2015, a look ahead: Europe and the Mideast
We've said goodbye to 2014. And what's next for 2015? We've asked four of our CBS News correspondents to survey the landscape as the New Year gets up to speed. Here is Elizabeth Palmer in London:
The Russian Winter
President Vladimir Putin basked in his moment of glory after Russia's army seized the Ukrainian territory of Crimea last spring.
"Hello comrades," he shouted, riding high on a wave of nationalism that then turned into support for even more violent incursions into Ukraine.
- Vladimir Putin likens Crimea takeover to bear guarding his territory ("CBS This Morning," 12/19/14)
- Complete CBSNews.com coverage: Russia and Ukraine
But they came at a huge price: Punishing U.S. and Western sanctions, along with rock-bottom oil prices, have halved the value of Russia's economy.
Internet mashups love to mock Putin, but it's actually a lack of money that will probably curb his tough-guy ambitions this year.
- Putin blames the west for Russia's economic trouble ("CBS Evening News," 12/18/14)
- Flash Points: Will falling oil prices tank Russia's economy? (CBS News, 12/18/14)
- Putin losing control of Russia's economy? ("CBS This Morning," 12/16/14)
Iran, the New Partner
American-Russian relations may be frosty, but U.S.-Iranian links haven't been this warm since 1979.
Secretary of State John Kerry and Iran's foreign minister Javad Zarif left the last round of negotiations on a nuclear deal sounding very upbeat.
"I believe that we can in fact reach a solution that will change the course of relations, and will change the general picture of our region and beyond," said Zarif.
A deal could come as early as this spring.
- Kerry defends Iran nuclear deal in face of skepticism from Israel, Congress ("Face the Nation," 11/24/14)
It's the common enemy -- ISIS, an Islamist terrorist group -- that's helped to make frenemies of the U.S. and Iran.
"This is a fight against extremists of any stripe," President Obama said of ISIS, "that are willing to behead innocent people or kill children or mow down political prisoners with the kind of wanton cruelty we've very rarely seen in the modern age."
While American warplanes bomb ISIS from the air in Iraq, Iran's Revolutionary Guard attacks them with boots on the ground. The combined offensive has stopped ISIS advancing in both Iraq and Syria.
- Iran using U.S.-made jets to bomb ISIS targets in Iraq (12/02/14)
- How the U.S.-led airstrikes in Syria went down ("CBS Evening News," 09/23/14)
- Iran leader: U.S. getting ISIS fight all wrong ("CBS This Morning," 09/24/14)
But the group, flush with cash and Western recruits, is holding both its ground and at least one more high-profile Western hostage.
"Some of us who tried to escape were waterboarded by our captors," said British hostage John Cantlie.
- New ISIS video claims to show British hostage in Kobani ("CBS This Morning," 10/28/14)
- Complete CBSNews.com coverage: The fight against ISIS
War in Iraq, and in Syria next door, shows no sign of ending. It has shattered the entire region. But it apparently hasn't rattled Syria's President Bashar al-Assad. His Instagram account shows the dictator smiling serenely.
Ten million of his citizens may have been uprooted by the violence, and the White House wants him gone. But there's no sign the U.S. or any of its allies are actually preparing to oust him from his job.
While in Europe, after six years of financial hardships, things are finally looking up -- except the Greeks may vote in 2015 to leave the European Union, which would set off a whole new round of financial chaos.