Arabia, following a phone call with Kuwait's foreign minister, Sheikh Ahmad Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah.

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Mexican Fo his Saudi A agreed to s relations on 10-day tour Mexico's go Ebrard and bin Farhan tourism and for a direct Arabia, the

UDI ARABIA

oreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard and Arabian counterpart on Wednesday strengthen bilateral economic n the first day of the diplomat's r of the Middle East and India, overnment said. d Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal Al Saud discussed investing in d innovation, highlighting the need air route between Mexico and Saudi foreign ministry said in a statement.

UAE Dubai International Airport, the hub of airline Emirates, will close one of its two runways for 45 days from May 9 for extensive refurbishment work, the operator said on Tuesday.

During the closure of the northern runway, some services will be moved to Al Maktoum International, Dubai's second airport which is located in the south of the emirate.

The northern runway last underwent extensive maintenance work in 2014, while the southern runway was refurbished in 2019.

QATAR Germany has agreed a contract with Qatar for the supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) that will help the European country wean itself off its dependency on Russian energy.

But the contract is a long-term solution and will do little to slow the current flow of European money into Russian coffers, estimated to be worth $285m (£217m) a day for oil alone.

Germany’s economy minister, Robert Habeck, announced the deal after discussions in Doha, where he was accompanied by German business leaders. “It is great that I can say it was firmly agreed to enter into a long-term energy partnership – a cooperation,” Habeck said.

IRAN Iran's foreign minister says an agreement to revive the 2015 nuclear accord that Tehran signed with world powers is closer “than ever before.”

"If the U.S. acts pragmatically, we are ready to have foreign ministers of countries belonging to the nuclear deal's joint commission gather in Vienna to finalize the agreement," Hossein Amirabdollahian told a news conference during a visit to Damascus on March 23.

"We believe that today we are closer to an agreement in Vienna than ever before," he said.

"We have given our latest proposals to the U.S. through the European Union's Coordinator to reach a final deal. We reminded the Americans that we will not cross our red lines," Amirabdollahian said.

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A WEEK ACROS CUBA.

U.S. The Biden administration intends to declare that Myanmar’s years-long repression of the Rohingya Muslim population is a “genocide,” U.S. officials said Sunday.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken plans to make the long-anticipated designation on Monday at an event at the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, according to the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because the move had not yet been publicly announced.

Cuba’s government said on Wednesday a spike in demand for fuel, caused in part by the failure of the country’s largest power plant last week, had led to fuel shortfalls at service stations nationwide, prompting hours-long queues for gasoline.

Lines of cars, buses, trucks and motorcycles as long as a kilometer formed at gas stations in Cuba’s capital this week, piling fresh frustration atop a biting economic crisis that has already left food and medicine in short supply across the island.

Ruling Communist Party newspaper Granma said Cupet, the national fuel distributor, had been forced to deliver more gas and diesel recently to service stations as well as the country’s backup system of smaller generation plants called into action after the Antonio Guiteras power plant broke down last week.

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,

LIBYA.

Turkey’s National Security Counci (MGK) said on Wednesday that a “ in Libya that was achieved throug big sacrifices” was an opportunity peace.

The statement came after an alm 4-hour meeting chaired by Presid Tayyip Erdogan.

The MGK called on parties involve Libya to “refrain from steps that co cause new clashes” and urged authorities in the country to “follo democratic processes on a basis o legitimacy for the achievement o lasting peace and stability.”

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RUSSIA. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday accused Russia of crossing a red line into barbarism in its war with Ukraine and said the West needed to "tighten the vice" in sanctions to bring the conflict to an end.

"Vladimir Putin has already crossed the red line into barbarism," Johnson told reporters on arrival in Brussels for an unprecedented one-day trio of NATO, G7, and EU summits.

He said more sanctions needed to be imposed.

"It is very important we work together to get this thing done. The harder our sanctions ... the more we can do to help Ukraine ... the faster this thing can be over."

CHINA.

INDIA.

Many Indians are cutting down on fried food and even vegetables as the Ukraine war inflates the prices of items from edible oils to fuel, threatening a sputtering recovery in the consumption-based economy after two years battling COVID-19.

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Chinese emergency workers found on Wednesday one of two black boxes from a China Eastern Airlines (600115.SS) plane that crashed with 132 people on board, but U.S. efforts to join the investigation are on hold because of COVID-19 quarantine rules.

The black box device recovered is the plane's cockpit voice recorder, based on an early assessment, a Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) official told a media briefing, adding that the recording material appeared to have survived impact in relatively good shape.

Flight MU5735 was en route from the southwestern city of Kunming to Guangzhou on the coast on Monday when the Boeing 737-800 jet suddenly plunged from cruising altitude at about the time when it should have started its descent before landing.

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Russia-Ukraine Conflict Impact on Arab Economies

Spillover of War Has Immediate Consequences for the Arab World

By Motasem Al Felou - Jeddah

bloc, EU, Australia and Japan followed suit.

Wars or military confrontations always come with dramatic, impactful changes. The economy is the most fragile or the weakest link that can be shaken with the first sign of instability. Unprecedented economic restrictive measures have been taken against Russia by the American administration. The Western

On the other hand, Arabs have taken a more balanced stance regarding the RussiaUkraine conflict and have not participated in the Western economic sanctions party- as described by an Arab economic analyst.

When we look at the economic effects of the

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Russian-Ukrainian war, we need to divide Arabs between oil importing countries and oil exporting ones. Why? The consequences are different. A great deal of consideration should be given to the fact that Russia is a major oil producer, and so are GCC countries, Iraq, Algeria and Libya. Both Russia and Ukraine are top grain producers in the world. However, Arabs are one of the biggest grain importers in the world.

Egypt, for example, is the world’s top importer of wheat. 5.5 million tons of wheat were imported in 2021. The two Slavic countries are also major producers of minerals. A big part of the iron and steel used in construction works in the Arab World come from Russia and Ukraine.

Ukraine, it didn’t take the average Arab citizen a long time to feel the impact of the That’s why Arab economies were nega- conflict with higher expenses for bread and tively affected by the conflict, and how gas. The two Slavic countries play a vital Arab citizens saw higher prices of goods. role in producing grain and meat supplies, Food, gas and iron prices spiked in a rela- as well as providing iron, steel, copper, and tively short period of time. aircraft and automobile parts to the Arab World. This means there will be shortages Due to oil price spike, Arab oil exporting in mineral, wheat, corn and malt supplies countries will be the biggest winners, and if alternative sources are not secured. are projected to have huge revenues and economic advantages as tension intensi- “Wheat prices have reached new records fies. and rose by 50% since the launch of the Russian military operation last February.

TRADE EXCHANGE AND Consumer prices have increased. After FOOD ISSUES amending the bread subsidy system and raising the price of bread, the Egyptian According to official Russian statistics government has turned to India to import published by the Arab-Russian Business wheat, and imposed restrictions on local Council last January, the trade exchange wheat producers to make sure the reserves between Arab countries and Russia reached are enough to feed 100 million Egyptians.

USD 18 billion in 2021.

Other countries including Syria, Lebanon, Arab-Ukrainian trade totaled USD 6.3 bil- Iraq, and Algeria rely on the Russian and lion in 2020 with more growth in 2021, Ukrainian wheat, which represents 30% but the final statistics have not appeared of the global production. Syria, for examyet. The total Russian-Ukrainian-Arab ple, unless given a special exception from trade exchange is around USD 24 billion. Russia, will face a crisis, considering that This is only one tenth of Arab-Chinese Russia has suspended wheat exports. Notrade exchange, which stood at USD 240 body knows what is going to happen to the billion in 2020!

Ukrainian wheat harvest season, which is supposed to begin at the end of June 2022.

Despite the humble numbers of the trade exchange between Arabs, Russia and Food prices, other than wheat, are now

Despite the humble numbers of the trade exchange between Arabs, Russia and Ukraine, it didn’t take the average Arab citizen a long time to feel the impact of the conflict with higher expenses for bread and gas.

General view of the site of a bombing at a shopping center as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues, in Kyiv, Ukraine March 21, 2022. REUTERS/ Marko Djuricá

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hiking due to the fact that Russia and Ukraine are major exporters of corn and malt, which are used to feed poultry and livestock. That is why the consumer price of chicken and meat is going up. This wave of food inflation is expected to continue if the conflict persists.

GCC countries, Iraq and Algeria have huge financial capabilities with relatively small populations as well as some local wheat production. They can cope with higher wheat prices and can easily turn to France, Brazil and India to bridge the gap.

Wheat and other food imports will cost more. Arab oil importing countries will be the biggest victims of the RussiaUkraine war with more budget deficits being forecast in the short run.

TOURISM Trade exchange is not the full story which also includes Russian and Ukrainian tourism. Arab countries receive millions of tourists from Russia and Ukraine. Countries like Egypt, Tunisia and Morocco rely heavily on tourism to sustain their economies.

After allowing the direct flight of Russian airlines to Egypt last July, Russian tourists, who form around 30% of the total number of tourists, flocked to Egypt in big numbers. Egypt was prepared to welcome more than one million tourists from Russia in 2022. Unfortunately, Russia pulled all its tourists from Egypt in the beginning of March.

“Nobody knows when they -the Russianswill be back to Egypt. The longer the war lasts, the more harm will be inflicted on the Egyptian tourist sector. Russians are medium-spending tourists and spend a little more than USD 1200. They are a good source of hard currency. Ukrainian tourists are stuck in Egypt and cannot go back home due to the air space blockade over Ukraine. The fear of loss of expected

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Ukrainian servicemen ride on tanks towards the front line, with Russian forces, in the Lugansk region of Ukraine, Feb. 25, 2022. (AFP)

Firefighters extinguish a burning house hit

by Russian Grad rockets in Kyiv’s Shevchenkivsky district, on March 23, 2022 (Photo by Aris Messinis / AFP)

revenues in hard currency and higher oil prices have made the Egyptian Central Bank devalue the Egyptian pound around 15%. There is no clearer example of the impact of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict on the Egyptian economy than this one,” said Sami Al-Hani, an Arab economic researcher.

Imposing an embargo on Russian oil exports by the EU will raise the barrel price to historic records.

Russians believe the barrel price will spike to USD 150 or 300 in worst case scenarios.

In the early days of the Russia’s military operation, the Egyptian government shouldered part the cost of hosting the Russian and Ukrainian tourists until they managed to leave. to Dubai as business practice is becoming tougher because of the Western sanctions Tunisia’s tourism sector will be hit hard by against Russia. China has witnessed the the absence of Russians and Ukrainians. same situation,” added Al Hani.

