Policy Analysis

Despite the group’s assent, major gaps remain with Israel over sequencing, disarmament, and oversight, casting doubt on the agreement’s feasibility.

The June MOU and the 2013 JPOA are not perfect analogues, but the deliberately limited terms and careful specificity of the latter agreement hold prudent lessons for both Washington and Tehran as they contemplate a potential new round of direct negotiations.

Despite recent high-profile arrests, transatlantic authorities won’t be able to meet their longer-term goals of stabilizing and rebuilding Gaza unless they take broader action against still-rampant Hamas fundraising.

Washington and Beirut have made significant strides toward curtailing Hezbollah’s military arsenal, but dismantling the group’s “aspiring martyr” pipeline is no less important.

Any postwar system must preserve the “transit passage” regime, enable ships to safely resume use of the original IMO route, and reject mandatory fees, veto rights, or other Iranian tactics for exerting permanent control over one of the world’s most critical energy chokepoints.

The Gulf needs a joint front on deterrence, engagement, and freedom of navigation.

Amid mounting economic and security pressures in the West Bank, only a U.S.-led mechanism can credibly determine Palestinian compliance with the Taylor Force Act and help promote wider stability.

A determination that the Sudanese government used chemical weapons likely will not alter the military balance, but it does create a record that activists, human rights advocates, and any future civilian government can ultimately draw upon in pursuing accountability.

As the dust settles from new attacks in both countries, Baghdad will need U.S. support to make progress against Iran-backed militias while assuaging Riyadh’s security concerns.

Given the country’s difficult experience during the Iran war, Washington should offer sustained political attention, practical assistance, and an expanded vision for the partnership’s future.

While it no longer enjoys primacy in Damascus, the Kremlin has proven itself able to adapt to the new reality, and Washington must play the long game in response.

Even as the country's president shuns outside support, Western actors can use creative methods to engage reformers, support the Tunisian economy, and prevent instability.

A White House meeting facilitated by the senator’s funeral could let Trump and Netanyahu avoid the appearance of a wartime rift.

Regardless of where the current round of escalation goes, Tehran will continue using ceasefires, front-loaded sanctions waivers, and tit-for-tat attack cycles as opportunities to reconstitute its forces until Washington imposes hard, verifiable limits on its fastest-recovering asymmetric capabilities.

Former officials and advisors discuss the newly announced Palestinian legislative elections in light of Hamas’s leadership change, Israel’s political imperatives, growing violence in the West Bank, and the prospects for jump-starting the Trump administration’s stalled transition plan in Gaza.

To reopen the Strait of Hormuz after the latest dip in the Iran roller coaster, the Trump administration will need to marry renewed blockade efforts with a more collective-minded diplomatic approach.

Circumstances are ripe for a successful visit, but both presidents are looking for more than bonhomie—Aoun needs practical U.S. commitments of operational and financial support, while Trump needs additional evidence of Beirut’s seriousness on disarming Hezbollah.

High-profile funeral events in Iran provided an opportunity for the Houthis to pressure Saudi Arabia, and for Tehran to demonstrate support to its partner and signal it has cards to play at another maritime chokepoint.

The framework's success will largely depend on the creation of a U.S.-led, third-party verification system to avoid the shortcomings experienced with previous agreements, bolstered by effective intelligence support and international financing.

As long as the group’s economic, political, and institutional ecosystem remains intact, officials will need to pair disarmament efforts with a sustained strategy to target financial networks, political influence, and judicial infiltration.