Policy Analysis

The new command shift, which is rooted in years of growing collaboration away from the limelight, promises to facilitate bilateral and regional security cooperation and burden sharing, while the IDF-EUCOM-CENTCOM experience sets the stage for the next frontier: U.S.-Israeli military dialogue on the China-Iran partnership.

Sultan Haitham’s latest decrees elevated his son to heir, sacked commanders, and spotlighted his brother’s influence, but the government’s main focus is still squarely on economic reform.

Increasing natural gas production and enhancing the oil industry are critical to reviving Iraq's economy.

Shia militias in Iraq are losing control of their own narrative, and their true motives are becoming visible.

Explosions in Riyadh, uncertainty about the Iran nuclear deal, and a potentially damaging CIA report about Jamal Khashoggi’s murder are among the many factors that could alter the new administration’s calculus.

Although the instinct to make dramatic changes is understandable and sometimes correct, certain elements of Trump policy provide good opportunities for furthering Arab-Israel engagement, pressuring Iran, and advancing other issues.

Even if Fatah and Hamas somehow get past the same towering political obstacles that derailed past decrees, elections hold little prospect of reconciling their deeply entrenched leaders and institutions anytime soon.

Hezbollah is profiting from the pandemic.

Institute Senior Fellow Anna Borshchevskaya explains the implications of countrywide protests across the Russian Federation.

The Biden administration will exhibit a blend of Trump's and Obama's policies towards Israel and Palestinians.

Giving the legislature a makeover is Cairo’s latest bid to ease public frustrations, but will a token opposition be enough to keep socioeconomic tensions from boiling over?

The Biden administration can succeed by strengthening and expanding Israeli normalization with Arab states and pursuing gradualism on the Palestinian issue.

The Iraqi government continues to sharpen the leadership of various commands and bolster civilian control, giving the U.S.-led coalition more leverage to fight the Islamic State with a light footprint.

Veteran NGO practitioners with deep experience in the aid sector discuss how Washington can help fix flawed approaches to assisting civilians in these two conflict zones.

A recent poll gauges Egyptians' lasting impressions of their chapter in the Arab Spring.

Gridlock and economic stagnation are testing the Arab world's only functioning democracy.

Growing unrest in the birthplace of the Arab Spring could translate into serious instability for the young democracy, with potential repercussions beyond its borders.

Antony Blinken, Avril Haines, and Lloyd Austin responded at length to congressional questions about the Iran nuclear deal, the Yemen war, Arab-Israel normalization, and other pressing regional issues.

Reconciliation in the Gulf does not mean isolation for Turkey.

U.S. and Iraqi Kurdish officials discuss the future of the region's natural gas sector, including proposals for surmounting various political and commercial hurdles.