Tunisia received around 700,000 Russian tourists and tens of thousands of Ukrain- Arab tourism is expected to be negatively ians. affected this year with the loss of a few billion dollars in tourism revenues. Even “Just like Egypt, Russians represent after the end of war, the Western sanctions around one third of all tourists coming to against Russia will lead to economic difthe Arab North African country. Russians ficulties inside Russia, forcing down the spend around USD 1 billion a year. The number of Russian tourists. loss is big for a country that got the first blow in 2020 after the outbreak of Cov- ARAB WINNERS id-19. Dubai can be an exception. Various economic reports spoke about migration Arab oil exporting countries including of capital and businesspeople from Russia GCC countries, Iraq, Algeria and Libya

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will benefit from high oil prices to achieve budget surpluses and pay their debts which have accumulated since 2015 with fall of oil prices below USD 50. Oil is being sold now at more than USD 100 a barrel.

The citizens of the above-mentioned countries will not have a problem with gas prices as they are sold at prices lower than the global price.

Imposing an embargo on Russian oil exports by the EU will raise the barrel price to historic records. Russians believe the barrel price will spike to USD 150 or 300

Due to oil price spike, Arab oil exporting countries will be the biggest winners, and are projected to have huge revenues and economic advantages as tension intensifies .

in worst case scenarios.

“The ongoing conflict has a positive impact on revenues of the Arab oil exporting countries with billions of petrodollars flowing to their treasuries. They will have the ability to continue spending at higher rates on infrastructure and megaprojects.

Wages are expected to improve. The Saudi government has priced the barrel at USD 80 to have a balanced budget in 2022. Q1 results of the Saudi budget is expected to show a surplus. Algeria has introduced its first unemployment benefits programs.

This step could have never happened without high oil prices,” commented Al Hani.

“Frankly I can’t say that the continuation of war is in favor of exporting countries, but the end of war does not necessarily mean restoring order in the global oil market,” he added.

ARAB WAR VICTIMS According to the very recent gas prices, one liter of gas costs USD 1.53 in Jordan, USD 1.33 in Morocco, and 99 cents in Sudan. High oil prices are making it difficult

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An extraordinary session of the Arab League foreign ministers meets to discuss the situation in the Palestinian territories at the Arab League headquarters in Cairo, Egypt, on April 21, 2019. (Amr Nabil/AP)

Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson, left, sits with Mohammed bin Salman, right, Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia ahead of a meeting at the Royal Court in Riyadh, Saudia Arabia, Wednesday March 16, 2022.

(Stefan Rousseau/Pool Photo via AP)

for the transport and energy and industry sectors to provide services and products at reasonable prices.

Wheat and other food imports will cost more. Arab oil importing countries will be the biggest victims of the Russia-Ukraine war with more budget deficits being forecast in the short run. Arab oil importing countries will resort to high-rate loans due to the rising interest rate in the US. “Arab oil importing countries including

General view of Dubai Marina in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, December 22, 2018. REUTERS/ Hamad I Mohammed/File Photo

Arab tourism is expected to be negatively affected this year with the loss of a few billion dollars in tourism revenues.

Yemen, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Egypt, Sudan, Tunisia, Morocco, Somalia and Comoro Islands will have to re-structure their subsidy programs to protect the underprivileged and fragile classes. They all need to secure food at reasonable prices and expand the safety net to ensure their stability,” said researcher Sami Al Hani.

“On the other hand, oil-rich countries are expected to provide more support and aid to oil importing countries in order to contain some of the negative effects of the Russian-Ukrainian war on their economies. The Arab governments’ main concern should “food self-sufficiency,” he concluded.

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China-US Competition Is Not a New Cold War The Biden Administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy Shows the U.S. Does Not Want a Cold War With China

By Keikichi Takahashi Calling the recent increasing tension between the United States and China a new Cold War has been in vogue among pundits.

Considering the fact that the United States and China fiercely struggle with each other both geopolitically and ideologically, the tension between the two powers certainly shares features with the original Cold War,

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which resulted in the U.S. victory against the Soviet Union about 30 years ago.

On September 21, 2021, however, U.S. President Joe Biden stated in a speech at the United Nations General Assembly, “We are not seeking a new Cold War.” The Biden administration’s Indo-Pacific Strategy, released in February, can be seen as confirmation of the president’s statement. It says, “Our objective is not to change the PRC [People’s Republic of China] but to shape the strategic environment in which it operates, building a balance of influence in the world that is maximally favorable to the United States, our allies and partners, and the interests and values we share.”

US President Joe Biden meets with China’s President Xi Jinping during a virtual summit from the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., November 2021 ,15. (Mandel Ngan / AFP via Getty Images)

In an article published in Foreign Affairs in 2019, Kurt Campbell and Jake Sullivan argued that “[t]he Cold War truly was an existential struggle. The U.S. strategy of containment was built on the prediction that the Soviet Union would one day crumble under its own weight.”

“No such prediction holds today,” they continued. “Despite China’s many demographic, economic, and environmental challenges, the Chinese Communist Party has displayed a remarkable ability to adapt to circumstances, often brutally so.” Although Campbell and Sullivan acknowledged that “China may well encounter serious internal problems,” they cautioned that “an expectation of collapse cannot form the basis of a prudent strategy.”

“Even if the state does collapse,” they added, “it is likely to be the result of internal dynamics rather than U.S. pressure.”

Although Campbell and Sullivan were not in government service in 2019, they now both occupy important foreign policy positions in the White House: Campbell is a deputy assistant to the president and coordinator for Indo-Pacific Affairs (often informally dubbed the “Indo-Pacific czar”) while Sullivan is Biden’s national security adviser.

It is reasonable to assume that the administration’s new Indo-Pacific Strategy reflects their standpoints expressed in this Foreign

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The new Indo-Pacific Strategy stipulates that the U.S. “will cooperate with our allies and partners while seeking to work with the PRC in areas like climate change and nonproliferation.”

Affairs article.

The objective of the new strategy could be negatively called “dovish,” on one hand. On the other hand, it could be positively viewed as realistic if history – in which the United States has never successfully changed China as it wanted – is taken seriously. Campbell correctly highlighted that dimension of the Sino-American history in a Foreign Affairs article co-authored with Ely Ratner in 2018, saying, “The United States has always had an outsize sense of its ability to determine China’s course. Again and again, its ambitions have come up short.”

While the new Indo-Pacific Strategy denies pursuing regime change in China, it admits that the United States is “competing with the PRC to defend the interests and vision for the future that we share with others.” “Competition” is a word that has defined the relationship between the United States and China since the Trump administration officially abandoned the socalled engagement policy toward China.

The literal meaning of the word is “a situation in which people or organizations try to be more successful than other people or organizations.” It should be noted that competition does not necessarily mean an adversarial relationship between competitors. There is competition even between friends, as seen in school sports events for example. The National Security Strategy released by the Trump administration in 2017 also stated that “[c]ompetition does not always mean hostility, nor does it in-

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Press, the Cold War provides the United States with valuable lessons about how Unlike the Soviet Union during the Cold to manage the competition with China. In War, China is a competitor, rather than this sense, the Cold War analogy is useful. an enemy. Therefore, it is possible for the However, the fact that the Biden adminisUnited States to pursue the establishment tration views the current tense relationship of a cooperative relationship with China. with China differently from the Cold War is The new Indo-Pacific Strategy stipulates also important. According to Campbell and that the U.S. “will cooperate with our al- Sullivan’s Foreign Affairs article in 2019, lies and partners while seeking to work that recognition comes from the concern with the PRC in areas like climate change that “[t]he Cold War analogy at once exaggerates the existential threat posed by China and nonproliferation.” and discounts the strengths Beijing brings As historian Hal Brands showed in his book to long-term competition with the United recently published by the Yale University States.” evitably lead to conflict.”

“The United States has always had an outsize sense of its ability to determine China’s course.

Again and again, its ambitions have come up short.”

The Russian invasion against Ukraine must make the Biden administration more sensitive to the limit and potential of U.S. national power. That sensitivity will strengthen its policy of not seeking a new Cold War with China, which is reflected in the new IndoPacific Strategy.

This article was originally published by The Diplomat.

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US President Joe Biden (R) interacts with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping (File Photo / AP)

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Was It Possible that Putin Had Not Been Involved in His Battle Against Ukraine?

Russia Losing War in Media; Imposing Military Success

By Samy Amara Contemporary history has not witnessed such an escalation with consequences Russia did not suffer from its Western opponents even during the height of the Cold War, which lasted for more than forty years.

At that time, the media disinformation on the part of the world’s top media organizations had reached its limit. Here we stand today faced with many examples of this misinformation, at a time when the world turned overnight from expressing astonishment coupled with “muffled” admiration for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his ability to “confront” the largest military and economic power in the world, to his “demonization.”

Considering Russia to be a “blameful aggressor” does not give any weight to the capabilities of the civilized world, nor to the foundations of democracy, human rights, and similar “achievements of the age.”

Although Putin was the one who took the initiative to warn against the consequences of NATO’s expansion to the east and the danger of its persistence in its plans to swallow up what remained of the countries of the former Soviet territory, including Ukraine and Georgia, the Western media succeeded with its influence and pervasiveness to turn things upside down.

It also managed to demonize Putin to the extent that the world is close to believing what is said about him - that he is on his way to “swallow” Ukraine in preparation for the occupation of areas beyond its western borders, including Moldova, Poland, and its environs.

Here is the world approaching the restoration of the image of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and the crimes he committed before and

during the years of World War II, in the person of the Russian leader, in a way that is different from the facts of what is happening on the ground in Ukraine.

Not one of the senior media figures, or even their juniors, stopped to recount the history of fascism in Ukraine, what accompanied it and what happened and is happening in terms of “giving images of heroism to the symbols of Nazism.” These media types have not paid attention to the controversy raging over what some in western Ukraine described as championing of Roman Shukhevych, commander of the Ukrainian rebel army, and Stepan Bandera, leader of Ukrainian nationalists, who in eastern Ukraine are considered among the most prominent symbols of fascism and Nazism.

This is a multifaceted issue with deep significance and dimensions that has caused the intensification of conflicts and disputes that have been erupting for many years between eastern and western Ukrainians ever since the beginning of the “Orange Revolution.”

These conflicts are coming back to the fore and are the leading causes of the disputes with Russia.

In the context of the material evidence that we are presenting about the United States’ involvement in supporting and training the “neo-Nazis” in Ukraine, we refer to a video published on YouTube about some aspects which William Scott Ritter, a former US Marine Corps officer, has revealed in the context of his involvement in training the Nazis in Ukraine.

