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Malaysia and Turkey are progressive, modern Muslim-majority countries. Both have shown strong resolve and capabilities in dealing with issues and challenges both at home and international level. In dealing with COVID-19 pandemic, both countries have adopted various measures and strategies to contain the virus outbreak. Yet, the biggest challenge in executing those is balancing the need to protect the public and maintain economic growth. Hence, this study compares and contrasts the measures and strategies taken by both countries in containing the COVID-19 outbreak as well as ensuring the continuity of economic growth. The time period of this study was from March 2020 until early February 2021 as most of the countries, including Malaysia and Turkey, by then had introduced new COVID-19-related health policies and economic stimulus packages. The finding compares and contrasts the effectiveness of those measures and strategies so that both countries can share and learn from this pandemic. .

This study is reassessing the geopolitical consideration of the British government in the Sixth Days of the Arab-Israeli War,1967. Based on declassified documents from the British’s archive, this paper will analyze the geopolitical factor which shaped London’s reaction towards the conflict. Middle East geopolitical position was very strategic to the British interests in the region. Hence, the focus of this paper is to re-examine the consequence of the war toward Britain’s attitude in preserving her strategic military position and economic calculation in the Middle East between 1960s to early 1970s. These including the paramountcy of the British military bases in the region, arm trade commercial activities and a disruption of the oil flow from the region to the West. From historical perspective and analysis, this paper argued that the threats from the Soviet and Arab nationalist movements during the conflict had significantly influenced the British government’s reaction towards the war. Although London did not involve directly in the conflict like in the 1956’s Suez Crisis, yet British’s response was still crucial since Britain was the prime architect in drafting and tabling the United Nation Resolution 242 after the war. Indeed, this research inclines to believe that the British equilibrium attitude as proclaimed during the conflict was not purely based on a principle of a just and lasting peace but it was very much relying upon geopolitical consideration of safeguarding British major strategic interests in the region.   .

Geopolitics as a branch of political geography is scientific in nature and, similar to other scientific disciplines, has two aspects: basic (fundamental) and applied. The basic aspect deals with the production of scientific theories, theoretical propositions and the development of geopolitical knowledge. The applied aspect deals with the production of practical theories, patterns and practical geopolitical methods to meet the needs of nations, countries and human societies. Applied knowledge of geopolitics, like applied propositions and theories of other disciplines, can be affected to some extent by worldviews, ideologies, cultures, attitudes, as well as the interests of nations, political users, and governments. Therefore, geopolitical science and knowledge, similar to other scientific disciplines, are inherently worthwhile and useful, and must be developed to meet the needs of nations and humankind. However, geopolitical knowledge must not be abused by governments and political actors on any scale, whether global, national or local. In contrast, it must be at the service to provide the needs of the citizens, human constructs, nations and human societies. Also, governments and political actors should exercise it in the same direction. Accordingly, the author (Dr. M. R. Hafeznia) has established and proposed a new theoretical /practical approach in the application of geopolitical science and knowledge in the political and moral life of humankind and human constructs, especially nations, under the title of "The Humanist Geopolitics". This view was published for the first time in the form of an article under the same title by the author in Geopolitics Quarterly, Volume: 3, No 4, Winter 2008, and later in the Journal of Conflicts in France, Paris in 2015. Since this geopolitical school has attracted the attention of some interested readers and has raised some questions and ambiguities for them, the author decided to formulate its principles and make them available to those interested to clarify the attitude and dimensions of this school of thought, with the hope that a step can be taken in the direction of relieving the suffering of humankind as the chosen ones by the God as creator of the universe and enhancing the living pattern of humankind and human constructs.

The main purpose of this article is to examine how and to what extent Iran-Russia cooperation is effective in ensuring ‘broader’ strategic stability through balancing in the Middle East. Strategic stability and balance of power are interrelated components of the region’s order which have changed following the Arab Spring and the Syrian crisis. The article analyzes Iran and Russia’s impact on these two concepts, with a systemic approach, paying attention to interrelationship of variables at regional and international levels. Although strategic stability has been generally considered an issue at international level of great powers politics, this paper, emphasizing on evolution of international relations, believes in a new, complex and multilayered definition of strategic stability - a ‘broader’ one in the Middle East, which is not necessarily ensured by agreements or balance among great powers. The results indicate that Iran-Russia cooperative balancing in the Syrian crisis against the US and at regional level with emphasis on a broad regional balance system has been effective in providing ‘broader’ strategic stability in the region. Although Russia's policy in this field put some limits on Iran, strategically it serves Iran’s interests.

