Intelligence Review 

*Debt penalty - Greece's fragile socio-political stability
On 6 November, Greece's embattled then prime minister George Papandreou reached an agreement with the main opposition party, under which a government of national unity...
11-Nov-2011
*Debt penalty - Greece's fragile socio-political stability
In early October, the Greek government admitted what had already been widely feared: that despite its current austerity measures, the predicted government deficit is likely...
31-Oct-2011
*Dictating the end - Belarus faces prospect of political change
Belarus under President Alexander Lukashenka has come to be known as the 'last dictatorship in Europe'. Since 1994, Lukashenka has presided over an increasingly authoritarian...
12-Aug-2011
*From the ashes - Egypt prepares for a democratic rebirth
After several months of rapid change in Egypt, there is now a brief lull, as the current government and various emerging opposition groups prepare for...
14-Jul-2011
*Borderline disorder - Low-intensity conflict prevails in Myanmar
Myanmar's system of government has experienced significant changes during the past year. In accordance with the 2008 constitution, national elections were held on 7 November...
15-Jun-2011
*Breaking point - An end to Zimbabwe's government of unity
Zimbabwe's barely surviving government could be considered one of national crisis, rather than national unity. The latest trouble to hit the administration came on 10...
07-Apr-2011
*Return of the king - Succession scenarios in Saudi Arabia
While the leaders of Tunisia and Egypt have been ousted in recent weeks, Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz returned to his country on 23...
18-Mar-2011
*Heroin high land - The growth of Scotland's drug clans
Three decades ago, the head of Glasgow's drug squad boasted that he personally knew every heroin addict on his patch. Like most police officers ...
15-Mar-2011
*Zoning out - Nigerian poll to alter political landscape
Nigerians will go to the polls to elect a new National Assembly on 2 April and vote for new state governors on 16 April. However,...
25-Feb-2011
*Shadow of the past - Lebanon investigates Rafik Hariri killing
The assassination of Rafik Hariri casts a long shadow over Lebanon. Five and a half years after the former prime minister's death on 14 February...
16-Sep-2010
*Divided loyalty - Elections test Bosnia-Herzegovina's unity
As Bosnia-Herzegovina (BiH) prepares for parliamentary and presidential elections on 3 October, and the 15th anniversary of the Dayton Peace Accord in November, the country...
10-Aug-2010
*Farewell to arms - Congolese prepare for UN withdrawal
On 11 March, nine years after peacekeepers first arrived in the country, Democratic Republic of Congo Minister of Communications Lambert Mende Omalanga called for a...
16-Jul-2010
*Running man - Nicaraguan president sparks institutional crisis
It is generally not a positive sign when an attempt to hold a legislative session sparks several days of rioting and blockades. Yet this is...
04-Jun-2010
*Family planning - Succession scenarios in Ghadaffi's Libya
In September 2009, Libyan leader Muammar Ghadaffi celebrated the 40th anniversary of his revolution and installation as the country's ruler. Although he has no official...
13-May-2010
*Points of order - Iraq's painful government formation
On 26 March, the Iraqi High Electoral Commission (IHEC) released uncertified election results from Iraq's 7 March national parliamentary elections. These results are unlikely to...
15-Apr-2010
*Democracy inaction - Pakistan's political paralysis
The ruling Pakistan People's Party (PPP)-led coalition government is fighting for its survival as it faces two increasingly confrontational organs of the state: the judiciary...
12-Mar-2010
*Language barrier - Belgium faces a fragmented future
Belgium has always been a fragile construct, divided along linguistic and territorial lines. However, growing calls for greater devolution for the country's regions are increasingly...
10-Feb-2010
*Internal bleeding - Domestic resistance to Iran's regime
More than 30 years since the 1979 revolution, Iran's 'Ashura Riots' in late December 2009 indicate a watershed event for the stability of the Islamic ...
14-Jan-2010
*Orange appeal - Ukraine's revolutionary leaders compete
Ukraine will hold presidential elections on 17 January that will pit political rivals who stood on opposite sides of the barricades during the 2004 Orange...
10-Dec-2009
*Battle royal - Thailand contemplates life after King Bhumibol
In recent weeks, Thailand has again been forced to imagine a future without its long-standing monarch. King Bhumibol Adulyadej, who will be 82 years old...
08-Dec-2009
*Withdrawal symptoms - What will happen after the US leaves Iraq?
A major explosion in Baghdad on 19 August that killed 95 people and injured 563 raised questions about the ability of Iraq's security forces to...
17-Sep-2009
*Crisis centre - Scenarios for Honduras' political stalemate
In the early hours of 28 June, Honduran troops stormed the residence of President Manuel Zelaya and, after a brief stand-off, detained the president and...
14-Aug-2009
*Sticking power - Post-election prospects in Afghanistan
Afghan President Hamed Karzai flew to the restive southern province of Kandahar on 13 July as part of his first major campaign tour ahead of...
16-Jul-2009
*Ploughshare politics - The future of Hizbullah's militia
Hizbullah's performance in Lebanon's parliamentary elections on 7 June showed it will remain a major actor within the country's political scene. Although the March ...
18-Jun-2009
*Transit authority - Guinea's dubious road to democracy
The Guinean coup d'état of 23 December 2008 was the most predicted in recent African history. In the 50 years since its independence, Guinea had...
11-May-2009
*Bearing gifts - The future of Cypriot negotiations
The long-running frozen conflict on Cyprus is showing signs of thawing, as the governments of both sides of the divided island move towards discussing a...
16-Apr-2009
*Good Correa move - Ecuador prepares for fourfold elections
Ecuador will hold elections on 26 April, not just for the presidency and the legislature but also for provincial and municipal governments. Having overhauled the...
09-Mar-2009
*A new hope? - Former rebel takes over as Somali president
The selection of a new Somali president on 31 January presages a fresh bout in the country's protracted efforts to restore some measure of political ...
12-Feb-2009
*Semi-detached - Kosovo's independence hangs in the balance
On 26 November, the UN Security Council approved a 12 June report from Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, in which he outlined six points as a ...
23-Dec-2008
*Republic enemy - US policy and Iranian elections
One of the key foreign policy challenges facing president-elect Barack Obama when he takes office on 20 January will be the issue of Iran. With...
13-Nov-2008
*Stoking the fire - Anger flares at Yemeni government
In the last year, there has been a dramatic increase in the level of insurgent activity in Yemen. On 17 September, the United States embassy...
16-Oct-2008
*All change - Egypt's future leaders wait in the wings
The problem of how to replace a long-standing dominant leader is one that has faced numerous political systems, not least China after Mao, The Soviet...
18-Sep-2008
*Close shave - Turkey's AKP faces policy dilemma
In early 2007, Turkey's Constitutional Court and the country's still powerful military combined to prevent the ruling Justice and Development Party (Adalet ve Kalk?nma Partisi:...
14-Aug-2008
*Breaching the peace - Will the Hamas-Israel ceasefire hold?
Ceasefires in Gaza have historically been characterised as brief periods of comparative calm before renewed outbreaks of hostilities. However, the announcement on 19 June of ...
18-Jul-2008
*Recouping losses - Fiji's regime considers its future
In December 2006, Republic of Fiji Military Force (RFMF) head Commodore Voreqe Bainimarama, also known as Frank, staged the island state's fifth coup since its ...
12-Jun-2008