Riyadh

April 18, 2025 | |

‘We Don’t Have Much Time’: IAEA Chief Issues Warning Ahead of Nuclear Talks Between Iran and United States

Grossi’s Warning: The head of the United Nations’ nuclear watchdog warned on April17 that talks between the United States and Iran had reached “a very crucial stage.” Rafael...

March 21, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

The Big Question: Will American Airpower Crush the Houthis?

On March 15, the US began a campaign of airstrikes against the Iranian-backed Houthis in Yemen. US Central Command said it had “initiated a  series of operations consisting of precision strikes...

February 20, 2025 | RADM (Ret.) Mark Montgomery, Bradley Bowman, John Hardie, Joe Dougherty

Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine: Three Years Later

February 19, 2025 | |

‘He is Not Going to Have a Country Left’: Trump Dispute With Ukrainian President Zelensky Escalates Following U.S.-Russia Talks

‘Disinformation Space’: A public feud between U.S. President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelensky, escalated on February 19, one day after American...

February 19, 2025 | John Hardie |

Kremlin Retains Maximalist Goals in Ukraine, U.S. Pressure Needed

Washington took an initial step toward thawing relations with Moscow on Tuesday as U.S. and Russian officials met in Riyadh for talks on Ukraine. A peace deal remains far off, however. The Kremlin continues...

February 13, 2025 | Jonathan Schanzer |

Disruptions and Challenges in the Middle East

Significant challenges await the Trump administration’s attention.

February 2, 2025 | Jonathan Schanzer |

Trump’s Second Shot at Peace in the Middle East

REVIEW: ‘One Jewish State: The Last, Best Hope to Resolve the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict’ by David Friedman and ‘The Battle for the Jewish State: How Israel—And America—Can Win’ by Victoria Coates

January 23, 2025 | |

‘Shared Challenges’: Israel Considers Sending Russian Weapons Seized From Hezbollah to Ukraine

Legislation Would Transfer Russian Weapons to Ukraine: Acknowledging common threats, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos on January 22.

January 22, 2025 | |

‘Outside Overseers’: Gaza Ceasefire Crossing Points Crafted

Tentative Rafah Reopening: Pushing back against Arab media reports of a deal to hand over control of the Rafah crossing on the Gaza-Egypt border to the Palestinian Authority (PA),...

January 15, 2025 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Trump Doctrine 2.0: What It Means for the Middle East

Countries across the Middle East are making moves and preparing for President Donald Trump’s incoming United States administration. Many of the region’s leaders were in power during the first...

January 10, 2025 | Hussain Abdul-Hussain |

Lebanon’s Aoun could move toward peace – if Hezbollah lets him

The Iran-backed militia is bowed but not broken – and it could still find a way to hijack Saudi funds for its own rehabilitation

January 2, 2025 | Aaron Goren, Enia Krivine

Critical and opportune: Time to take out the Houthis

Addressing the threat may provide a critical opportunity to secure strategic alliances that could dramatically alter the future of the region.

December 24, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Israel and the US know that only sustained bombing will stamp out the Houthis’ threat

The Houthis now pose as the proverbial ‘last man standing’ in the Iranian axis

December 17, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Why are the Houthis attacking Israel – and can they be deterred?

The Houthis may think they can get away with anything without paying a price. The question is, what price is enough to make them stop?

December 11, 2024 | Jack Burnham |

Assad’s Downfall Sets Back China’s Middle East Strategy

Bashar al-Assad’s stunning fall from power has deprived China of a valued partner in the Middle East, exposing the limits of its broader strategy to damage the United States’ regional standing via...

December 9, 2024 | Richard Goldberg |

How to Bring Back Maximum Pressure on Iran

At the end of 2020, the Islamic Republic of Iran was down to just $4 billion in accessible foreign exchange reserves. Its terrorist mastermind, Qassem Solemani, and the godfather of its nuclear weapons...

December 8, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

As Assad falls and Iran weakens, Qatar gains influence across Middle East

While Israel is pleased to see the weakness of the Iranian-backed axis, it’s worth pausing and noting that celebrations should be tempered by reality.

November 19, 2024 | Richard Goldberg |

As UN ramps up pressure on Israel, lame-duck Biden is letting history repeat

It’s back to the future at the UN Security Council this week as an outgoing Democratic administration eyes multilateral opportunities to support its Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions campaign against...

November 11, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Iran’s President claims he’s ‘too busy’ to attend summit in Saudi

The meeting comes while the region prepares for incoming US President Donald Trump to take office.

November 10, 2024 | Seth J. Frantzman |

Qatar’s bait and switch game as mediator and host

Qatar is arguing that it won’t act as a mediator any longer, threatening the fate of the hostages because a deal would be harder without Doha in the middle.