Nicoletta Kouroushi

Articles by this Author
The flags of Turkey and Somalia.
Middle East Forum Observer
Turkey’s Deepening Somalia Partnership Has Political Limits
Somalia May Rely on Turkish Security Assistance but It Will Not Rubberstamp Turkish Foreign Policy
October 10, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
St. Catherine's Monastery, located at the foot of Mount Sinai, is one of the oldest working Christian monasteries in the world.
Middle East Forum Observer
Greece’s Egypt Dilemma
Athens’ Crucial Cooperation with Cairo Makes Disagreements Difficult to Manage
October 3, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Souda port on Crete is located in the southwestern part of Souda Bay.
Middle East Forum Observer
Souda Bay Shows Greece’s Growing Value to U.S. Strategy
Souda Gives the United States an Operating Point Outside the Middle East but Close Enough to Support Missions There
September 24, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Shoreline of the Aegean Sea in İzmir Province, Turkey.
Middle East Forum Observer
Turkey Takes Its Aegean Claims Into Greece’s Energy Plans
Turkey Now Challenges Greek Activity Such as Offshore Wind Farms, Marine Parks, and Electrical Cables
September 22, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Turkish soldiers stationed in Northern Cyprus celebrate Armed Forces Day, a Turkish holiday. Ankara has used religious institutions to alter the cultural identity and practices of the secularized Muslim community that inhabited Cypruse prior to Turkey's 1974 invasion of the island. The methods used by Turkey to impose its will on secularized Muslims on Cyprus are similar to the methods Islamic rulers have used to control and transform non-Muslim communities in the Middle East and elsewhere throughout the world.
Dhimmitude Project
The Transformation of Turkish Cypriot Identity: State-Sponsored Islam, Human Rights, and Dhimmitude
As Ankara Expands the Role of Islam in Northern Cyprus, Turkish Cypriots Fight to Preserve a Secular Identity Forged over Generations.
August 28, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Cypriot Minister of Foreign Affairs Constantinos Kombos arrives to attend a meeting of EU Foreign Affairs ministers in Brussels, Belgium, in June 2025.
Middle East Forum Observer
‘Cyprus Has Consistently Demonstrated That It Is a Reliable, Predictable, and Trusted Partner’
Interview with Cypriot Foreign Minister Constantinos Kombos
August 10, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Russian hybrid operations fall somewhere between intelligence gathering and information warfare.
Middle East Forum Observer
Russian Digital Impersonation Is a New NATO Security Challenge
Even When They Do Not Get Sensitive Information, These Stunts Make Headlines and Shake Public Trust
July 16, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in a file photo.
Middle East Forum Observer
Can Washington Still Rely on Turkey?
Having Strategic Value Is Not the Same as Being Strategically Reliable
July 7, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides at the European Union headquarters in Brussels, Belgium.
Middle East Forum Observer
Why Cyprus Matters to U.S. Strategy in the Eastern Mediterranean
The Cypriot President Recently Met With a Delegation of U.S. Lawmakers to Discuss Energy, Investment, and Regional Security
July 7, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
The national flags of Cyprus and Kazakhstan on a world map background.
Middle East Forum Observer
Cyprus, Kazakhstan, and the Limits of Turkish Influence in Central Asia
Cyprus and Kazakhstan Might Seem Worlds Apart, Yet Both Countries Are Discovering Benefits in Working Together
June 18, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
A view of the Aegean Sea from
Middle East Forum Observer
Turkey’s ‘Blue Homeland’ Agenda and the Future of Maritime Competition
Recent Discussions in Turkey Suggest Ankara May Formalize Parts of Its Maritime Strategy in State Structures and Legislation
June 6, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
The harbor at Limassol, Cyprus.
Middle East Forum Observer
Cyprus, India, and the Emerging Mediterranean-Indo-Pacific Connection
Cyprus Holds Strategic Value for India’s Goal of Moving Its Economic and Political Activities Westward
June 2, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in October 2025.
Middle East Forum Observer
Are Turkey’s Courts Eviscerating Erdoğan’s Opposition?
Courts Have Weighed in on Party Matters Before, but They Rarely Step in to Overturn the Results of an Internal Congress
May 23, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
A Ukrainian soldier readies a drone in Donbas.
Middle East Forum Observer
When Ukraine’s War Reaches the Mediterranean
A Difficult Question Emerges for the West: How Far Can Support for Kyiv Expand Before It Brings New Complications?
May 22, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan in a 2025 visit to Russia.
Middle East Forum Observer
Turkey, Israel, and the Contest for the Eastern Mediterranean
Ankara Seeks to Challenge a Trilateral Framework That It Views as Strengthening Israel’s Position
May 9, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
Xanthi, Greece,
Middle East Forum Observer
Turkey Seeks Stewardship over the Muslim Community in Greece
Ankara Often Links Identity, Religion, and Diaspora Communities to Foreign Policy, Presenting Itself as a Protector
May 6, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
An offshore gas and oil exploration platform off the coast of Cyprus.
Middle East Forum Observer
Cyprus, Energy Routes, and U.S. Interests in the Eastern Mediterranean
Rather than Pursuing Large-Scale Infrastructure, States Increasingly Rely on Flexible Arrangements Built Around Existing Systems
April 16, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
A Royal Air Force Boeing CH-47 Chinook fying over Akrotiri, one of two British-controlled territories retained after Cypriot independence.
Middle East Forum Observer
Cyprus, the British Bases, and the Limits of Military Access
The Objective Is to Reshape How the Bases Function in Practice, Particularly During Regional Instability
April 12, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
A Turkish navy warship and the new Baykar Bayraktar TB3 armed unmanned aerial vehicle.
Middle East Forum Observer
Baykar, Production Power, and Europe’s Defense Dilemma
Turkey Has Secured Access to the European Aerospace Market and Now Seeks to Enter a European Union Security Program
April 2, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi
A power plant that produces electricity for southern Greece and the islands.
Middle East Forum Observer
France and Greece Move Toward Nuclear Cooperation in the Eastern Mediterranean
Nuclear Infrastructure Would Depend Less on Contested Offshore Resources and Be Less Exposed to Geopolitical Friction at Sea
March 19, 2026
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Nicoletta Kouroushi