Notebooks

Notebooks are snapshots from our writers, reflecting on current affairs and underappreciated aspects of culture and history.

A map of Syria and Lebanon from the 1930s.

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Syria’s political destiny

Throughout its history, the Syrian state has been viewed by Arab nationalists, Baathists and Islamists alike as a stepping stone towards a grander political destiny.

Asser Khattab May 13, 2026

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The athleisure revolution eats its children

The cult of athleisure is outlasting the brands that created it.

Zoe Strimpel May 13, 2026

President Donald Trump in the Oval Office on 11th May 2026.

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Trump’s cards to play in China

President Trump will want Xi Jinping to increase diplomatic pressure on Iran, but not at any price.

George Magnus May 12, 2026

The opening ceremony of the SEATO conference, 1961.

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The case for an Asian NATO

Co-operation between Seoul and Tokyo must be formalised beyond leader-to-leader statements if East Asia is to counter collective threats from coercive authoritarian actors.

Edward Howell May 11, 2026

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The fifth Veda and the ancient essence of art

In classical India, Bharata’s 'Natyashastra' conceived of art as sacred knowledge, in stark contrast to the diminished role aesthetic experience occupies today.

Garima Garg May 11, 2026

Rehearsal for Russia's 81st Victory Day Parade in St. Petersburg. Credit: ZUMA Press Inc

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Putin’s Potemkin empire

Moscow is marking Victory Day with little cause for celebration. Modern Russia has no coherent ideology to export and Putin's attempt to revive Soviet-era global influence is visib..

Owen Matthews May 8, 2026

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Why Iran will not fracture along ethnic lines

External actors have long imagined Iran as a collection of detachable ethnic blocs. In practice, its communities are so historically intertwined that separatism is almost inconceiv..

Ibrahim Al-Marashi and Tanya Goudsouzian May 8, 2026

The USS Abraham Lincoln takes part in the operation to blockade ships passing through the Strait of Hormuz.

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Geo-economics and the new logic of MAD

The Trump administration brought military supremacy to a geo-economic fight. The 21st century now has its own logic of mutually assured destruction.

Katharina J. Klotz May 7, 2026

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The myths that built the postwar world

The postwar world was built on a quintet of myths – the end of the world, the hero, the monster, the martyr and the final resurrection. They were the glue that held the internation..

Keith Lowe May 5, 2026