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Scott Lucas

Professor of International Politics, University of Birmingham
Scott Lucas became Professor of International Politics in 2014, having been on the staff of the University of Birmingham since 1989 and a Professor of American Studies since 1997.

He began his career as a specialist in US and British foreign policy, but his research interests now also cover current international affairs – especially North Africa, the Middle East, and Iran – New Media, and Intelligence Services.

A professional journalist since 1979, Professor Lucas is the founder and editor of EA WorldView, a leading website in daily news and analysis of Iran, Turkey, Syria, and the wider Middle East, as well as US foreign policy.

Global Geopolitics Series

Why are the US and Israel not on the same page over how to deal with Iran? Expert Q&A

May 30, 2025 12:04 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The US president, Donald Trump, claimed on May 28 to have personally stopped Israel from attacking Irans nuclear facilities. When asked if hed intervened during a phone call with the Israeli prime minister, Benjamin...

Gaza deal: what it means for peace in the Middle East – expert Q&A

Jan 17, 2025 14:31 pm UTC| Insights & Views Politics

After 15 months of bitter conflict on the Gaza Strip, a ceasefire deal has been agreed which promises an end to the fighting and will allow for the access of food and other desperately needed humanitarian aid to the...

Who is Syria’s new prime minister – and what will he do?

Dec 16, 2024 05:06 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

Dressed in a modest grey suit and tie with a light blue shirt, bald and bearded, 41-year-old Mohammed al-Bashir addressed his fellow Syrians on Tuesday from behind a desk in an empty conference room. Asking for stability...

Global Geopolitics Series

October 7 marks 12 months of escalation into the ‘forever war’ now engulfing the Middle East

Oct 08, 2024 12:02 pm UTC| Insights & Views

One year after Hamass mass killing of nearly 1,200 Israelis and foreign nationals and abduction of 251 others, and almost a year into the Israeli retribution that has so far slain almost 42,000 in Gaza, there seems no...

How Israel-Gaza will affect the US election campaign

Aug 22, 2024 23:22 pm UTC| Insights & Views

As delegates assembled in Chicago for the start of the Democratic National Convention on August 19, something surreal was happening 6,000 miles away in Israel. In Tel Aviv, the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken,...

Iran: meet the men – and women – lining up to contest the early presidential election

Jun 06, 2024 11:33 am UTC| Insights & Views Politics

The death in a helicopter crash of the Iranian president, Ebrahim Raisi, on May 19 has triggered a presidential election one year earlier than expected. Its a consequential moment in Iranian politics as many believed that...

Israel-Hamas war: will the US and Iran be drawn into a broader conflict? It's Tehran's move

Oct 31, 2023 09:17 am UTC| Insights & Views

Washington has sent a warning to Irans supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, about Iranian anti-US provocation in the Middle East. This has been going on sporadically for years, but from October 17 to October 25 there...

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Economy

U.S. Dollar Edges Higher as Markets Await Jobs Data and Supreme Court Tariff Ruling

The U.S. dollar traded modestly higher on Friday, though overall foreign exchange market activity remained subdued as investors awaited two major catalysts: the release of the closely watched U.S. nonfarm payrolls report...

EU Set to Approve Historic Mercosur Trade Deal Amid Farmer Protests

European Union nations are expected to approve the signing of the blocs largest-ever free trade agreement with the South American Mercosur group, marking a major milestone more than 25 years after negotiations began. The...

Japan Proposes Tougher Foreign Investment Rules to Protect Economic Security

Japan is moving to tighten its foreign investment screening framework, proposing new powers that would allow authorities to order foreign investors to retroactively divest acquisitions deemed a risk to national or economic...

India-US Trade Deal Stalled as Modi-Trump Call Never Happened, Says US Commerce Secretary

Indias long-anticipated trade pact with the United States was delayed due to a breakdown in high-level communication, according to US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, who said Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not place a...

Gold Prices Steady in Asia as Investors Await U.S. Jobs Data, Geopolitical Tensions Support Weekly Gains

Gold prices were largely unchanged during Asian trading on Friday as investors remained cautious ahead of the highly anticipated U.S. jobs data, while ongoing geopolitical tensions continued to underpin bullions strength...

Politics

Honduran Opposition Lawmaker Injured Amid Post-Election Tensions

Honduras political crisis deepened on Thursday after opposition lawmaker Gladis Aurora Lopez was injured when an explosive device was thrown near her inside the National Congress, according to a statement from her...

U.S. Weighs Direct Payments to Greenlanders Amid Renewed Push to Acquire Strategic Arctic Island

U.S. officials have reportedly discussed the possibility of offering lump-sum payments to residents of Greenland as part of a controversial effort to encourage the island to break away from Denmark and potentially align...

Trump Signals Willingness to Let New START Treaty Expire, Raising Global Nuclear Arms Concerns

U.S. President Donald Trump has indicated he is prepared to allow the last remaining U.S.-Russia strategic arms control treaty, known as New START, to expire without accepting a Russian proposal to voluntarily extend...

Canada and Brazil Call for Peaceful Venezuelan Transition After U.S. Military Raid

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney and Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva held talks on Thursday to discuss the escalating situation in Venezuela, reaffirming their shared support for a peaceful,...

Trump Says Taiwan Decision Is “Up to Xi,” Warns Against Changing Status Quo

U.S. President Donald Trump said it is ultimately Chinese President Xi Jinpings decision how China handles Taiwan, but warned he would be very unhappy if Beijing moved to change the current status quo. The remarks were...

Science

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Technology

xAI Cash Burn Highlights the High Cost of Competing in Generative AI

Elon Musks artificial intelligence startup, xAI, is rapidly emerging as a major player in the generative AI race, but new reports highlight the enormous financial costs behind that ambition. According to Bloomberg News,...

Nvidia Appoints Former Google Executive Alison Wagonfeld as First Chief Marketing Officer

Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) has taken a significant step in strengthening its leadership team by appointing a senior Google (NASDAQ: GOOGL) executive as its first-ever Chief Marketing Officer, signaling a strategic move as the...

EU Orders Elon Musk’s X to Preserve Grok AI Data Amid Probe Into Illegal Content

The European Commission has ordered Elon Musks social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter, to retain all internal documents and data related to its built-in artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, until the end of...

SK Hynix Shares Hit Record High as AI Memory Demand Fuels Semiconductor Rally

Shares of South Korean memory chip giant SK Hynix surged to a fresh all-time high on Thursday, reflecting growing investor optimism around booming demand for artificial intelligence (AI) memory products and a strengthening...

OpenAI Sets $50 Billion Stock Grant Pool, Boosting Employee Equity and Valuation Outlook

OpenAI has reportedly established a massive $50 billion employee stock grant pool, a move that underscores the companys aggressive strategy to attract, retain, and reward top talent as it continues to scale its artificial...