English Blogs
English Blogs · 30. April 2026
According to a national survey conducted by the Asahi Shimbun on March 14-15, 2026, 82% of Japanese do not support the Israeli-US attack on Iran. 53% of Japanese respondents feel “greatly anxious” about the economic impacts of the ongoing war in Iran, while 37% feel “somewhat anxious”. Only 9% of respondents backed the attack. As a main US ally and dependent, and a country 7,600 - 8,050 kilometres away from Iran, which may appear counterintuitive.
English Blogs · 23. September 2025
This commentary builds on my earlier analysis of the Pakistan–Saudi Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA), which explored how the pact has been framed and why it drew comparisons with NATO. That first piece looked at the language of ‘no exceptions, no limits’ and what it signals. Here, the focus shifts to consequences: what Pakistan stands to gain, the risks it may face, and why Saudi Arabia chose this moment to turn a long-standing partnership into a formal defence alliance.
English Blogs · 23. September 2025
On 17 September 2025, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia signed their Strategic Mutual Defence Agreement (SMDA). The promise was simple but sweeping: any aggression against one will be treated as aggression against both. For two countries that had long cooperated informally on security matters, the formalisation of this partnership marked a striking shift.
The pact immediately stirred debate. What does it actually mean? How binding is it? Can it change the balance of power in the Gulf and South Asia?
English Blogs · 04. Dezember 2024
In the last days of November 2024, longstanding protests against the government in the small Caucasus republic Georgia were reinvigorated and suddenly erupted in new mass demonstrations. These as well as prior protests were all triggered by government actions that are seen as jeopardising Georgia’s strived for accession to the Europan Union (EU) and purportedly steer the country into authoritarianism and Russia’s orbit.
English Blogs · 13. November 2024
On 14th and 15th October 2024, the Future Resilience Forum (FRF) took place in Canary Wharf, London. This international forum aims to reveal meaningful connections in an increasingly volatile world and foster new relationships that promote greater stability and prosperity for both the Global South and the North. Dr Remo Reginold and Svenja Jakob from the Swiss Institute for Global Affairs attended this year’s main event.
English Blogs · 09. August 2024
Since soon after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 and the subsequent imposition of unprecedented sanctions against Russia, reports persist that such sanctions are circumvented through Georgia. However, scrutinising trade data and other detailed information indicates that often cited increases in bilateral and transit trade from / through Georgia to Russia can be explained with harmless developments.
English Blogs · 13. Juni 2024
In late May 2024, the Swiss Institute for Global Affairs (SIGA) attended the BRICS Academic Forum in the Russian capital Moscow to better understand where BRICS is heading and what geopolitical impact this might have.
English Blogs · 14. Mai 2024
Ongoing large protests against a law proposal in Georgia that, depending on which side you ask, is aimed at defending Georgia from undue influence of foreign agents or undermining democracy and stifling dissent, are shining a spotlight on how the issue of alleged foreign agents has become contentious not only in Georgia but in various countries.
English Blogs · 24. April 2024
The South Caucasus, a small region between the Black and the Caspian Seas, between Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and the Middle East, continues to be haunted by conflicts that date back to the Soviet era but also stands in front of new perspectives to orientate itself more towards Europe.
English Blogs · 14. März 2024
Since autumn 2023, there have been claims that a port in Ochamchire, a district in Abkhazia on the eastern shore of the Black Sea, will become a new hub for the Russian Black Sea Fleet and that this could extend the bloody war in Ukraine to the Caucasus. However, recent satellite and drone imagery of the port in Ochamchire obtained by SIGA shows that, so far, nothing of relevance has happened there