Middle Orient

In the weeks preceding the visit of U.S. President Joe Biden to Saudi Arabia for the July 16, 2022 Jeddah Security and Development Summit, Arab and international media published numerous reports claiming that one of the main topics slated to be discussed at the summit – attended by Biden and …

Syrian Kurdish leader says Turkish intentions unclear. Will Turkey mount yet another military incursion against US-backed Kurdish forces in northeastern Syria “at any time, any moment,” as the country’s President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has been threatening for some time? The threat seemed to subside as Erdogan came back “empty handed,” …

The Coordination Framework, which is the largest bloc in the parliament, has nominated Mohammed Shia al-Sudani for the prime minister position. Amid the longstanding political deadlock followed by the parliamentary elections in October 2021, the Coordination Framework, which is the largest bloc in the Iraqi parliament, nominated Mohammed Shia al-Sudani …

The Islamic Republic took the step following the Russian president’s meeting with Iran’s leader in Tehran, where the two explored options on how to push back on international sanctions. Iran’s Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi announced on July 26 that the US dollar has officially been ditched in his country’s trade …

Israeli President Isaac Herzog is now trying to discreetly resolve the diplomatic dispute between Moscow and Jerusalem so that the Jewish Agency can continue its activities there. Five months after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Israel finds itself at a stand-off with President Vladimir Putin. The sophisticated balancing act executed by …

The Islamic Republic of Iran did not murder just one American journalist… in 1983, Iran murdered 241 American servicemen in the US Marine Corps barracks in Beirut. To top it off, then in 2018, Iran was ordered by a US federal court to pay billions of dollars in compensation to …

Russian, Iranian presidents aim to prevent Turkey from a new offensive in northern Syria. The leaders of Russia, Turkey and Iran are gathering in Tehran, with Ankara’s threat of a new incursion into northern Syria likely to top the agenda. While Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has both domestic and …

Forget retrenchment: Strategic competition and boosting security cooperation, particularly to counter Iran, will keep Washington focused on the region. President Biden made his first trip to the Middle East last week, visiting Israel and Saudi Arabia. While the trip yielded little in the way of flashy announcements — like new …

‘The deal is absolutely on the table but I don’t think the Iranians want it,’ MI6 director tells security forum; CIA chief says Tehran’s advance toward atomic bomb is ‘troubling’ Britain’s spy chief voiced doubt Thursday on reviving a landmark 2015 nuclear accord with Iran, saying Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali …

‘The Americans must accept some commitments. We do not want an agreement at any price,’ Hossein Amir-Abdollahian says Iran is seeking economic guarantees from the US to revive a long-stalled 2015 nuclear deal so as “not to be stung twice” the same way, its foreign minister said. The agreement, formally …