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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

Asian Markets Slide as Silver Volatility, Earnings Season, and Central Bank Meetings Rattle Investors

Asian share markets opened the week on a cautious note, largely tracking weaker Wall Street futures, as extreme volatility in silver prices and a packed global economic calendar unsettled investors. The sharp moves in...

India Budget 2025 Highlights Manufacturing Push but Falls Short of Market Expectations

Indias latest Union Budget placed manufacturing firmly at the center of its economic strategy, prioritizing key sectors such as semiconductors, biopharma, electronics, renewables, and capital goods. While the government...

Starmer’s China Visit Highlights Western Balancing Act Amid U.S.-China Rivalry

British Prime Minister Keir Starmers recent visit to China underscores the complex balancing act Western middle powers are attempting as rivalry between Beijing and Washington intensifies. While the trip allowed China to...

U.S. Stock Futures Slip as Markets Brace for Big Tech Earnings and Key Data

U.S. stock futures edged lower on Sunday evening as investors adopted a cautious stance ahead of a busy week filled with major corporate earnings and crucial economic data. The pullback follows weakness in technology...

South Korea Factory Activity Hits 18-Month High as Export Demand Surges

South Koreas manufacturing sector showed its strongest momentum in nearly a year and a half in January, driven by a sharp rebound in export demand and improving business confidence, according to a private sector survey...

Politics

Peter Mandelson Resigns from Labour Party Amid Renewed Jeffrey Epstein Links

Former British government minister Peter Mandelson has resigned from Prime Minister Keir Starmers Labour Party following renewed media scrutiny over his past connections to disgraced U.S. financier Jeffrey Epstein. The...

Japan Election Poll Signals Landslide Win for Sanae Takaichi, Raising Fiscal Policy Concerns

Japans ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP), led by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi, is poised for a decisive victory in the upcoming lower house election, according to a new opinion poll released by the Asahi newspaper....

U.S. Accuses Cuba of Harassing Top Diplomat Amid Rising Tensions

The United States has accused Cuba of interfering with the work of its senior diplomat in Havana after videos emerged showing small groups of Cubans verbally harassing him during visits outside the capital. The incident...

Democrats Score Surprise Texas State Senate Win, Fueling Momentum Ahead of 2026 Midterms

A Democratic candidate has won a closely watched Texas state senate special election by a double-digit margin, flipping a Republican-held seat for the first time in decades and adding to growing Democratic momentum ahead...

Trump Proposes Two-Year Shutdown of Kennedy Center Amid Ongoing Turmoil

President Donald Trump has proposed that the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts suspend all events for approximately two years, beginning July 4, as part of what he described as a major transformation...

Science

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

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...

Technology

Jensen Huang Urges Taiwan Suppliers to Boost AI Chip Production Amid Surging Demand

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang praised and gently pushed Taiwans leading technology suppliers to ramp up production, highlighting the intense global demand for artificial intelligence hardware during a high-profile visit to the...

Oracle Plans $45–$50 Billion Funding Push in 2026 to Expand Cloud and AI Infrastructure

Oracle has announced plans to raise between $45 billion and $50 billion in 2026 as it accelerates the expansion of its cloud infrastructure to meet surging demand from major technology and artificial intelligence clients....

Elon Musk’s Empire: SpaceX, Tesla, and xAI Merger Talks Spark Investor Debate

Speculation around a potential Musk Inc has resurfaced as Elon Musks companiesSpaceX, Tesla, and xAIexplore closer ties amid rapid advances in artificial intelligence and automation. With SpaceX expected to go public later...

SpaceX Reports $8 Billion Profit as IPO Plans and Starlink Growth Fuel Valuation Buzz

SpaceX delivered a strong financial performance last year, generating an estimated $8 billion in profit on revenues between $15 billion and $16 billion, according to people familiar with the companys results. The figures,...

SpaceX Updates Starlink Privacy Policy to Allow AI Training as xAI Merger Talks and IPO Loom

SpaceX has revised its Starlink privacy policy to allow customer data to be used for artificial intelligence training, a move that could significantly support Elon Musks broader AI ambitions. The policy change comes as...