Policy Analysis

The Kurdish-led force cannot hold the northeast on its own, and withdrawing coalition support would bolster Assad and Moscow’s interests.

The IDF's former top general discusses Russia’s role in advancing security goals in Syria, ongoing Israeli concerns about Iran’s nuclear ambitions, the humanitarian imperative of keeping a lid on Hamas and Hezbollah, and more.

Even prior to the announced withdrawal from Syria, the longstanding unwillingness of the United States and the West to become seriously involved in the war has encouraged Russia to entrench itself militarily there. Russia now has a number of secure military bases throughout the country, in addition to airport access

An in-depth look at Putin’s economic, military, and diplomatic outreach to the continent, which has extended well past North African states following his successful power play in Syria.

When Sudanese Defense Minister Awad Ibn Auf issued a statement on April 11, 2019 revealing that Sudan’s longtime dictator Omar al-Bashir had resigned and that a military council would undertake a two-year "transitional governing period,” a number of indicators revealed a shift in domestic and regional attitudes that were likely

The Washington Institute began systematically translating new and archived analysis into Persian in early 2018, in preparation for the October launch of our Persian website. In the course of preparing these articles, Institute translators have been guided by a preference for accuracy and idiomatic clarity - that is, choosing words

To ensure an outcome that benefits U.S. interests in the region, Washington must take a concrete position on Libya that leads to peaceful negotiations rather than armed conflict.

Attacks on tankers near the Strait of Hormuz and Saudi Arabia’s main internal pipeline have accelerated the emerging Gulf crisis and could cause prices to spike worldwide.

Ankara’s calculations about the rebel province appear to have shifted, though it still hopes to use the situation as leverage for constraining the YPG and preventing another refugee influx.

“We will not allow Iraq to become a battlefield for other countries to clear their debts”—this statement would be unremarkable coming from many Iraqi politicians, as it is in sync with the current view of most Iraqi political parties and the three Presidencies of Iraq: the President, Prime Minister and

The seven-weeks-long wave of protests in Algeria against the candidacy of Abdelaziz Bouteflika has successfully ended the former president’s bid for a fifth term and forced him to resign without finishing his fourth. But now that the dust has settled, Algerians are questioning the achievements of the protests and remain

If Iran duplicates its formula from Lebanon, Syria, and Yemen by sending long-range missiles to Iraq, then future conflicts with Israel would likely include military action on Iraqi soil.

Change is certainly happening in the kingdom, but it hasn’t been smooth, and doesn’t look like it will be so in the future either.

The only way to protect the long-term viability of the plan's best aspects is to kill it.

To counter Russia’s long game, Washington must show its willingness to compete by maintaining a credible regional presence, crafting a clearer message about its intentions, and moving beyond sanctions.

Two signature Trump Administration initiatives dominate U.S. Mideast policy today: “maximum pressure” against Iran and pursuit of an Israeli-Palestinian peace “deal of the century.” In recent weeks, Washington has upped the ante on both. It has tightened oil sanctions against Iran and designated the entire Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as

An Israeli-Palestinian truce ended the fighting but didn’t address the issues driving it.