Policy Analysis

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.

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.

A spirited policy debate is underway within the corridors of power in Washington D.C. over the manner in which the United States should view and treat the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), Iraq’s web of paramilitary organizations. It takes a great deal of concern to elevate such a niche issue to

In successive polls, approval of the United States within the Sunni Lebanese community has rated consistently high—a fact that stands in contrast with low numbers in other Sunni Arab populations. Certainly, part of the discrepancy reflects internal Lebanese politics. Sunni Lebanese view Washington, together with Riyadh and Paris, as backers

Baghdad is suing Ankara for giving the Kurds independent pipeline access, but the biggest loser may be Washington’s pressure campaign on Iran.

Hoping to pressure Europe into providing more concessions, Tehran may threaten to reduce its commitments under the nuclear deal, but can it avoid escalation with Washington while doing so?

Despite the opposition’s resilience, the president can use any number of legal, political, or foreign policy tools to ensure his candidate wins this time around, no matter the reputational costs.

Morocco was one of the few countries in the Arab World partially spared by the upheaval of the Arab Spring. However, recent regime changes in Algeria and Sudan, along with continued domestic discontent, suggest that Morocco should reexamine its prior response to its domestic version of the Arab Spring—the 20

American ships and bombers are arriving in the Gulf at a time when nerves are raw and various players are making risky escalation wagers.

If the battle lines stay where they are now, with the capital and largest port still out of government control, then the Iranian-backed Houthis will effectively have won the war.

The chances of extracting substantial concessions from the current regime are not great, but the odds fall to zero if Washington withholds security assurances or waits for the inevitably chaotic transition period.

Even amid growing exasperation over Riyadh’s behavior, realities on the ground and in the global economy show why the relationship is still crucial.

Watch a keynote conversation between White House senior advisor Jared Kushner and Institute executive director Rob Satloff.

Rather than acknowledge history and face the future, the Russian government keeps celebrating a past in which the people were suppressed, secrecy was championed, and fear nurtured.

By highlighting the hypocrisy of recent ‘housecleaning’ campaigns, Washington can show the Iraqi public that Iran’s Shia militia networks offer no genuine solution to rampant corruption.