The emergence of Non Government Organizations (NGOs) in various fields of life is proof that civil society is essential in building a democratic society. NGOs can educate citizens and communities on their fundamental rights to create a democratic state and world order life. NGOs in Indonesia and Egypt have played a significant role in strengthening democratic movements by empowering civil society. This study examines NGOs’ role in democratization in Indonesia during the reign of President Suharto and Egypt under the leadership of President Hosni Mubarak. In carrying out their functions, NGOs take a stand as a balancing force for the state and agents of community empowerment. The NGOs’ elements struggle in producing an ideal democratic society order in these two countries facing their respective challenges. Some NGOs challenge building democratic society such as military domination, party hegemony systems, and robust state control over society. To encourage democratization in Indonesia and Egypt, NGOs have contributed to building democratic practices, improving democratic performance, strengthening civil rights, monitoring elections, and promoting corruption eradication. The strengthening of democracy by NGOs in Indonesia and Egypt has impacted building political openness, awareness of citizens' political rights, and pro-society public policies.

Various infectious diseases have plagued humankind and killed millions throughout history. Crisis management by governments has been crucial in such emergencies. This study aims to examine the method of crisis management caused by epidemics, especially Corona in Iran, and seeks to discover the policies and measures which have been taken by governments to prevent the spread of diseases and treat these diseases since the Qajar period. In this research, which was carried out by historical method and with a descriptive-analytical approach, to collect data, documents related to the subject, identification, study, and required information were extracted and indexed. Findings indicate that the policy-making process has been better and more effective by passing of time. Thus, the minimum programs implemented by the government were not successful for various reasons in the Qajar period, but infectious diseases were mainly controlled due to the compulsion to implement health regulations in the Pahlavi period. Great strides have been made in preventing the spread of infectious diseases after the victory of the Islamic Revolution in Iran. Since the outbreak of corona disease, various measures have been taken to control the disease, which has helped curb public awareness and participation to a large extent, and Iran is now on the verge of producing the corona vaccine and launching it on the market.

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages through the world, a “tsunami” of legal and economic issues including breach of contracts occurred in the private and public sectors. In Iran and throughout the world, almost all contracts contain so-called “force majeure” clauses, which excuse a business’s non-performance if circumstances beyond their control prevent (or sometimes hinder) performance. These clauses often list out the circumstances which excuse non-performance and they may include flood, fire, terrorism, war “Act of God” and sometimes epidemic. Due to the impacts of the pandemic on the price of materials and tremendous increase in the costs, contractors try to take COVID-19 as a legal excuse (force majeure) to breach the contract. The present paper tries to answer the questions that can the contractors take force majeure as a “get out of jail free” card? Does the COVID-19 outbreak constitute force majeure and excuse non-performance of contract? And how does it affect “time of Essence” clauses in contracts? Through the critical analysis method, this article scrutinizes the legal challenges of the issue.  Findings show that having a look ahead, the legislator has to redefine the meaning of force majeure in the Iranian and European law .

The security-based futurology of political units is a type of futurology focusing on geographic areas to assess their security status in the future. The Caspian region as one of the regions facing various factors has gained geopolitical significance, has a wide range of probable futures. The operational objective of this study is to identify the criteria affecting the security of this region and its final objective is to delineate an optimal security-based future for the region through a future study approach. It is a qualitative case study being formulated based on some qualitative and quantitative models and the relevant literature is used as the basis for classifying security standards into six groups of military, economic, spatial, sociocultural, political and environmental. the results were used to present 18 criteria of this region security. Then, 26 questionnaires were distributed among a group of faculty members of geopolitics from the universities of Russia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan. The collected data were analyzed using the combined mean TOPSIS method and key criteria of the Caspian region security were extracted. The findings indicated that the three key criteria of joint military and weapons investment, commercial relations and human development as the most critical geopolitical criteria of security in this region formed eight security scenarios and finally the scenario based on ‘regional joint military and weapons investment, free trade, and the homogeneous human development’ with higher scores were introduced as the criterion for the delineation of security perspective for the leaders of countries in this region.

Islamic fundamentalism is a thought school in the Islamic World which is manifested in the formation of Islamic fundamentalist groups and different violent actions. The Horn of Africa is a region for Islamic fundamentalist movements. From past to present, the most active fundamentalist Islamic groups in the region are AIAI, ICU and Al-Shabab group. The most important issue in this relation is the relation between Islamic fundamentalism and geopolitics. This research is theoretical from viewpoint of the nature and method and also is descriptive-analytic in terms of its approach. The research data gathering procedure is based on library findings. The research analyzed the relation between Islamic fundamentalism and geopolitics with the investigation of Islamic fundamentalist groups in the Horn of Africa. The research main question is that what is the relation between geopolitics and the formation of Islamic fundamentalism in the Horn of Africa? The research findings showed that Islamic fundamentalism is in geopolitical thought and the leaders of Islamic fundamentalist groups not only follow geopolitical thought in their goals and utopias, but also the causes and roots of the formation of Islamic fundamentalist groups have geopolitical burden, and six geopolitical roots can be characterized for the formation of Islamic fundamentalist groups.