Ritter said: “We trained the Nazis. The neo-Nazi battalion “Azov” was one of the first forces trained by American and British soldiers.”

We quote from the Arabic-speaking Russia Today website, the

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Considering Russia to be a “blameful aggressor” does not give any weight to the capabilities of the civilized world, nor to the foundations of democracy, human rights, and similar “achievements of the age.”

Russian President Vladimir Putin gestures during a press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron, in Moscow, Russia, February ,7 2022. Thibault Camus/ Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

assertions of the former intelligence officer in the US Marines during an interview with journalist George Galloway that representatives of the US army, along with trainers from the British and Canadian armies, trained the neo-Nazis in Ukraine, who later seized power in the country, according to other Russian and foreign sources.

Ritter pointed out that “the United States and the European Union mobilized these malicious groups in western Ukraine.”

He added: “Foreign units visited Ukraine to form nationalist groups in the west of the country, after which they overthrew the legitimate president Viktor Yanukovych and began to pursue policies of violence and intimidation against Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko who was ready to recognize the special status of the Donbass in 2015.”

Poroshenko had signed the Minsk Accords in February 2015 under the auspices of the leaders of Russia and Germany and France.

The US officer stated that a similar fate would befall the current Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky, noting that “Zelensky appointed himself as the president who would bring peace. He said he spoke with the Azov battalion and demanded that they lay down their weapons, which prompted them to simply expel him from there, saying, “Shut up, we will slap you.”

The neo-Nazis went further by threatening Zelensky, saying, “We will hang you if you implement the Minsk agreements” as the settlement demanded by Russia in Ukraine. As for the fate and presence of these forces, the former US officer said that “they were not resolved through the arrests or liquidation of their members, but rather became part of the Ukrainian forces and became everywhere” in Ukraine.

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Putin had summarized all these issues in the speech after which he began his military operation in Ukraine, with the issue of “liquidating Nazi symbols” at the forefront of the reasons for his “military operation,” referring to it as one of the most important reasons for this war, which is escalating for the third week in a row.

If there are those who say today that Putin is on his way, after subjugating Ukraine, to persist in invading more neighboring countries, there are statements issued by the Kremlin saying that the Russian armed forces “do not plan to occupy or divide Ukraine.”

In this regard, many Russian observers give evidence of this by saying that Russia did not expand in the West, but on the contrary the West is expanding in the East, without regard to Russia’s security or its national interests, which Putin has repeatedly warned of since his declaration rejecting the unipolar world In his famous speech at the European Security Conference in Munich in 2007.

At the Russia-NATO Council on the sidelines of the NATO leaders’ summit in Bucharest in 2008, Putin once again objected to the idea of including Ukraine and Georgia in NATO, which was a reason to announce the postponement of this decision.

The Russian media have been unable to communicate its idea, content and dimensions to the outside world for many decades, at a time when Western media is achieving almost a miracle in terms of “demonizing” Putin and portraying him as the Nazi leader Hitler was.

On this subject, General Vladimir Cherkin, the former commander of the Russian Ground Forces, in his March 15th speech to the widely circulated newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda admitted the failure of the Russian media policy, and said that his assessment of it is less than the average level, or according to the estimates in force in Russia, “-3 out of five”!

This is what must necessitate the Kremlin to reconsider its reliance on certain personalities who have not proven their worth in the face of the fierce Western media campaign that is leading the battle against Russia in one of its most dangerous historical and existential stages, if this may be said.

The vocabulary of contemporary history says that Putin did not

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go to any of the Western countries as either invader or occupier.

All his battles inside Russia were in defense of the unity, sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the Russian state, as happened in Chechnya and the North Caucasus starting from the end of 1999, a war through which he was able to root out separatist movements and eliminate terrorism.

Putin did not even initiate the Georgian-Russian war that broke out in 2008 and resulted in a crushing defeat in Georgia that forced it to submit to European mediation decisions.

That was proven by Western sources, including former French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who played a pivotal role in mediating between the two countries.

Contemporary history also mentions that, despite the announcement of the dissolution of the Warsaw Pact in 1990, NATO went on to expand further by announcing its plan to include three countries in Eastern Europe, namely Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic in 1999, which was followed in 2004 by the annexation of three of the countries of the Soviet Union.

The former are Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, along with Bulgaria, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia. Putin did not object at the time, like his predecessors Mikhail Gorbachev and Boris Yeltsin in Moscow, whose objection or voice the world did not hear when East Germany was annexed to German territory after the announcement of the union of the two Germanys in 1990.

All of this could be an answer to many questions that arise here and there in search of an answer that may dispel some of the anxiety of millions about the possibility of the Russian President going on the path of escalation and invading more neighboring countries.

As for the reasons and justifications for this concern, there are those who recall what the former Soviet Union did, which did not join the Allies at the beginning of the Second World War, until after it was subjected to Hitler’s invasion in the second year of the war in June 1941.

That is what some remember today in expressing the possibility of its repetition, recalling what the sons of the “state of the soviets,” that is, the “local councils” - or the former Soviet Union

According to a statement issued by the Kremlin press service, controversy rages in local circles about the Western media’s deliberate omission of the violations of the Ukrainian side, and the hunt for the mistakes of the Russian side that are being published.

did previously, when it refused to stop at the liberation of all its lands in the Second World War and proceeded to pursue the invaders to their home in Berlin to plant a red flag over the dome of the Reichstag in the heart of the German capital of Berlin, before the Allies reached it a few days later in early May 1945.

As for what is said about the possibilities of Russian forces using nuclear weapons, this is a question that Putin answered frankly, and was at the forefront of the reasons that precipitated his decision to start the “military operation in Ukraine,” which is the official Russian designation for the war in Ukraine.

Observers recall what Ukrainian President Zelensky said at the European Security Conference in Munich last February - that he was considering exiting from the Budapest Treaty signed in 1994 regarding the abandonment of his country’s nuclear status.

This came at a time when it was later proven that there were plans to produce nuclear bombs based on Ukraine’s spent nuclear fuel and nuclear cadres trained years ago.

Perhaps this was precisely at the forefront of the reasons behind Russia’s seizure of the Chernobyl nuclear plant, and a number of other Ukrainian nuclear plants.

In response to direct questions about the extent of the possibility of using nuclear weapons, Putin said frankly: “There is no need for us in a world where there is no place for Russia.”

He had hinted at this in his last meeting in the Kremlin with French President Emmanuel Macron last February.

Regarding what the Western media focuses on about war crimes and its abuses, Kremlin sources revealed that President Putin was briefed by Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett about “the latest developments in the situation in Ukraine, and the brutal practices of the Ukrainian army targeting civilians in Donetsk by deliberately striking a neighborhood in the center of Donetsk using cluster bombs.”

According to a statement issued by the Kremlin press service, controversy rages in local circles about the Western media’s deliberate omission of the violations of the Ukrainian side, and the hunt for the mistakes of the Russian side that are being pub-

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Firefighters fight a fire after Russian attacks struck a warehouse in the suburbs of Kyiv on March 2022 ,24. (Photo

by FADEL SENNA / AFP)

lished.

This comes in addition to fabricating many facts on a large scale that includes many regions of the world, including the Arab world.

As long as something is mentioned, we refer to what was published by foreign media about Russia’s recourse to China regarding its supply of modern weapons, which Chinese sources quickly denied “in whole and in detail,” according to the statements of the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson who was quoted by Reuters news agency.

This is in addition to what was announced by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov in Sayyaf, who denied and refuted rumors about Moscow’s request for weapons from China.

In this regard, Vasily Nebenzia, Permanent Representative of Russia to the UN Security Council, said at its last meeting, “Now there is a large-scale information war waged against Russia, where they present the destroyed sites by Ukrainian forces, and nationalist formations in the Donetsk and Lugansk People’s Republics, as traces of our military operation.

“In Ukraine, they spread false information about the indiscriminate bombing of Ukrainian cities.”

The Arabic-language website of Russia Today channel quoted what Nebenzia said about “imposing comprehensive censorship on the media field without any attempts to justify,” as well as his statements that Russia “considers the promotion of lies from the podium of the Security Council as a deliberate provocation by Western colleagues.”

He went on to say that the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe bears full responsibility for the crisis in Ukraine, noting that it “did not force the Ukrainian side to fully implement the Minsk agreements.”

Despite all the existing differences, and the accompanying fierce battles, and human and material losses, there are indications of a mutual willingness on the part of the warring sides to continue negotiations and discussions, in pursuit of the desired solutions to get out of the current impasse.

While Moscow refers to its conditions, most of which are Ukraine’s retreat from its request to join NATO and the declaration of its neutrality, recognition of Crimea’s accession to Russia and other demands that Russian President Putin has already outlined on more than one occasion, Alexei Aristovich, adviser to the chief of staff of Ukrainian President Zelensky, announced it is likely that “a peace agreement with Russia will be reached within one to two weeks, or by early May at the latest.”

We quote what he said in his speech on the YouTube channel to journalist Mark Feigen: “I think that no later than next May, specifically early May, we should probably reach a peace agreement, and perhaps much faster.”

He added, “I mean the deadline...a peace agreement with the withdrawal of forces and the end of everything.” This was confirmed by Ukrainian President Zelensky, saying that “his country’s negotiating delegation is making all efforts at the present time to arrange a meeting with Russian President Putin.”

He added in a statement via Telegram, “As for the negotiations

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In response to direct questions about the extent of the possibility of using nuclear weapons, Putin said frankly: “There is no need for us in a world where there is no place for Russia.” with the Russian side, representatives of our delegation speak daily via video conferencing technology with the Russian side, and that our delegation has a clear mission ... Make every effort to hold a meeting at the presidential level, which is a meeting with me. I’m sure everyone is waiting for him.”

Former Ukrainian President Yanukovych had revealed in statements published by Ria Novosti agency that he had presented the current head of state, Zelensky, with a plan to solve the crisis in the country.

He said his team had proposed a “detailed step-by-step” plan for a truce in the region. The result is the signing of a peace agreement between Ukraine and Donbass, and the creation of an international fund for the reconstruction of Donbass.

For further clarification, Yanukovych said that the Donbass should be reintegrated politically, economically and socially into Ukraine,” adding that such a project would include signing US and Russian security guarantees.

He explained that the proposal was handed over to Zelensky for “review and study, but in the end it was not accepted by him.

We agreed that after studying we would have an answer. The answer came very soon: ‘We are not interested.’ My comrades were indignant: If they are not interested in the world, let them answer what is their interest.

