Military & Security

Policy Analysis on Military & Security

Brief Analysis

The Vienna Process: Transitioning Toward a Transition?

Recent talks have yielded encouraging dialogue and a plan, but the sticky challenge of Assad’s fate remains.

Dec 17, 2015

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Andrew J. Tabler
Olivier Decottignies

Articles & Testimony

Cauldron of Conflict

The traditional American ally states in the Middle East do not have the strength to tackle the twin challenges of ISIS and Iran on their own, yet Washington remains more or less AWOL while its main partners fixate on domestic discord.

Dec 17, 2015

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James Jeffrey

Video

Brief Analysis

The Islamic State: New Inside Views

Three experts discuss what polls conducted inside the group's territory tell us about its political strength, ability to govern, and appeal beyond Iraq and Syria.

Dec 17, 2015

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Munqith Dagher
Aaron Y. Zelin
David Pollock

Articles & Testimony

Security Challenges in Egypt Two Years After Morsi

While the Sisi government's increasingly repressive trajectory remains a concern, the ongoing deterioration of Egypt's internal security is the more immediate threat, and U.S. policy should be adjusted accordingly.

Dec 16, 2015

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David Schenker

Articles & Testimony

The Islamic State in Southern Syria

Compared to where it was a year ago, the group is far stronger in the south and is gaining steam even as it faces large-scale military campaigns against its forces in the north.

Dec 15, 2015

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Aaron Y. Zelin
Oula A. Alrifai

Brief Analysis

Hamas and the Islamic State: Growing Cooperation in the Sinai

Hamas has long sought to stymie Egyptian control over the peninsula and keep its weapons smuggling routes open, but its latest opportunistic gamble on local jihadists carries wider dangers that should be nipped in the bud by sponsors Turkey and Qatar.

Dec 15, 2015

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Ehud Yaari

Brief Analysis

Yemen Missile Strike Jeopardizes Peace Talks

U.S.-led diplomatic efforts had aimed to make up for the recent lack of military progress and stave off a humanitarian crisis, but a deadly rebel attack could threaten the planned ceasefire.

Dec 14, 2015

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Simon Henderson

Maps & Graphics

Brief Analysis

The Struggle for Azaz Corridor Could Spur a Turkish Intervention

As various forces converge against the main rebel supply line in northern Syria, Russia's wooing of the Kurds could make Turkey rethink its approach.

Dec 11, 2015

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Fabrice Balanche

Brief Analysis

The Costs of Russia's Air Expeditionary Campaign

The air campaign in Syria, Russia's first expeditionary force deployment in decades, comes with numerous challenges and a growing price tag.

Dec 11, 2015

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Lt Col John R. Barnett

Articles & Testimony

Deterring Iran: Time for a New Mindset

As the nuclear deal between Iran and the P5+1 goes into effect with the announcement of Implementation Day and the lifting of major international sanctions, the huge challenge of making it work still lies ahead for the international community. While the deal's prospects will primarily be determined by Western deterrence

Dec 9, 2015

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Michael Herzog

Brief Analysis

How Will the Turkey-Russia Crisis Affect Ankara's NATO Ties?

Moscow's lack of easy retaliatory options and Ankara's longstanding fear of Russia should forestall any showdown requiring NATO intervention, and the recent shootdown incident will help bring Ankara closer to the alliance in the long term.

Dec 9, 2015

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Soner Cagaptay
James Jeffrey

Articles & Testimony

The Syrian Cauldron: A View from Israel

The former head of the IDF's Strategic Planning Division discusses how Israel is prioritizing threats from Iran, the Islamic State, and Hezbollah, and outlines specific, immediate military steps the West can take in Syria instead of banking on containment or elusive political solutions.

Dec 8, 2015

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Michael Herzog

Articles & Testimony

Playing Politics With Boots on the Ground

For many factions operating in Iraq, defeating the Islamic State is not priority number one.

Dec 8, 2015

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Michael Knights

Brief Analysis

Israeli-Russian Coordination in Syria: So Far So Good?

Although their close tactical coordination has prevented any bilateral flare-ups so far, Israel needs to plan for the likelihood that its relative freedom of operation in Syria will diminish the minute its actions interfere with Moscow's interests.

Dec 7, 2015

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Nadav Pollak

Maps & Graphics

Brief Analysis

Ethnic Cleansing Threatens Syria's Unity

The escalating conflict remains a sectarian war, and deliberate ethnic cleansing by various actors is drawing new internal borders that will be difficult to erase.

Dec 3, 2015

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Fabrice Balanche

Brief Analysis

Why Britain Should Expand Airstrikes to Syria

A yes vote is important not just for the expected increase in tactical effectiveness it would bring on the Syrian battlefield, but also for signaling that the strategic alliance within the EU and between Europe and the United States is seamless.

Dec 2, 2015

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Lt Col John R. Barnett

Articles & Testimony

Netanyahu and Putin Rendezvous in Paris

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin will meet on the sidelines of the UN climate summit in Paris today to discuss the situation in Syria, fighting terrorism, and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to Russian and Western press reports. Earlier, at Israel's initiative according to a Kremlin

Nov 30, 2015

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Anna Borshchevskaya

Articles & Testimony

Russia Will Want to Make Turkey Pay

For now, Moscow's retaliation will most likely come against Turkish commercial exports or gas imports, but continued Russian operations near the border mean that a dangerous military escalation is still possible.

Nov 27, 2015

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Soner Cagaptay

Brief Analysis

After Paris: French Voices on the Challenge of ISIS, Syria, Iraq, and Islamist Terrorism

French experts discuss how the Paris attacks will affect European foreign and domestic policy, including efforts to broaden and deepen the coalition in Syria.

Nov 24, 2015

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Gilles Kepel
Fabrice Balanche
Olivier Decottignies

◆ Counterterrorism Lecture Series

Brief Analysis

U.S. Carrier Deployment Opens a Strategic Opportunity in the Mediterranean

By stopping in the Mediterranean on its way to the Persian Gulf and conducting joint anti-ISIS strikes with the French, the USS Truman could send a strong message to NATO allies and Moscow alike.

Nov 23, 2015

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Cmdr. Ryan T. Tewell

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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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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 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 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

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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