Ilham Aliyev turned Azerbaijan from a Russian vassal into a pro-Western petrostate. Now, a new Turkish alliance and military victories against Armenia are revealing his ambitions for regional power.

I arrived in Kharkiv as Russia began its invasion of Ukraine. Here’s what I saw.

Kazakhstan’s leaders blamed foreign infiltration for its violent January protests. In the city of Almaty, I learned that the real answers lie within the state itself.

Lebanon’s state is collapsing under the weight of its own dysfunction. Visiting its capital, I found a gallery of street art, urban wreckage, and political nihilism.

While in Lebanon to report on a disintegrating state, I found Hezbollah building a different kind of regime.

A journey through Armenia reveals a country on Russian life support. With Azerbaijan and Turkey in ascendency, the country’s lack of allies is its most existential threat.