Assad exits and Khamenei’s strategy unravels
Lessons to be learned in the Middle East
Soviet Union
IDF strikes former Syrian regime military sites
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) carried out strikes on more than 300 targets in Syria over several days in the wake of the Assad regime’s fall on December 8. The strikes aimed at key military...
Op-eds
Team Trump mustn’t buy Putin’s nuke threats: We’re not on the verge of WW III
Russian strongman Vladimir Putin is beating his chest again, hinting he may use nuclear weapons. Don’t buy the bluffs: We’re not on the verge of a nuclear World War III. Putin’s huffing...
Op-eds
Out with the old in the Old World: How Trump can usher in Eastern Europe’s moment
“In times of rapid change,” remarked industrialist J. Paul Getty, “experience could be your worst enemy.” For those in Washington, Brussels, and Berlin who are panicking about what a second...
Op-eds
Power Outages Highlights Iran’s Growing Vulnerability
The Iranian government’s warning that Iranians should expect widespread blackouts this cold season suggests Iran may soon face a perfect storm. The scheduled electricity cuts come not only as Iranian...
Policy Briefs
Russia continues to subvert democracy in Moldova and Georgia
Excerpt America isn’t the only country that just held a consequential election. In the former Soviet republics of Moldova and Georgia, citizens recently voted in contests where aspirations to join...
Op-eds
Why did Israel’s new foreign minister embrace the Kurdish people?
Israel has long enjoyed positive relations with Kurdish people in the Middle East. It is part of a partnership between Jews and Kurds and also shared interests in the region
Op-eds
BRICS showcases non-Western world order emerging
The expansion of BRICS into countries that are close to the West shows how many states are hedging their bets on this non-western group of powerful economies.
Op-eds
Guterres embraces the authoritarians
By attending a three-day summit in Russia and lending credence to Putin’s despotism, the U.N. secretary-general is effectively spitting in the faces of both Ukraine and Israel.
Op-eds
Presidents of Iran and Russia Tout Growing Ties
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian touted growing ties between the two countries on October 11 as they met in person for the first time in person...
Flash Briefs
Iran’s FM Abbas Araghchi taps Vahid Jalalzadeh for new role
The appointment does not seem to fit well with Jalalzadeh’s previous record as the head of the Iranian Parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee and some of his other roles.
Op-eds
The need to move beyond America’s new containment
A "small yard, high fence"-centered approach to China is ill-suited for today’s technological and geopolitical environment and threatens to have a deleterious effect on the global economy. Beijing’s distortive, state-backed industrial policy requires a more systemic response. A full-throated American defense of free trade and economic prosperity would better mobilize the private sector and American allies – as opposed to an approach that relies solely on tactical restrictions on trade and investment.
Op-eds
Twenty-three years into the long war
The threat matrix keeps expanding
Op-eds
Iranian Lawmaker Admits Tehran Sent Missiles to Russia
A member of the Iranian parliament’s National Security and Foreign Policy Committee acknowledged on September 8 that Iran had transferred ballistic missiles to Russia for use in...
Flash Briefs
Iranian official claims Tehran leading in missile capabilities – is it true?
While Iran claims to be one of the top superpowers when it comes to air defenses, much of its arsenal relies on recycled ideas, material and weapons.
Op-eds
Ukraine’s Invasion of Kursk: A Silver Bullet, a Wild Gamble, or Both?
Ukraine’s attack on Kursk has surprised the Russians, and some of Ukraine’s allies, who were caught unprepared for such a move. Not less surprising is the Russian response, instead of shifting troops...
Op-eds
America’s ‘self-defeat’ in Afghanistan
Three years after the U.S. withdrawal, lessons should have been learned
Op-eds
Turkey is committed to undermining NATO
Ankara is blowing past established norms and boundaries
Op-eds
Enough is enough: NATO must suspend cooperation with Turkey
Under the brutally authoritarian rule of Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, its diehard Islamist president, it has stood out as the alliance’s greatest liability.
Op-eds
Russian and Chinese Strategic Bombers Patrol near Alaska
Russian and Chinese strategic bombers conducted a combined patrol near Alaska on Wednesday in the latest sign of military cooperation between the two U.S. adversaries. The incident underscores the determination...