Policy Analysis

The task now is not to achieve an unattainable final victory, but to consolidate allied gains, prevent bad outcomes on the nuclear and navigational files, and ensure that Iran remains weaker than when conflict first broke out in 2023.

Although claimed compromises by some of Iran’s proxies are unlikely to result in actual disarmament anytime soon, Washington can still erode Tehran’s illicit financial networks by carefully exploiting the militias’ desire to be treated as normal political actors.

By incorporating Ukraine and other like-minded states from the Middle East and Asia, the G7 Summit highlighted the net progress made on countering Iranian, Russian, and Chinese threats to the American-led global security and economic system.

Three experts discuss the terms, gaps, and wider regional implications of the new MOU, including how it is being received inside the Gulf states and Iran.

An in-depth look at why the board’s lack of progress in Gaza makes it unlikely to serve its envisioned role of resolving conflicts around the world.

Although the United States and the world needed shipping to resume through the Strait of Hormuz, negotiating a nuclear agreement is not a postwar priority.

Although the U.S. military approach to the region has delivered many operational successes, the Iran war has exposed its serious shortcomings and created new challenges.

Presidential spats with Israeli prime ministers are nothing new, and scapegoating America’s most capable ally in the Middle East would mean more work for U.S. forces, not less.

With the regime still in place, the war has left ordinary Iranians worse off, and U.S. policy has compounded their sense of abandonment.

A young government working to secure its own territory is poorly positioned to open new fronts outside its borders, and Hezbollah would quickly exploit such a move to its advantage.

Three experts discuss the fallout from the latest military strikes, along with the potential contours and implications of a newly announced agreement to halt the fighting and reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

As a landmark tool for monitoring the group’s activity hits another sobering milestone, U.S. officials cannot let regional crises completely overshadow important shifts in jihadist threats around the world.

Asian market realities and the ongoing risks to energy investments inside Syria may put a damper on any large-scale infrastructure plans, though Damascus can better its prospects through further stabilization and reform efforts.

The Egyptian pound is weathering significant challenges to its stability as the Iran war continues to impact oil markets and Egypt's revenue streams, raising concerns about the longterm impact of continued conflict.

Whether the U.S. truce with Iran breaks down or winds up rewarding the regime, the previously restrained Houthis may take it as a signal to resume their own aggression.

Despite President Trump’s transformative goals in the Middle East and the ongoing need for American help in weathering multiple regional crises, the new budget request doubles down on a range of problematic funding cuts.

The Trump administration won’t achieve all of its war goals, but it could still notch a strategic win with time.

Flipping the kill switch is a potent exercise of authoritarian control, but expediting countermeasures like D2C can help prevent regimes from using this tactic in the future.

Washington should treat the recent public discontent not as a sign that Syria’s transition is failing, but as an opportunity to help ensure that Damascus does not repeat the mistakes of previous governments.

Tehran is hoping that its Persian Gulf Strait Authority will establish “facts on the ground” and give it leverage at the negotiating table, so Washington and its partners need to respond right away with a suite of military, economic, and diplomatic countermeasures.