But the surprise may be what was reported by TASS on March 16, that the US Secretary of State said in his speech to CNN last Tuesday March 15, that “Ukraine’s failure to join the NATO should not be considered a concession to Russia,” and “that will be nothing more than a reflection of the true state of affairs…

Even before the Russian aggression, Ukraine would not have joined NATO the next day,” Blinken added.

These are all statements that raise many questions that seem to need no answers, including an implicit statement that the United States and Western circles have sacrificed Ukraine as a “fuel” in their personal battles with President Putin, and their attempts to overthrow him, in preparation for the implementation of their scheme and dreams.

The postponment was about dividing Russia and consigning it to a fate similar to the troubles and concerns that the Soviet Union faced in the end, which led it to the path of disintegration and collapse in December 1991. This is what can be referred to in a subsequent report from Moscow.

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Three Opinions: Americans, Arabs and Muslims on Ukraine Organizations Push for Investigating Discrimination against Arabs Mohammad Ali Salih -Washington Since the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, while the intensive campaign to help Ukrainians has been led by the US government (last week, the State Department declared that the US “is the largest single-country donor of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine,” with al-

most a billion dollars), American Arab and Muslim communities and organizations started sending help to their brothers there who make up a very small minority.

Last week, the Washington Post estimated that Muslims constituted less than one percent of Ukraine’s population, about half a million persons, but the leadership of the Ukrainian Mus-

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lims said the number was two million. The newspaper wrote about contradictions among Muslims there because, while most of the Ukrainian Muslims condemned the Russian invasion, almost all of the Russian Muslims did not.

At the same time, reports from Ukraine about discrimination against Arabs there, who were mostly students, caused Arab-American organizations to send letters to the State Department to investigate, as some of them had relatives in the US or were themselves American citizens.

For many years, these Arab-American organizations have been critical of the Ukrainian government, not only because of its heavy restrictions on Arab refugees, particularly from Syria, but also because of the Ukrainian soldiers’ participation in the invasion and occupation of Iraq.

Following are three opinions from Arab and Muslim leaders in the US about the current events in Ukraine, taken from tweets, websites and statements to the media.

James Zogby

For many years, these ArabAmerican organizations have been critical of the Ukrainian government, not only because of its heavy restrictions on Arab refugees, particularly from Syria, but also because of the Ukrainian soldiers’ participation in the invasion and occupation of Iraq.

when an Israeli government official denounced the Russian invasion as a ‘grave violation of the international order’ while another expressed his government’s support for Ukraine’s ‘territorial integrity and sovereignty.’ Notably absent from discussions in that context was the fact First, James Zogby: 1985 founder and president that Israel has in the past invaded and occupied of the Arab-American Institute in Washington; neighboring countries using a similar ‘security’ a leader in the Democratic Party; and, during argument to the one invoked by Russia today…

Barack Obama’s administration, a member of Behind each of the following examples of clear the US Commission on International Religious double standards is racism: Freedom.

First, a video that went viral about a Russian soldier killing a child and wounding another Second, Hoda Osman: the New York based with both presented as Ukrainians was wrong president of the Arab and Middle Eastern Jour- on two accounts: the first child was a Palestinnalists Association (AMEJA), a US-registered ian killed in an Israeli air assault in Gaza, and non-profit for media professionals of Arab and the second was a Palestinian girl, Ahed TamiMiddle Eastern descent. mi, who was later arrested for striking an Israeli soldier …

Third, Oussama Jammal: Secretary-General Second, on the day that American TV outlets of the US Council of Muslim Organizations were showing ‘heroic’ Ukrainians stockpiling (USCMO), a Washington-based umbrella for Molotov cocktails for use against the Russian tens of American Muslim organizations. invaders, a 14-year-old Palestinian boy was shot dead for throwing a Molotov cocktail at an James Zogby: Double Standards – Israeli settler’s car …

Third, while there is bipartisan consensus for “… The reality (is) the double standards on sanctions against Russia because of its violations display by US political leaders, the mainstream of Ukraine’s sovereignty and international law, media and commentators who apparently have there is a comparable bipartisan consensus that no self-awareness as they put their anti-Arab such measures may never be taken against Israel bigotry and/or hypocrisy on full display … despite its decades-long egregious violations of It passed without comment in the US press Palestinian rights and international law …

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A fourth case in point is the welcome that Ukrainian refugees have received from the same European countries that closed their doors in the face of refugees fleeing conflict in Middle Eastern and African countries…

Finally, there is America›s insistence that in defending Ukraine it is standing up for international law, human rights, and democracy – concepts which the US has never applied to the securing the rights and freedoms of the Palestinian people …”

Hoda Osman: Media Racist Coverage – “The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association (AMEJA) has condemned aspects of reporting on the conflict in Ukraine, particularly how journalists have compared it with experiences in the Middle East …

There were several examples of explicit bias from across the media landscape when it came to reporting on the war in Ukraine –

Christians, they’re White.› On British channel ITV, a journalist commented: “The unthinkable has happened. … This is In a CBS News segment, a reporter said: ‘But not a developing, third-world nation, this is Euthis isn’t a place, with all due respect, like Iraq rope …› or Afghanistan,that has seen conflict raging for In British Daily Telegraph, a journalist wrote: decades. This is a relatively civilized, relatively ‹They seem so like us. That is what makes it so European — I have to choose those words care- shocking. War is no longer something visited fully, too — city, one where you wouldn’t ex- upon impoverished and remote populations. It can happen to anyone.› pect that, or hope that it’s going to happen.’

A reporter on French 24-hour news channel In an NBC news segment, a reporter said: ‘To BFM TV said: ‘We’re not talking here about put it bluntly, these are not refugees from Syr- Syrians fleeing the bombing of the Syrian reia, these are refugees from Ukraine... They’re gime backed by Putin, we’re talking about Europeans leaving in cars that look like ours to save their lives.› We strongly condemned any implications that a population or country is uncivilized or that ‘economic factors’ somehow make one nation more deserving of conflict, asserting that this commentary normalizes tragedy in parts of the world and dehumanizes and renders their experience with war as somehow normal and expected …”

Finally, there is America›s insistence that in defending Ukraine it is standing up for international law, human rights, and democracy – concepts which the US has never applied to the securing the rights and freedoms of the Palestinian people.

Oussama Jammal: End of Violence— “The U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations (USCMO), the nation’s largest umbrella group

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Hoda Osman

Oussama Jammal

for American Muslim organizations, urgently calls for an end to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, restoration of Ukraine’s geographic integrity and sovereign right to self-governance, and a two-pronged resolute global diplomatic push to: First, rush humanitarian aid to the embattled Ukrainian people.

Second, bring about peace and an end of violence in Ukraine …

Europe, though we may have forgotten in the 77 years since World War II ended, has a long and very bloody history of internal, violent disunity.

American Muslims, in particular, well-remember the horrific Serbian genocide against Bosnian Muslims only 30 years ago. And the Serbled war against Albanian Muslims in Kosovo just 23 years ago, ending in 1999 …

This along with the dismaying rise of ultranationalism (some against Muslims) throughout Europe in the early decades of this century makes peace in Ukraine imperative.

Muslims also suffer under Russian aggression in Syria, and have so historically in Afghanistan, in Chechnya and throughout the Caucuses …

We Muslims intimately understand and are deeply concerned for the plight of Ukrainian

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«We’re not talking here about Syrians fleeing the bombing of the Syrian regime backed

by Putin, we’re talking about Europeans leaving in cars that look like ours to save their lives». children, women, and men in the face of an immoral war prosecuted for the now ‹sacred› sake of the claimed security needs.

We Muslims recognize a pretext when we see it.

We have seen the ‹shock and awe› (like during the invasion of Iraq) that begins the utter destruction of a society firsthand.

We have paid the life-costs of occupation after an invasion that lies at the business end of the Great Powers forked-tongue Orwellian rhetoric: ‹War is peace.› ‹Freedom is slavery.› and ‹Ignorance is strength› ...

We Muslims know how silence kills and how reticence – just one time – emboldens other aggressors in the waiting known only to God. USCMO, therefore, calls for peace in Ukraine …”

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French Elite Are from Mars, Youth Are from Venus

France is Witnessing a Clash of Generations Rather than Identities

By Sama Mamdouh El-Sheikh It is seemingly possible to borrow the famous headline of the well-known John Gray book “Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus” to describe the current French political/cultural situation. While the general atmosphere is charged with myriad identity debates, statistics show that France is preoccupied

with greater significant and more crucial concerns.

While vast circles of the French elite are engaged in “Byzantine arguments”, the young French generation has transcended them. Amid the widening gap between both camps, a significant protest movement grew represented by the Yellow Vests Protests, which were dispersed but their reasons still exist.

SEARCH FOR IMAGINED FRANCE

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Protests on Labor Day in )Paris, France. (Getty

A key factor in the widening gap between France’s youth and elite is the imagined reflection of France which was not attained during the past half century. When the country abounded with revolutionary culture which almost completely embraced its elite in the 1960s, the French society tended to be conservative in way that religion was obviously present in statistics but not in the elites’ political and cultural discourse. In 1966, 89% of the French people stated that they belong to a religion as opposed to 10% who said they don’t believe in any religion. Thirty-two years later, the ration became 55% to 45%. Since September 11, 2001, the French society has witnessed an unprecedented rise of Islamophobia in media and political discourse. A polarization between Islam and Laïcité resulted in a percent of Muslims to be reckoned as taking a defensive position. Statistics showed that 45% of Muslims below 25 years think that Islam is not compatible with the values of French society.

One poll revealed that French Laïcité extremism has led to intensifying demands by French Muslims to open the public sphere while confirming that the price would not be abandoning the Sharia law, which most of them view as more important than the values of the Republic, according to the poll.

Therefore, the political rhetoric of a large segment of the elite has triggered a battle between France’s Muslims and elite, as the later insists on living the bubble of the imagined France: blonde, Laïcité, free of migrants… in addition to other features of the stereotypical excluding image around which extremists of both sides are entrenched. The French people, meantime, are left outside the field of debate, preoccupied with deteriorating economic conditions, escalating demographic crisis, and future risks coming from Europe’s borders with Russia, not from Muslims nor their different identity.

