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Military & Security

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Brief Analysis
Gulf Coalition Operations in Yemen (Part 2): The Air War
The air campaign has demonstrated surprising endurance and proficiency, but the coalition's strategic communications and efforts to mitigate collateral damage have been sorely lacking.
Mar 25, 2016
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  • Michael Knights
Brief Analysis
Gulf Coalition Operations in Yemen (Part 1): The Ground War
The Saudi-led coalition has waged a dynamic campaign, but all actions so far constitute a prelude to the tougher fighting ahead should the coalition launch an assault on Sana and the Houthi heartland.
Mar 25, 2016
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  • Alex Almeida
  • Michael Knights
Video
Brief Analysis
Putin's Middle East Policy: Causes and Consequences
Two experts discuss Russia's increasingly assertive regional policy and what it means for American and allied interests. Read a summary or watch video of the full event.
Mar 23, 2016
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  • Anna Borshchevskaya
  • Philip Gordon
Articles & Testimony
The Obama Doctrine: Made for the '90s, Disastrous Today
By throwing up his hands in the face of challenges from Russia, Iran, and other actors, the president is yielding to the 'dangerous currents' he once warned could upend the international system.
Mar 21, 2016
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  • James Jeffrey
Articles & Testimony
Does Russia's Faux Withdrawal Mean a New Crisis Is Coming?
Putin's regime is less stable than meets the eye, and Russia's future remains uncertain.
Mar 19, 2016
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  • Anna Borshchevskaya
Brief Analysis
Establishing and Securing Safe Zones in Syria: Historical Lessons
Experience in Iraq, Bosnia, and Libya shows that safe-zone operations require unambiguous legal authorities, clear political and military guidance, robust air and ground forces, and a viable plan for displaced persons and refugees.
Mar 17, 2016
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  • Lt Col John R. Barnett
  • Michael Eisenstadt
Brief Analysis
Russia's Withdrawal Is Another Facade
In addition to Moscow's purposeful ambiguity about the true scope of its withdrawal from Syria, the announcement's timing reflects Putin's intention to force favorable terms in the latest peace talks.
Mar 15, 2016
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  • Anna Borshchevskaya
Brief Analysis
U.S. Military Aid to Israel: Debating an Increase
Instead of allowing persistent bilateral acrimony or domestic politics to delay a sensitive issue, both governments should approach the MOU negotiations as a function of Israel's military and diplomatic needs in a new regional landscape.
Mar 14, 2016
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  • David Makovsky
Brief Analysis
Iranian Casualties in Syria and the Strategic Logic of Intervention
Iran's battlefield losses have continued even after the drawdown of forces it surged into Syria late last year and the subsequent 'cessation of hostilities,' raising questions about Tehran's strategy and tactics in the war.
Mar 11, 2016
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  • Ali Alfoneh
  • Michael Eisenstadt
Articles & Testimony
The Future of Iraq's Armed Forces
Efforts to rebuild Iraqi forces should focus on establishing support units in the right proportion to combat brigades.
Mar 10, 2016
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  • Michael Knights
Brief Analysis
The Israeli Perspective on Safe Zones in Syria
Despite the potential benefits of a safe zone along the Jordan-Syria border, Russia's presence in the war would probably limit Israel's ability to openly support or contribute to such an initiative.
Mar 10, 2016
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  • Nadav Pollak
Fikra Forum
Fikra Forum
Will the Referendum Lead to an Independent Kurdish State?
March 10, 2016 Since February 2016 the public sector in Kurdistan has protested corruption and unpaid wages. For the first time in 25 years, Kurdish protesters are publicly showing their disappointment in the government. Meanwhile, the KDP’s Massoud Barzani, whose term as president has technically come and gone, has begun
Mar 10, 2016
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  • Frzand Sherko
Brief Analysis
A Safe Zone in Southern Syria
As the Assad coalition and the Islamic State turn their attention southward, Jordan and the thousands of displaced Syrians waiting outside its border face an increasingly perilous security situation.
Mar 8, 2016
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  • David Schenker
  • Andrew J. Tabler
Protesters hold Syrian and Hezbollah flags
Brief Analysis
How Iran Is Building Its Syrian Hezbollah
Syrian Shiite fighters increasingly show loyalty to Tehran, over even the Assad regime, marking an important shift in the wartime dynamic.
Mar 8, 2016
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  • Phillip Smyth
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
How to Prevent al-Qaeda from Seizing a Safe Zone in Northwestern Syria
Strong ground support for moderate rebels would be needed to keep any buffer zone in the northwest from falling under the control of al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate.
Mar 7, 2016
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  • Fabrice Balanche
Articles & Testimony
Iraq's Popular Demobilisation
The prime minister has broad backing to begin absorbing Shiite militias into the armed forces, though two key PMUs seem bent on resisting the move.
Feb 26, 2016
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  • Michael Knights
In-Depth Reports
Russia in the Middle East
Motives, Consequences, Prospects
Since becoming president in 2000, Vladimir Putin has reinvigorated Russia's Middle East ties, a trend underscored by his bold military intervention in the Syria crisis. Through these and other regional moves, he has sought to gain ground at the West's expense while bolstering the Kremlin's legitimacy against domestic pressures --
Feb 26, 2016
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  • Anna Borshchevskaya
Brief Analysis
Kerry Neither Rules Out nor Supports Safe Zone Concept
The assertion that such an effort would require up to 30,000 U.S. troops, and that it could risk a direct confrontation with Russia, requires a much closer look.
Feb 26, 2016
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  • James Jeffrey
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Two Potential Safe Zones in Northern Syria
Both Idlib province and eastern Aleppo province have been relatively spared from the fighting, and their rural communities remain strong.
Feb 24, 2016
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  • Fabrice Balanche
Maps & Graphics
Brief Analysis
Ceasefire and Elections in Syria: Putin Still a Step Ahead
If Moscow and Damascus have their way, the latest ceasefire will further divide the rebels, isolate Turkey, and facilitate their ongoing military and political strategy for preserving Assad's rule.
Feb 23, 2016
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  • Fabrice Balanche

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Military and Security Studies Program

The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program has established itself as an unrivaled source of reliable, incisive, and forward-looking analysis concerning several of the most critical national-security challenges facing the United States today: The U.S. military role in the Middle East, Iran's nuclear program and its proxy armies, the ongoing conflict is in Iraq, Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen, the regional proliferation of missiles and weapons of mass destruction, the security dimensions of the Arab-Israeli conflict, and many other security issues on the frontline of the U.S. policymaking agenda.

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Featured experts

Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt
Michael Eisenstadt is the Kahn Senior Fellow and director of The Washington Institute's Military and Security Studies Program.
Michael Knights
Michael Knights
Michael Knights is the Jill and Jay Bernstein Senior Fellow at The Washington Institute and cofounder of the Militia Spotlight platform, which offers in-depth analysis of developments related to Iran-backed militias.
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley
Grant Rumley is the Meisel-Goldberger Senior Fellow and Director of the Diane and Guilford Glazer Foundation Program on Great Power Competition and the Middle East at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Elizabeth Dent - source: The Washington Institute
Elizabeth Dent
Elizabeth Dent is a Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, where she focuses on U.S. foreign and defense policy toward the Gulf states, Iraq, and Syria.
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