Author: Steven Sahiounie

By: Prof. Dr. Ali Arslan, Turkish professor In the simplest terms, for a political entity to be recognized as a state, it must have: clearly defined and defended borders; a branche–nation–society that has accepted to live together; and a political government through which these people exercise their sovereignty.In geographies less affected by local, regional, and global competition, states tend to last longer. However, in stratejik hedef alanları (strategic target zones) where competition is intense — and especially in kilitmekânlar (lock-locations: decisive geographic chokepoints) — the survival of states depends on the initiative of major powers.The case of the states established…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff met with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday. Trump has characterized the meeting as having achieved “great progress”. On Friday, Trump has threatened Putin with new sanctions for failure to make peace with Ukraine. Trump has pulled in India and China into the negotiations, by imposing 25% duties on India for buying Russian oil, and has threatened China with the same. Trump is using his position as President of the world’s superpower, to threaten other nations into compliance with the Oval Office’s demands. Steven Sahiounie of MidEastDiscourse interviewed Dragana…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator Lebanon’s government is scheduled to convene on August 5 to deliberate the highly sensitive issue of exclusive state control over arms. The session has sparked speculation regarding potential absence or boycotts by Hezbollah-aligned ministers, including Labor Minister Mohammad Haidar and Finance Minister Yassine Jaber. This follows remarks by Hezbollah Deputy Secretary-General Sheikh Naim Qassem, firmly rejecting the party’s disarmament. The debate unfolds against the backdrop of persistent Israeli occupation of five strategic points along the southern border and recurrent attacks on Hezbollah’s personnel and infrastructure. The unresolved equation of “withdrawal versus disarmament” remains mired…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has a plan: it’s called Vision 2030. The underlying infrastructure of his visionary project calls for regional stability. Syria had been in chaos and a deadly civil war beginning in 2011. Now after the fall of the Assad regime, Saudi Arabia has reached out a hand to help Syria to recover. The Saudi $6.4 billion commitment to Syria is not just a financial investment, but is a sign of the Saudi commitment to keep Syria from falling victim to Israeli plans of partitioning…

On June 22, the Financial Services Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives, on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. advanced a bill from Representative Mike Lawler, a Republican representing New York. H.R. 4427 is the Syria Sanctions Accountability Act of 2025, and has prompted Democrats and Republicans to work together in support of the bill, while others of both parties are working against it. If the bill passes into law, it would allow President Donald Trump to permanently lift key sanctions on Syria in two years if certain conditions are met by the government in Damascus. Among the conditions is…

By:Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator The news is the same each day about Gaza. More deaths, more starvation and more suffering. Yesterday, at least 32 people were killed and more than 100 injured after Israeli troops opened fire on crowds of starving Palestinians at a free food distribution hub in southern Gaza, the only free food available in all of Gaza. Eye witness survivors of the massacre told reporters that they were shot at, they laid down on the ground, but jeeps and tanks arrived which continued to shoot at the defenseless people laying face-down on the ground. The hub…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator Israel attacked the defense ministry building twice, and near the presidential palace in Damascus on July 16. As the afternoon traffic drove by in the heart of the city, huge plumes of smoke billowed from the landmark building. This was the third day of Israeli airstrikes on Syria. Syrians have become used to Israel airstrikes. During the Assad regime, Israel carried out deadly attacks on an almost daily basis, eliminating Hezbollah and Iranian weapons supplies. After the fall of the regime on December 8, Israel carried out daily airstrikes across the country eliminating military…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator U.S. envoy Tom Barrack has said he is hopeful about Lebanon’s future after meeting officials and discussing the need to disarm Hezbollah, and for the full withdrawal of Israeli military forces. Lebanese officials also were positive in comments following the latest round of discussions concerning the security situation in Lebanon. All eyes have been on Hezbollah, waiting for their response, but they too have been positive, although demanding. Their main demand centers on having Israel stop occupying Lebanon. On this point, Hezbollah and many others in Lebanon regardless of party affiliation, will not budge. …

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator On Friday, PKK leaders burned their weapons in a cave in northern Iraq. “We voluntarily destroy our weapons, in your presence, as a step of goodwill and determination,” said Bese Hozat. The conflict has taken 30,000 lives over 30-years. The group’s imprisoned leader, Abdullah Ocalan, called for disarmament in May, and said in a video earlier this week, that the move to disarm was a “voluntary transition from the phase of armed conflict to the phase of democratic politics and law”. “Today is a new day; a new page has opened in history. Today,…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have met several times since Netanyahu arrived for talks. Their agenda included Gaza, Iran, Syria, and Ukraine. While the two leaders work closely together as partners, they still have differences in their views. Netanyahu has been clear that he will not stop the attacks on Gaza until Hamas is eliminated as a military group and as the governmental authority. While the families of Israeli hostages are still waiting for their government to make a deal to release those few still alive and retrieve the…