SHOCK OF FEBRUARY 2022 The Russian invasion of Ukraine came as a shock to the French citizen and has become linked to its date of February 2022. However, the French elite, which has been engrossed in a heightening rhetoric against Muslims for years, received another blow by a wide-scale poll which confirmed that the French elite and the French youth have totally different preoccupations. It seems that the threatening rhetoric against Muslims has become a tennis table

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The political rhetoric of a large segment of the elite has triggered a battle between France’s Muslims and elite, as the later insists on living the bubble of the imagined France: blonde, Laïcité, free of migrants. game between French Muslims and political extremists among the elite, while most French youth, according to the poll, don’t trust the parties nor understand the Laïcité!

In a recent wide-scale survey of French young people (18 to 24 years old) conducted by Institut Montaigne and published on February 10, results have shown a transformation of priorities and choices between both generations, even before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. It was necessary that someone stops the “identity cockfight” and asks French youth about “real France” that is hidden behind the dust of Islamophobic battles. According to the website of Monte Carlo Doualiya (MCD), there is a projecting tendency towards a lack of political affiliation and a deteriorating political culture. According to the survey, 55% of young participants indicated that they don’t have any political or party preference, while 61% of them felt they are underrepresented in politics. The first shocking result was the declined interest in democracy by 20% compared to their parents’ generation, while only 51% believes that the existence of a democratic government is vital.

In addition to the diminishing interest in democracy, results have unveiled alarming levels of lack of confidence in the entire political elite. 69% of young people surveyed think that politicians are corrupt, not only the regime of the fifth Republic, but literally the whole political elite. Disturbingly, according to MCD report, 25% of young people said that it’s possible to use violence against elected officials, while 37% of them support “the yellow vests”. As for the principles of the French Laïcité that the far-right extremists have been using as a

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fuel to their battle against Muslims in France, the survey uncovered that French youth in general do not understand it.

In March 2021, the same MCD published report showing the results of a similar poll under the headline of “A Survey that Shook French Schools”.

The survey was conducted by The Institut Français d’Opinion Publique (IFOP) for International League Against Anti-Semitism (LICRA); it included 1006 French high school students and was published by Le Point magazine. The survey’s results

While attempting to expand their individual freedom of choice, new generations don’t mind that “globalized” freedom can include freedom of faith without discrimination.

highlighted the students’ special perspective of secularism. The report state, “the results are shocking for defenders of secularism”. One of its results was that 52% of the students opposed the right to criticize beliefs and religious symbols. The number rose to 79% among Muslim students, while it didn’t exceed 45% in Catholic students and 47% in atheist students. In addition, 10% of students surveyed said they did not condemn or show interest in the 2015 attacks, up from 4% in 2016!

A percent of 52 of surveyed students agreed to wearing or displaying obvious religious symbol (hijab, cross, kippah) in public schools; this is double its corresponding percent among the general French people which don’t exceed 25%. Also, 49% of the students don’t object that public workers show their religious affiliations. Another 38% of participants agree that a law be issued to permit burkini (the Islamic swimming attire for women), while the percent rises to 76 among Muslim students.

The most surprising and shocking number was that 37% of surveyed students view that laws aimed at implementing secularism are discriminatory against Muslims, with 81% of Muslim students viewing the same.

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French President Emmanuel Macron is running for a second term in the upcoming presidential elections. )(AFP

French presidency candidate and businessman Mohamed Ayachi Ajroudi

THREATS TO IDENTITY

right doesn’t want to see, just as some Muslims would deny or justify the existence of terrorism.

The aforementioned statistics reflect a major Ajroudi’s candidacy, even if he couldn’t make it transformation in France, with significant changes to the end of the race, is highlighting the presin the younger generation’s perspective. Conse- ence of migrants which can not be omitted by quently, the crisis has to do with generations not racist fancies of an election bid. The man who is with identities, at least in a considerable part of it. born in the Tunisian city of Gabes has been sucGiven its far-reaching impact, globalization has cessful in such a competitive climate and in an contributed to the rise of generations that are less atmosphere of unofficial discrimination against interested in issues of “communitarianism”, atop migrants. When he had the opportunity to join of which are the identity and its signs. While at- the public field, he has been able to think as a tempting to expand their individual freedom of French and talk as a French without abandoning choice – an old/new conflict, these new genera- his Tunisian origins. Moreover, he didn’t slide tions, affected by the logic of pleasure and con- into “the conflict of identities” which didn’t sumerism, don’t mind that “globalized” freedom yield positive results neither for its creators nor can include freedom of faith without discrimina- its random targets. Ajroudi’s “futuristic” rhetotion. This means that the “Laïcité” is paying the ric transcends the imagined maps of polarizaprice of globalization’s expansion in western so- tion, and envisage an expandable horizon for cieties, just as southern and eastern ones. In fact, France towards peace and harmony. the issues of the present generation are not decid- Will the near future witness the building of a bridge ed nor prioritized by ideologies that deprive indi- between “Mars” and “Venus”, so that French facviduals from their right to choose or make choices tions will reach an intellectual and generational agreement? in their behalf.

Perhaps the experience of Ayachi Ajroudi, the French presidential candidate of Tunisian de- * Sama Mamdouh El-Sheikh is a researcher in politicent, is an example of the change that the far cal sciences from Egypt.

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Governing Coalition in Turkey Introduces Amendments to Party, Electoral Laws Head of Turkish Think Tank Tells Majalla: Amendments Aim to Dismantle the Coalition Competing Against Erdogan’s Party

By Jiwan Soz The parliamentary proposal submitted to the parliament by the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in

Turkey together with its ally the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in order to change articles in the electoral and party laws is causing considerable controversy on the Turkish political

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scene. What is the ruling coalition seeking to legally achieve after the formal submission of the proposal to the parliament weeks ago?

Supporters of Turkey›s Justice and Development Party (AKP) hold up a portrait of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan as they celebrate in Istanbul after the first results in the country›s general election on November 2015 ,1. (AFP/ Ozan Kose)

The proposed amendments introduced by the Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan-led ruling party comprise 15 items that have the full support of his ally Devlet Bahceli, who leads the right-wing MHP. The most prominent amendment is that related to the parliamentary threshold, which is the percentage of votes obtained by the party participating in the parliamentary elections that later authorizes it to form a parliamentary bloc within parliament.

The ruling coalition proposes reducing this percentage to %7 instead of %10 according to the current electoral law.

The suggested percentage prevents any party that did not obtain this percentage vote from forming a parliamentary bloc. Turkish sources indicate that the AKP specifically aims through this amendment to ensure the existence of a parliamentary bloc for its ally, the MHP, after opinion polls showed a decline in its popularity and the impossibility of obtaining more than %10.

There is another article among the proposed amendments that has become the subject of controversy between the ruling coalition and the opposition. The said article recognizes the prohibition of parliamentarians from moving from one party to another to form a parliamentary bloc in the presidential and parliamentary elections, even if it was recently established and its conference has not convened more than twice. However, thanks to the proposed amendments on which parliament will vote in the coming period, this issue will no longer be possible.

The head of a renowned Turkish center for research and opinion polls stressed that «the approval of these amendments

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«The main objective of these amendments is to dismantle the current electoral coalition that competes with the ruling coalition, and perhaps also prevent the pro-Kurdish People›s Party from participating in the upcoming elections,” in the Turkish parliament may take about one month.» He hinted that the amendment «may not contribute to preventing new parties» from running in the upcoming presidential and parliamentary elections scheduled for mid-next year. This is especially the case knowing that the two parties formed by former Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoglu and his deputy Ali Babacan after their resignations from the ruling party meet the conditions for the participation in these elections.

Kemal Ozkiraz, who runs the Eurasia Public Opinion Research Center (AKAM), explains: «The main and primary objective of these amendments is to dismantle the current electoral coalition that competes with the ruling coalition, and perhaps also prevent the pro-Kurdish People›s Party from participating in the upcoming elections – if it was not already banned by then.»

The current coalition, which competes with Erdogan›s party, includes the main opposition party, the Republican People›s Party, the Islamist Felicity Party, and the nationalist IYI (Good) Party.

Here is the full text of the interview that Majalla conducted over the phone with Ozkiraz:

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Q- What are the most prominent changes that the parties and electoral laws will undergo, in addition to amending the electoral threshold and preventing the transfer of parliamentarians from one party to another?

A-The method of distributing parliamentary

If the Peoples› Democratic Party is dissolved, its current deputies will form a new group.

The current law authorizes the party to participate in elections in this way, but the proposed law does not.

seats will change. At present, this is done according to the total votes of the electoral coalition. The new amendments, however, suggest distributing parliamentary seats for each party alone. Now this is an interesting and controversial proposal.

Q- What is the purpose of this proposed article? Does it not affect the ruling coalition, which includes two parties?

A-The primary goal is to dismantle the current electoral coalition rivaling the ruling coalition. These amendments will disperse the parties that compete with the AKP. At the same time, however, the MHP candidates can be nominated in the electoral rolls of the AKP, that is, to participate in the elections as a single party instead of an electoral coalition.

Q- Can these amendments prevent the new parties formed by defectors from Erdogan›s party from participating in

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The nationalist MHP leader Devlet Bahceli has cooperated with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, the AK Party leader, at crucial times. Both leaders have recently established an election alliance prior to the upcoming June elections. (Reuters)

People waving Turkish flags shouting slogans during the 98th anniversary celebrations of Republic Day, Istanbul, Turkey, Oct. 2021 ,29.

(Photo by Getty Images)

the upcoming elections?

A-In fact, these amendments bring considerable advantages to large parties, and thus may hinder the participation of small parties. However, the parties that meet the required conditions can take part easily, as is the case with the parties of Davutoglu and Babacan. Both parties held their conferences and established offices in most regions of the country.

Therefore, the law does not hinder their participation in the elections, but it may hinder the participation of the proKurdish party – if it was not already banned by then.

The MHP candidates can be nominated in the electoral rolls of the AKP, that is, to participate in the elections as a single party instead of an electoral coalition. this way, but the proposed law does not.

For a new party to take part in the elections, it must establish representative offices in half of the Q-How can the Peoples› Democratic provinces, hold its local conferences Party be prevented from participating there, and hold its main conference at least six months before the elections. in the upcoming elections?

Therefore, if the Peoples› Democratic A-If the Peoples› Democratic Party is Party is dissolved in the coming dissolved, its current deputies will form period, there will be obstacles to a new group. The current law authorizes its participation in the upcoming the party to participate in elections in elections.

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Telegram of Writer X

Gamal Abdul-Mabud

The dilemma lay in the means of turning yesterday’s friend and war ally to an enemy.

The US media and propaganda tools invented the new Marxism according to which any communist sympathizer was excluded from dealing with the American government .

