Democracy & Reform

Policy Analysis on Democracy & Reform

Sorting Out U.S. and European Differences Over Iran

Their wildly divergent responses to Iran's protests may be the first salvos in an imminent standoff over the future of the nuclear agreement and international sanctions.

Jan 8, 2018

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Jay Solomon

Brief Analysis

Rouhani's Protest Paradox

If the protests intensify, President Rouhani may be hard pressed to unravel his greatest dilemma: how to honor his economic and reform promises while preserving his decades-long commitment to the regime's core principles.

Jan 8, 2018

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Omer Carmi

Video

Brief Analysis

Protests in Iran: Why? What Impact? How Should the U.S. Respond?

Washington Institute experts discuss the economic, social, diplomatic, and military implications of the anti-regime demonstrations sweeping Iran. Read a summary or watch video of the full event.

Jan 8, 2018

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Michael Singh
Patrick Clawson
Michael Eisenstadt
Hanin Ghaddar
Mehdi Khalaji

Articles & Testimony

To Save Turkey's Democracy, the Country's Opposition Must Offer Erdogan a Grand Bargain

If Erdogan does not compromise with Turkey's forty-million-strong opposition, Kurdish nationalists and other factions could spark widespread unrest.

Jan 8, 2018

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

Iran's Coercive Apparatus: Capacity and Desire

A closer look at the structure and tactics of the many-headed internal security network that the Islamic Republic has deployed to crack down on protestors nationwide.

Jan 5, 2018

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Saeid Golkar

Brief Analysis

Provinces Lead the Center in Iran's Protests

As ethnic minorities and poverty-stricken provincial communities assume a greater role in nationwide unrest, the regime will likely try to pit them against each other.

Jan 4, 2018

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Brenda Shaffer

Articles & Testimony

Iranians Are Mad as Hell About Their Foreign Policy

The more the regime believes that its foreign adventures threaten its internal foundations, the more likely it will be to temper its behavior.

Jan 2, 2018

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Dennis Ross

Articles & Testimony

The Protesters in Iran Need Real Help from Washington

The sign of a successful policy response will be its ability to remain relevant whether the demonstrations gather steam or subside.

Jan 2, 2018

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Michael Singh

Brief Analysis

Stabilizing Lebanon Is Iran's Way of Helping Hezbollah Take Over

Despite issuing threats through its proxies, Iran shares the international community's interest in Lebanon's near-term stability, but its motivations are hardly benevolent.

Dec 20, 2017

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Hanin Ghaddar

Brief Analysis

The Trump National Security Strategy: Return to the Nineteenth Century?

If taken as a whole, the document supports a largely traditional brand of U.S. foreign policy, but many elements of it could be used to justify a very different approach to the world.

Dec 19, 2017

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James Jeffrey

Articles & Testimony

The Merits—and the Limits—of Democracy Promotion in the Middle East

At a time when a macabre fondness for the 'stability' provided by the likes of Saddam, Qaddafi, and Assad has seeped into sectors of America’s public discourse, Elliott Abrams has correctly diagnosed the main problem with U.S. regional policy.

Dec 13, 2017

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Robert Satloff

Video

Brief Analysis

The Middle East through Gulf Eyes: Trip Report from Riyadh, Muscat, and Abu Dhabi

Four scholars share their findings from high-level meetings in Saudi Arabia, Oman, and the United Arab Emirates. Read a summary or watch complete video of their conversation.

Dec 12, 2017

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Robert Satloff
Michael Singh
Katherine Bauer
Lori Plotkin Boghardt

Brief Analysis

Slavery in Libya: The Migration Crisis Reaches New Heights

The international outcry over a videotaped slave auction underscores the urgency of addressing the country's broken political system.

Dec 4, 2017

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Ben Fishman

In-Depth Reports

Beyond Islamists and Autocrats:

Prospects for Political Reform Post Arab Spring

The compiled series provides a timely country-by-country guidebook for engaging non-Islamist, pluralistically inclined actors in North Africa, the Gulf, and the Levant.

Nov 27, 2017

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David Schenker
Sarah Feuer
Vish Sakthivel
John P. Entelis
Simon Henderson
Nathaniel Rabkin
Nadia al-Sakkaf
Eric Trager
Hala Aldosari
Lori Plotkin Boghardt
Ghaith al-Omari
James Bowker
Andrew J. Tabler
David Pollock
Hassan Mneimneh

Video

Brief Analysis

Authoritarianism, Politics, and Literature in Turkey

Watch a stimulating conversation with acclaimed Turkish writer Ece Temelkuran, whose latest novel examines the upheavals around Turkey's 1980s coup.

Nov 21, 2017

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Ece Temelkuran
Robert Finn
Soner Cagaptay

Articles & Testimony

Saudi 'Purge' a Re-Branding Attempt to Launch a 'Second Kingdom'

Most royal family members understand that the crown prince is merely trying to stave off potential unrest, so U.S. critics should reconsider their objections to his recent moves.

Nov 19, 2017

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Haisam Hassanein
Wesam Hassanein

Brief Analysis

Competing Visions for the Arab Future

The worldview embraced by Qatar holds that political Islamists deserve support, but Saudi Arabia and the UAE have coalesced in opposition to this fundamental premise.

Nov 14, 2017

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David B. Roberts

Brief Analysis

Lebanon's Prime Minister Resigns: What's Next?

Hariri's announcement could make Hezbollah and its Iranian patron more vulnerable to international pressure, particularly if the upcoming parliamentary elections do not go their way.

Nov 6, 2017

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Hanin Ghaddar

Brief Analysis

Saudi Arabia's 'Anti-Corruption' Purge

The shocking spate of high-profile arrests will strengthen the crown prince's political position, but the shakeup raises new concerns about the speed and style of change in the kingdom.

Nov 6, 2017

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Simon Henderson

Brief Analysis

Resetting U.S. Relations with the Kurdistan Region

Washington's post-referendum reengagement should focus on getting U.S.-Kurdish relations and Kurdish democracy back on the right track.

Nov 2, 2017

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Michael Knights
Bilal Wahab

Supported by the

Project Fikra: Defeating Extremism through the Power of Ideas

Fikra n. [Arabic] "Idea"

The Washington Institute's Project Fikra is a multiyear program of research, publication, and network-building designed to generate policy ideas for promoting positive change and countering the spread of extremism in the Middle East.

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Catherine Cleveland

Catherine Cleveland is The Washington Institute's Croft-Wagner Family Senior Fellow and managing editor of Fikra Forum.

Ben Fishman

Ben Fishman is the Steven D. Levy Senior Fellow in the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute, where he focuses on North Africa.

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