Policy Analysis

March 31, 2016 In the aftermath of the P5+1 agreement with Iran, the Arab Middle East has been processing two widely conflicting messages from Tehran. The first message is a soft appeal for friendship directed at the global community as a whole, which is built on promise and good intentions

March 31, 2016 President Erdogan’s approach to securing the loyalties of Turkey’s Kurdish populace has taken many forms: granting Kurds stronger civil rights, extending the olive branch to the Kurdistan Worker’s Party (PKK) insurgency, and permitting the first pro-Kurdish party to gain Parliament seats in a country where political organizations

Policymakers and scholars need to tread carefully when describing how Islamist groups relate to and influence one another in their ambitions and priorities.

What with Yemen, Iran, Syria, and oil, U.S.-Saudi relations appear to have many dimensions these days, so there is little time for questionable diplomatic gestures that could complicate the imminent nuclear and GCC summits.

Given the risks associated with further economic reform, Egypt's appointment of new and highly qualified cabinet ministers will not necessarily result in new policies.

Although U.S. and Gulf assistance has been vital thus far, Jordan's expenses related to hosting refugees and securing the border outstrip what it is receiving.

If the coalition-backed Iraqi and Kurdish governments make the right deals and send the right messages, the nascent campaign to retake the city could be very different from the military slogs in Tikrit and Ramadi.

Read a summary or watch video of this energetic debate on how Washington should balance vitally important relationships with Turkey and the Syrian Kurds in the fight against the Islamic State.

Erdogan's interactions with President Obama could shed light on long-gestating proposals for retaking ISIS-held areas in northern Syria, as well as the status of recent bilateral tensions and the future of Turkish policy toward the Kurds.

An exclusively hard-power approach to stopping ISIS could embolden its followers, while soft power alone is no match for the group's theological pull, so the U.S. government will need to look more closely at how its strategies are interpreted abroad.

A new court decision could stunt exploitation of offshore gas reserves, open the possibility of a heavy punitive arbitration award, and hamper foreign investment in Israel.

Ankara may have scaled back its grand ambitions in the Middle East, but is the EU ready to hold its nose in dealing with Erdogan's authoritarian administration?

Police and prevention officers in the Islamist hotbed of Molenbeek are eager to step up their counterradicalization efforts, but they are running short on resources and time.

In Iraq, the menace of radical Shiite cleric Moqtada al-Sadr, leader of the Sadrist Movement, has reared its head again, posing serious challenges to Prime Minister Abadi and his plans for government reform. For several months, Abadi’s efforts to fight corruption and replace incompetent ministers with technocrats have faced resistance

For the first weeks of 2016, the imminent “Geneva 3” conference was hyped as the best chance to a find a political solution to the seemingly indefinite Syrian civil war. Despite the buzz and high expectations for diplomacy, violence marked the eve of the negotiations. Syrian soldiers, the YPG, Afghan

The coalition has restricted Iranian resupply of the Houthis by air and sea, and selective reopening of Yemeni ports may be possible as they fall to pro-Hadi forces.

The air campaign has demonstrated surprising endurance and proficiency, but the coalition's strategic communications and efforts to mitigate collateral damage have been sorely lacking.

The Saudi-led coalition has waged a dynamic campaign, but all actions so far constitute a prelude to the tougher fighting ahead should the coalition launch an assault on Sana and the Houthi heartland.

Small-scale attacks by homegrown radicals are out, complex plots to maximize carnage are in, and the long-term domestic threat to Europe is stark.

Five months ago Nawshirwan Mustafa, general organizer of the Change Movement (Gorran) party in Kurdistan, left Iraq for London under the pretext of receiving medical treatment for chronic back pain. His extended stay has puzzled not only his rivals, but also his supporters. Silence over Mustafa’s condition, as well as