As for the Writer X, he is George Kennan. As for his telegram, he sent it to the US State Department during 1947/1946 in his capacity as the Chargé d›affaires to the US Ambassador to Moscow. It was known at that time as a lengthy telegram and it remained secret for many decades. As for why we revisit this telegram, it is because it determined the US policy of containing the Soviet Union.

Given the importance of this telegram and the ideas it held, George Kennan was encouraged to reformulate it for publication in the Journal of Foreign Affairs in the July 1947 issue under the title, Sources of Soviet Conduct by Writer X. After all, he became Director of the Political Planning Staff of the State Department in Washington, and the government did not want to bear the consequences of publication. This method continues to be used today when the USA wants to covertly pass along its ideas and political trends towards any country.

Nonetheless, Arabs have not been very attentive to these subliminal messages. This happened during the 1967 war, the October 1973 war, and the Iraq war, among others. The only exception was when former Egyptian President Anwar Sadat announced that he would not fight the USA when he spotted US armored vehicles cruising their way through Israeli air and sea pathways after it woke up to the war of October 1973. Other than that, the Arabs did not utilize any of these messages. To understand the lengthy telegram, we go back to 1946 when the USA emerged victorious in World War II after leading the Allied camp (USA, Britain and the Soviet Union) against the Axis powers (Germany, Italy and Japan.) Although the USA got involved in the war more than two years late, it emerged from it as the biggest victor at all levels. Today the USA alone stands behind 52 percent of the world›s production of goods and services.

On the other hand, this victory would not have been possible had it not been for the 20 million Russians who sacrificed their lives to secure it. This has alleviated the bitter rivalry between capitalism and communism. Churchill summed this up by toning down when he said that Britain would ally with the devil if this was in its interest, which is not atypical for the Western pragmatic mentality. There was also a shift in the US media financed by hardline capitalists, steering away from the peak of hostility to communist Russia before the war to nicknaming Joseph Stalin “Uncle Joe.” They also promoted the humanity of the Russian people and showed their similarities with the Americans.

With the end of the war and the kickoff of the season of spoils in the famous Yalta Conference, the world breathed a sigh of relief thinking that the saving on war expenses would ensure the wellbeing of the peoples. However, convening members in San Francisco in 1945 stood in

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shock in front of the statement of a member of the US delegation declaring that US military spending should continue without any reduction, for the development of new weapons, even during the years of peace. The question was, where was the new enemy that justifies this? This was probably for economic reasons. However, most likely, it was a declaration of USA as the ruler of the world. Here the answer came from George Kennan, an expert in Soviet affairs, who was known at the time and for the next 40 years as the man behind the policy of containment. As per the said policy, the Soviet pressure against free institutions in the Western world could be contained by a counter-policy based on diplomacy, covert action, and soft power without getting involved in any military actions. George’s 8,000 word telegram carried detailed answers to the containment policy, but the policy became militarized. Hence, it was the end of George Kennan as he retreated to lick his wounds after the “Military-Industrial Complex” hijacked the containment slogan and reduced it to an unprecedented arms race that continues to generate billions until today.

It also justifies the emergence of the USA as the largest debtor country in the world after it was the world›s largest creditor after World War II. The dilemma lay in the means of turning yesterday’s friend and war ally to an enemy. The US media and propaganda tools invented the new Marxism according to which any communist sympathizer was excluded from dealing with the American government. Charges were framed in a manner similar to the Spanish Inquisition in a scenario similar to what is happening in the banana republics. However, what is deemed as protection for democracy for the USA is called the suppression of democracy in the third world.

Pragmatism hits once again, and there is no consolation for the victims. Politics is heartless, and war is mindless.

When the Soviet Union surrendered to its fate in the 1980s and turned into a regional power instead of an international player, the USA started the search for a new enemy. Political Islam, being foolish enough, came running on its feet. The USA eliminated it in Afghanistan and Iraq. However, it was not a solid justification for the US military- industrial complex. Washington was once again harassing Moscow, and Russia swallowed the bait and invaded Ukraine with a resulting drain of its resources. The wheel of the US military industrialization has been spinning, and once again Russia is borrowing from the USA. Moreover, there is no objection to the displacement of a people and the burning of crops and udders….Do not know what the writer means with this word… For politicians, these are collateral losses, as the world continues to implement Writer X›s telegram.

A Weekly Political News Magazine

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Liz Truss: UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs

www.majalla.com

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A Journey to the Most Expensive Place in the World

150 Years of Egypt’s History inside the Corridors of the Royal Jewelry Museum in Alexandria

By/ Sarah Gamal Museums are not just blocs, but in view of their accumulation of historical pieces and antiquities, they are considered as the preservers of the history and civilization of nations, and the witness to what the ancestors have created. The period of the rule of the royal family in Egypt was characterized by the splendor of its palaces and possessions, and the queens were adorned with the most exquisite jewelry made of precious stones.

The same applies to the Royal Jewelry Museum in Zizinya district, east of Alexandria, which is considered an eyewitness Portrait of to 150 years of Egypt’s Muhammad history with its spectacuAli Pasha. lar holdings. It contains 11,500 pieces belonging to members of the Alawite family who ruled Egypt from 1805 AD until the July Revolution of

1952 AD. The museum is one of the most beautiful tourist attractions for the Mediterranean bride, as it includes a rare and wonderful collection of antiques, jewelry, ornaments, gold works, precious stones, bejeweled watches and diamonds.

The Royal Jewelry Museum was built in the architectural style of European buildings with eastern and western wings linked by a transverse corridor. The eastern wing and the western wing consist of two floors and a basement. The building is surrounded by a garden filled with plants, flowers and ornamental trees.

HISTORY OF THE MUSEUM’S ESTABLISHMENT The Royal Jewelry Museum has an area of 4185 square meters. Zaynab Fahmi built the palace in 1919 in Zizinya, and it served as the residence of Fatma al- Zahra’,

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The Royal Jewelry Museum in Zizinya district, east of Alexandria, which is considered an eyewitness to 150 years of Egypt’s history.

daughter of Prince Ali Haider, a descendent of Muhammad Ali Pasha.

The palace remained in use as the princess’ summer residence until the revolution of July 1952 when her property was confiscated. However, she was allowed to reside there and did so until 1964 when the princess ceded it to the Egyptian government and left for Cairo, where she died in 1983.

CONVERTING THE PALACE INTO A MUSEUM The palace was used as a resting place for the Presidency of the Republic, until it was turned into a museum by a republican decision in 1986. In 2004 the Supreme Council of Antiquities began a comprehensive development and restoration process for the museum at an estimated cost of 10 million pounds, with the aim of in-

“The period of the rule of the royal family in Egypt was characterized by the splendor of its palaces and possessions, and the queens were adorned with the most precious jewels made of precious stones.” creasing its capacity to accommodate more valuable exhibits in storage that had not yet been displayed.

The museum reopened in April 2009.

Majalla visited the museum and toured along its corridors, and saw the remarkable beauty of the architecture and the decorations that adorn it. In the basement, the building is surrounded by a garden filled with plants, flowers and ornamental trees.

MUSEUM CONTENTS In addition to presenting groupings of jewelry, which the museum exhibited in an interesting style using lamps that depend on direct light guidance of the displayed pieces, without affecting them or the viewer, the display cabinets were provided with identification

Queen Farida Set - Platinum and 18 karat gold set, the crown consists of five gradient flowers, the middle of which is the largest.

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The walls and ceilings are adorned with oil paintings depicting various historical scenes and natural scenery.

cards in both Arabic and English.

The museum includes 11,500 pieces of the finest royal jewels, which adorned and were worn by members of the Alawite Royal Family in Egypt, including the jewels of King Fouad, King Farouk and his wives, princes and princesses.

The palace was divided into ten halls, containing collections of antiques and jewelry belonging to members of the Muhammad Ali family, the most important of which are a collection belonging to the founder of the Alawite dynasty, Muhammad Ali, including a gold snuff box inlaid with diamonds bearing the name of Muhammad Ali Pasha.

From the era of Khedive Said Pasha, there is a collec-

The Royal Jewelry Museum was built in the architectural style of European buildings and consists of eastern and western wings linked by a transverse corridor.

tion of golden scarves and watches, Egyptian, Turkish and foreign decorations and necklaces, inlaid with jewelry and gold, and about four thousand various antique coins.

The museum also includes a collection of the antiques and jewelry of King Fouad, the most important of which are: a gold handle studded with diamonds, gold medals and two medals with his image, a platinum crown studded with brilliant cut diamonds for his wife, Princess Shwikar, and Queen Nazli’s jewelry collection, the most important of which is a gold ornament inlaid with brilliant cut diamonds.

“From the era of Khedive Said Pasha, there is a collection of golden scarves and watches, Egyptian, Turkish and foreign decorations and necklaces, inlaid with jewelry and gold, and about four thousand various antique coins.”

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Princess Shwikar Set- A set made of platinum and diamonds, consisting of a tiara and earrings.

The walls and ceilings are adorned with oil paintings depicting various historical scenes and natural scenery.

A set of badges and decorations of different materials.

The Royal Jewelry Museum was built in the architectural style of European buildings an consists of eastern and western wings linked by a transverse corridor.

It also includes a set of antiques and jewelry of King Farouk and Queen Nazli, including a chess set of gold camouflaged with colored enamel studded with diamonds, a golden tray bearing the signature of “110 Pashas,” an ebony and gold Marshallian wand, and a plate of onyx gifted by the Tsar of Russia.

The collection of Queen Farida, wife of King Farouk, includes the queen’s tiara in platinum studded with brilliant cut diamonds, a “brick” of brilliant cut diamonds, and chest brooches in gold and platinum studded with brilliant cut and flaming diamonds.

On the other hand, the collection of Queen Nariman,

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King Farouk’s second wife, includes medals, necklaces, commemorative medals, and a “bowl” which was used to lay the foundation stone for the projects.

The collections of Princesses Fawzya Ahmed Fouad and Fayza Ahmed Fouad include: a set of bracelets, a miniscule hairclip and chest pins, the most prominent of which is a platinum studded miniscule hairclip inlaid with diamonds bearing the name “Fawzya,” and a gold necklace studded with brilliant-cut diamonds and pearls bearing the name “Fayza.”

There is also the collection of Princesses Samiha and Qadriya, the two daughters of Sultan Hussein Kamel, which is a set of gold pocket watches studded with brilliant cut diamonds, and a gold bracelet studded with brilliant cut diamonds and pearls.

Finally, the museum houses the collection of Princes Youssef Kamal and Muhammad Ali, sons of Khedive Tawfik, which includes many antiques, jewelry, decorations, necklaces and medals.

