Middle Orient

As part of a continued collaboration with the Middle East Peace and Security Forum held in Iraqi Kurdistan at the American University of Kurdistan, the Middle East Institute and the Iraq Policy Group held a workshop on Nov. 15, 2022 focusing on challenges of economic diversification, energy transition, and impacts …

In response to Lebanon’s seemingly imminent transition into a failed state, this article introduces a new framework to explain the country’s protracted crisis. In turn, we unpack what the past four years of international responses to Lebanon got wrong and make the case for a new assertive approach for Washington …

Despite the economic sanctions against it, Iran continues its efforts towards enrichment of weapons-grade uranium.[1] This demands immediate action on the part of the West, and such action was about to be taken at the International Atomic Energy Agency Board of Directors meeting on March 6-9, 2023. Ahead of the …

The Iranian Asr-e Iran website, which is close to pragmatic circles, protested, in a February 19, 2023 article, against Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi’s governance, along with that of his economic team, against the backdrop of his economic promises to voters and following the deterioration of Iran’s economic situation – particularly …

Today, China is victorious by sponsoring the historic agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, while the US has a new president who comes to destroy agreements reached by his predecessor, and even brags about it during his election campaign and his presidency.” — Saeed Al-Mryti, Saudi political activist, Twitter, March …

The core lesson of the 2003 Iraq war is that ruptures in autocratic settings are inherently fraught with risk. Policymakers should approach proposed interventions in such settings with caution. When President Barack Obama admonished his foreign policy team, “Don’t do stupid stuff” (he used an earthier phrase), there was no …

The arrest warrant from the International Criminal Court for Russian President Vladimir Putin came at an opportune moment. It was, if nothing else, a feeble distraction over the misdeeds and crimes of other leaders current and former. Russia, not being an ICC member country, does not acknowledge that court’s jurisdiction. …

Twenty years ago, the United States invaded Iraq with faulty intelligence, inadequate planning, and the impossibly ambitious aim of constructing a new Iraqi nation to American specifications. The result was over a trillion dollars lost, thousands of U.S. service members killed and wounded, hundreds of thousands of Iraqis dead, a …

China’s mediation of the Saudi-Iran normalization agreement signals a potential break from its long-standing policy of keeping to a minimal and economically oriented regional footprint. By successfully bringing two of the Middle East’s bitterest rivals to the negotiation table, China aims to build credibility as a capable partner in a …

March 2023 will be remembered as a good month for the Islamic Republic of Iran. First, Iran and longtime foe, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, announced they would re-establish full diplomatic relations and reopen embassies within sixty days, thanks to China’s mediation (and Iraq’s and Oman’s early efforts). The news …