In order to look over that royal period, starting from the rule of Muhammad Ali until King Farouk, all you have to do is go to Alexandria and enjoy this type of unique heritage. The Royal Jewelry Museum in Alexandria will appeal to you if you are a fan of our cultural heritage and the royal atmosphere with all its magnificence and distinction, as it is not just recreational tourism about luxury only, but rather it is a restoration of times full of political and social fluctuations.

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Sandra Bullock, left, and Channing Tatum in “The Lost City.” (Paramount Pictures/Entertainment Pictures/ Zuma Press/TNS)

‘The Lost City’ a Triumphant Rom-com Return by Sandra Bullock

Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum Team Up for a Jungle Adventure

By Katie Walsh The enduring power of Sandra Bullock as a rom-com heroine is one of the greatest wonders of the world. In her latest actioncomedy “The Lost City,” opposite Channing Tatum, she’s just as fresh, funny and beguiling as she was 28 years ago, in her breakout role opposite Keanu Reeves in “Speed.” The characters in “The Lost City” are searching for treasure in a remote tropical jungle, but the real marvel is in front of them all along, in the form of our beloved Sandra B. The script, by Seth Gordon, Oren Uziel, Dana Fox and co-directors Aaron and Adam Nee, is uniquely suited to Bullock’s gifts for rat-a-tat dialogue and physical comedy. It’s a treat to watch her slip into the comfort of this comedic zone, which fits her as well as the pink sequined jumpsuit in which she spends the majority of the movie, and it’s especially welcome after her last two starring roles, the dour “The Unforgivable,” and the apocalyptic

horror film “Bird Box.” Bullock stars as a romance novelist, Loretta Sage, who has channeled the heartbreaking loss of her archaeologist husband into fodder for her historically informed smut (which is, as is mentioned, the highest revenue-generating literary genre, and nothing to scoff at). But Loretta’s reclusive life has stopped generating material to mine for her work, and she struggles with writer’s block, barely finishing her last book, “The Lost City of D” (a sassy double entendre for the journey she’ll go on).

The task of “The Lost City” is to get the the sad widow out from behind her laptop and on a hapless adventure with a handsome hero, and the Nees deliver on that promise, delivering an allout charm offensive in this action-packed lark. Tatum co-stars as Loretta’s Fabio-esque cover model, Alan, whom she initially dismisses, in his distressed jeans and billowing blouse. But when she’s kidnapped from a book convention by a wealthy media scion, Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliffe), who has taken up rare

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Cast member Sandra Bullock attends a premiere for the film “The Lost City” in Los Angeles, California, U.S., March ,21 2022. REUTERS/ Mario Anzuoni

artifact hunting and needs Loretta’s unique translation skills to find a legendary crown on a remote island, it’s Alan who stages her rescue.

Enter the third prong of the charm offensive: the one and only Brad Pitt, as rescue specialist/meditation teacher Jack Trainer, seemingly Loretta’s fictional romantic hero character, Dash, come to life. While Alan’s long blonde mane is a wig, Jack’s is the real thing, and he kicks, flips and punches with stunning grace. Even Loretta is astonished that he’s real.

Unfortunately, Loretta finds herself alongside Alan in the jungle, fighting to escape Fairfax’s henchmen, and the two bicker, then

The script, by Seth Gordon, Oren Uziel, Dana Fox and codirectors Aaron and Adam Nee, is uniquely suited to Bullock’s gifts for rat-a-tat dialogue and physical comedy. soften, and learn to work together. “The Lost City,” which calls to mind the 1984 film “Romancing the Stone,” isn’t reinventing the wheel, but who says the screwball comedy needs to be reinvented? This one rolls right over any doubters, powered by Bullock and Tatum, in a film that lets them play to their strengths.

Tatum’s Alan is an impossibly hot and goofy human golden retriever, while Bullock’s Loretta is brassy, bossy and whip-smart.

Pitt having fun in a light-hearted role is downright revelatory. The script is fast and funny, the style colorfully cartoonish, and just the right amount of unreal for this implausible tale. The cast is rounded out by a crew of hilarious comedians, including Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Bowen Yang, Patti Harrison and Oscar Nuñez.

“The Lost City” isn’t just a diverting romp, it’s a return to romcom form for one of our best and brightest stars of the genre.

Bullock’s still got it, and she won’t soon let you forget it.

Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum in The Lost City (2022)

This review was originally published by Tribune News Service.

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rt

‹Guardians of Time Lost›: A Human Journey About Marginal People

The Documentary Reveals Complexities of Social and Political Reality in Lebanon

By Salma Adham - Cairo «I do not go to the cinema. See all that we are living, this is cinema. I see films every day, and you want me to go to the movies?»

«To live in Lebanon, you should have power or money.» ‹Guardians of Time Lost› is a pure human journey about the Al- Lija neighbourhood people in Beirut. These young men belong to the civil war generation (1990-1975) and beyond. Filmmaker Diala Kachmar,36, entered the underworld of those Lebanese men to become one of them after a lot of efforts to gain their confidence, and this is the secret of its success. The film was produced in 2013 and won the Jury Prize at the Dubai Film Festival and the Honor Award at the Canada International Film Festival. What is the story of those men?

An hour and fifty minutes, the rolling time the camera of Kachmar took to document the story and relive the details of the lives of these young men, known as «Street Thugs», will answer you.

Kachmar wanted to discover the world of the youth groups on the street corners of Beirut. To know what is behind the idea of a roar and a group of hooligans or scary men. So, she decided to

approach the group closest to her house.

Those young men waste their time and life hanging out, using drugs and getting into trouble which often leads them to prison or trouble with the security forces. Al-Lija neighbourhood was given

Guardians of Time Lost (2013)

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Guardians of Time )2013( Lost

this name in reference to the refuge of the people of southern Lebanon, most of whom are Shiites.

Ahmed, Ali, Mahmoud, Mustafa, Zuhair, Alaa, another nicknamed «Al-Terebetti», and others live outside the law and time. They speak spontaneously, smoking one cigarette after another laugh at their reality and watch violent action movies. ‹Guardians of Time Lost› allows us to see the features of that chaotic district in Beirut through this group of young men without going into the details of the reasons that imprisoned this generation between violence and loss, and in the district’s corners where they meet every day.

The most critical feature of the film is its extreme realism. Kachmar lived with its protagonists, talking to them without fear as if she was indeed their friend. They were not afraid to speak to her and tell her about their lives. They realized that she did not come to defame their image, as many do.

The film did not condemn this group of young people, citing prejudices, ideological or sectarian.

The camera approached them with a great deal of curiosity and a desire to get to know and led the viewer very cleverly to that desire, and curiosity - it is the same tool that gave the young people themselves confidence in this young director, so they opened to her like a book. They have creed

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«I do not go to the cinema. See all that we are living, this is cinema. I see films every day, and you want me to go to the movies?» and belonging, and they have deviation. They have principles and commitment, and they also have utter chaos. They all have contradictions.

The most important thing that distinguishes the film is the idea of dialogue. This dialogue made the director close to its protagonists, and perhaps this is what they need, to talk about themselves and find someone to hear them so that they may find the right path.

These young people admit that they make mistakes and want to change for the better. They are a model for young people who can live in any country and district. What appears is that they are strong men who break the law, but in reality, they are lost and desperate victims who admit their failure without blaming anyone. Kachmar was not satisfied with documenting this life but also helped some of them to get out of it. And this role is not that easy for a filmmaker.

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Liz Truss: UK Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs

By Majalla Illustration by Jeannette Khouri Elizabeth Mary Truss is a British politician who has been the Member of Parliament for South West Norfolk since 2010. She has served as Foreign Secretary since 2021 and Minister for Women and Equalities since 2019. A member of the Conservative Party, she has served in various cabinet positions under Prime Ministers David Cameron, Theresa May, and Boris Johnson.

Truss was born on 26 July 1975 in Oxford, England, to John Kenneth and Priscilla Mary Truss. Her father was a professor of pure mathematics at the University of Leeds, while her mother was a nurse, teacher, and member of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.

Truss has described both as being “to the left of Labour”.

Truss studied Philosophy, Politics and Economics at Merton College, Oxford and graduated in 1996. She was President of Oxford University Liberal Democrats and a member of the national executive committee of its youth and student wing, and subsequently joined the Conservative Party. In 2000, she married accountant Hugh O’Leary. The couple have two daughters.

After losing her first two elections, Truss became the full-time deputy director of Reform in January 2008, where she advocated more rigorous academic standards in schools, a greater focus on tackling serious and organised

crime, and urgent action to deal with Britain’s falling competitiveness.

of Trade, before selecting her as Foreign Secretary in 2021.

Truss worked in sales and as an economist and was deputy director at the think-tank Reform before becoming a member of parliament at the 2010 general election.

On culture, Truss has discussed ‘Woke culture’ significantly, stating that the Conservative Party should: “reject the zero-sum game of identity politics, we reject the illiberalism of cancel culture, and we reject the soft bigotry of low expectations that holds so many people back”.

She served as Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Childcare and Education from 2012 to 2014, before being appointed to the Cabinet by Prime Minister David Cameron as Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in the 2014 cabinet reshuffle.

Truss called for reform in several policy areas, including childcare, maths education, and economy, as a backbencher. She founded the Free Enterprise Group of Conservative MPs and co-authored some papers and books, including After the Coalition (2011) and Britannia Unchained (2012).

In July 2016, she was appointed Secretary of State for Justice and Lord Chancellor by Theresa May, becoming the first female Lord Chancellor in the thousand-year history of the office.

Following the 2017 general election, Truss was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury. Truss supported Boris Johnson’s successful bid to become Conservative leader; after Johnson was appointed Prime Minister, he appointed Truss as Secretary of State for International Trade and President of the Board

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She has also suggested that Britain should not ignore the history of the British Empire, but the UK should embrace the “warts and all” of the UK’s history if they are to compete with hostile states.

Truss is the first female Conservative Foreign Secretary and the second female Foreign Secretary, after Margaret Beckett. She was appointed as the UK government’s chief negotiator with the European Union and as the UK chair of the EU–UK Partnership Council on 19 December 2021, and she is known for her libertarian views on economics and trade.

On 27 February 2022, in an interview on BBC television, Truss was asked if she supported anyone volunteering to travel to Ukraine to help in its defence against the Russian invasion, and responded “absolutely”. She was later criticised by other Conservative MPs who said that such action would be illegal under the Foreign Enlistment Act 1870. Truss is seeking agreement from the international community to step up support for Ukraine, in the face of continuing attacks from Russian forces.

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Get Back Your Social Life to Boost Thinking, Memory, and Health

Here›s How — and Why — to Rekindle Friendships If You’ve Been Isolated or Out of Touch

By Heidi Godman We are wired to be social. Just think how good it feels to have a nice chat with a friend. Those feelings can be hard to come by if your loved ones are

far away or you›ve lost touch with friends. The pandemic has made social contact especially difficult for the last two years.

But the benefits of an active social life are sig-

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nificant, going beyond warm, fuzzy feelings. Connection brings a treasure trove of important health benefits and cognitive perks. And if you›ve been more isolated or out of touch with friends lately, it›s time to take back your social life and reap the rewards.

CONNECTION AND COGNITION Many studies suggest that having strong social networks (friends who support or help you) or taking part in social activities is associated with a reduced risk of developing cognitive impairment and dementia.

For example, a study of more 66,000 people in Europe and Israel (average age 70), published online Oct. 25, 2021, by Ageing & Society, found that people with the highest levels of social connectedness (good friends) and engagement (activities) had the highest scores on cognition tests, compared with people who had the lowest levels of social connectedness and engagement.

And an earlier study of 1,100 adults (average age about 80) followed for five years found that the people who were the most socially active had 70% less cognitive decline compared with those who had the lowest rates of social activities. credit: (TNS)

These studies were observational and don›t prove conclusively that socializing protects cognition, but we know that it engages the brain in ways that promote better cognition. «Social activities cause us to use our brains more than almost any other activity,» says Dr. Andrew Budson, a neurologist and chief of Cognitive and Behavioral Neurology at VA Boston Healthcare System. «All of our senses -- vision, hearing, smell -- are engaged during social activities. We process people›s facial expression, body language, tone of voice, and speech content, and analyze what›s being said and the emotions behind the words. In turn, that influences how we react: our facial expression, body language, tone of voice, speech, and actions. Putting the brain to work like that strengthens the connections between brain cells and creates new ones, too.»

OTHER HEALTH BENEFITS Beyond cognition, socialization also appears to

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Many studies suggest that having strong social networks or taking part in social activities is associated with a reduced risk of developing cognitive impairment and dementia. help with the following aspects of health.

Longevity. Being social protects us against loneliness and isolation, which are associated with chronic disease and premature death.

Stress reduction. «People are emotion regulators.

When someone you trust listens to you, you can feel your body calm down. Your blood pressure returns to baseline, your levels of stress hormones decrease. It takes us out of ‹fight or flight› mode, which can gradually break down the body if we›re stressed all the time,» says Dr. Robert Waldinger, a psychiatrist with Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital.

Mood. «The way people react to you reminds you of aspects of yourself, aspects that you may forget. It gets you out of your own head and your worries, and reinforces your sense of being competent. That boosts your mood,» Dr. Waldinger notes. «And connecting with people you haven›t spoken to in a long time can remind you that you have this history with these people, you belong to this group, and you matter. That also boosts mood.»

REACH OUT TO FRIENDS All of us tend to lose touch with old friends. People move; circumstances change. But it›s worth the effort to have some social interaction in your life, even if it›s not in person.

How do you get the ball rolling? Dr. Waldinger suggests something low-key. «Send a card, an email, a text, or a message on Facebook,» he says.

«You just want to see if someone might reply.»

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What should you say in the initial contact, especially if it›s been a long time? «Just say you›re thinking of the person and want to see how they›re doing,» Dr. Waldinger advises.

there. Ask if the person would like to have coffee or take a walk with you sometime soon. If the person is far away, ask they›re available for a catchup phone call or video chat.»

Other icebreakers include saying you were thinking about how you used to do a particular activity together, or sharing a nice memory of something you both experienced, such as a graduation or a successful project. You might even include a oneor two-sentence update on how you›re doing and what you›ve been up to lately.

KEEP UP THE CONNECTION

What happens next? «See if the person reciprocates,» Dr. Waldinger says. «If so, build from

Being social protects us against loneliness and isolation, which are associated with chronic disease and premature death.

It may take time to rebuild the closeness or the frequency of contact you once had with a friend, if that›s what you both want. So be patient, and keep reaching out to the person.

How much contact will it take to boost your cognition and health? «We don›t have an amount of social connection that is ‹enough› or a lower amount that is ‹not enough.› Studies suggest that more is better, and some is better than none for improving your thinking and memory,» Dr. Budson says.

So why not rekindle several friendships? If they bring you joy, and if they offer important, healthy side effects, then you have nothing to lose and much to gain.

This article was originally published by Harvard Health.

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Photo credit: (Anastasiya Gepp / Pexels)

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echnology

The Metaverse is Just an Idea, but Adobe Says It’s Time to Prep For it It’s Not Too Early to Create 3D Content and Dip a Toe Into Existing immersive Worlds

By Harry McCracken It shouldn’t come as a tremendous surprise that Adobe would like to be a leading purveyor of tools for creating content for the metaverse. It’s

a reasonable enough aspiration for the company, given its nearly 40-year-history as a kingpin of software used for generating imagery and experiences, from the printed page to the web and beyond.

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There’s just one catch: The metaverse doesn’t exist yet. And in its fullest sense, it can’t—not until the tech industry coalesces around open standards for creating shared, immersive worlds.

That’s not even considering that we could be years away from the day when there are affordable, comfortable, power-efficient metaverse-enabled goggles that hundreds of millions of people will happily wear.

Still, when the metaverse arrives—let’s assume for the moment that it will someday—it won’t represent anything entirely unprecedented. Instead, it will lash together aspects of technologies that are already very much with us, including virtual reality, augmented reality, and NFTs. Adobe already offers tools in all those areas.

So, even as it acknowledges that the metaverse is still in the process of being invented, the company is urging organizations to become “metaverse ready.” That involves creating 3D, immersive content that’s useful on platforms that exist today, with part of the idea being that doing so should provide a head start once the true metaverse starts to come into focus.

Photo Credit: TNS

The pre-metaverse inflection point is already here, argues Adobe Chief Product Officer Scott Belsky. “A few dots have connected over the last year for us, as it relates to what a lot of people are calling the metaverse, which really is just an immersive experience in which we are present together, and we are able to collaborate and have a synchronous experience,” he says. Along with the buzzword itself gaining currency, Belsky adds, the pandemic accelerated the trend: As live photo shoots became impractical, businesses compensated by creating photorealistic models of their products which they could depict in fully digital renderings.

Among the Adobe products that can help an organization become metaverse-ready is Substance 3D, a set of Creative Cloud tools (based on a 2019 acquisition) for producing 3D content. Later this year, the company plans to add an app called Substance 3D Modeler that’s designed to let people sculpt objects without requiring the technical knowledge required by something like a computer-assisted drafting package: “This is a

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“A few dots have connected over the last year for us, as it relates to what a lot of people are calling the metaverse, which really is just an immersive experience in which we are present together,” product that actually democratizes 3D creation,” says Belsky. Adobe also offers Aero, a platform for creating AR experiences. And it’s involved in NFTs with such initiatives as an upcoming feature that will let you mint them inside Photoshop.

So, when might we segue from the period of metaverse readiness into the true metaverse era?

Belsky didn’t specify a timeline when I asked.

But he does point out that it’s not just about the technological necessities being in place. There also needs to be a critical mass of people who are eager to enter the immersive world the metaverse envisions. And there, he adds, existing products such as Roblox and the Meta VR platform previously known as Oculus show that interest is already blossoming.

“I do feel like it always comes down to moments,” he says, referencing a 2019 Marshmello concert in Fortnite—which attracted nearly 11 million attendees—as one such moment along the way to the full-blown metaverse. “You saw what other people were wearing,” he says. “They saw what you were wearing. Identity was a part of it. Cultural flex was a part of it. Interaction was a part of it.”

All those factors should all be part of the metaverse, too. And if nothing else, dabbling in the immersive environments that are already out there is a more productive use of an organization’s time than talking about the metaverse as if it’s already a done deal.

This article was originally published on Fast Company.

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pinion

AUKUS, Chinese-Russian Axis: Is This the Beginning of the End?

By Saif Al-Abri

This alliance violates the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons (NPT) article IV, which states that the exchange of equipment, materials and scientific and technological information is only for peaceful purposes .

In recent times, there has been significant geopolitical development.

The US economic and political power is declining, but it›s still the greatest power for the time being.

Furthermore, for a while it has been decreasing its presence in the Middle East (as evident by the disastrous pull from Afghanistan). This has been followed by a re-allocation of military recourses redirected towards China, as it sees China›s ever-increasing global presence as a threat. This effort was clearly evident by the UK, US and Australia (AUKUS) alliance, which increased the necessity of a Chinese and Russian alliance.

So, what is the AUKUS? It›s a strategic defence alliance that includes cooperation in «cyber capabilities, artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and additional undersea capabilities» which, with several other things, provides Australia with nuclear submarines. This alliance violates the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of nuclear weapons (NPT) article IV, which states that the exchange of equipment, materials and scientific and technological information is only for peaceful purposes.

However, as known, international laws do not apply to the US. This alliance has provoked France, which most news articles covered but, more importantly, China. For the first time, this has perfectly aligned the interest of China and Russia that they have formed a new axis. Announced during the winter Olympics with remarks such as «Friendship between the two States has no limits, there are no ‹forbidden› areas of cooperation,» the two countries said in a joint statement.

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The recent Russian invasion showed the strength of this relationship whereby without china’s presence, as stated by the New York Post, Russia as we know it would not be able to survive. Both countries are in need of each other which makes for an ideal partnership. T his is because Russia needs an investment and a purchaser for their commodities. For China, the looming threat that the US and its military navy would stop natural recourse inflows from the Middle East ceases to exist.

Not only that but its dependence on the sea will decrease.

It seems that claims that China is hesitant to support Russia are too optimistic. As reported by the Guardian, “There are lots of indications that the Chinese are doing more behind the scenes to support Russia, in every sector: financially, economically and militarily”. The benefits of siding with Russia is way too high for China.

Unless Russia shows clear signs of economic or political collapse, China will not change sides.

This decade seems like the beginning of the end, whereby the long-awaited conflict between China has finally been militarised. Many have consistently underplayed the chances of the conflict, but a study by Harvard Kennedy school shows that through historical parallels, we are heading towards a war unless China is willing to scale back its ambitions or Washington can accept becoming number two. If not, any sort of friction in the sea may escalate into war. This is known as the Thucydides’ Trap which is a deadly pattern of structural stress that results when a rising power challenges a ruling one.