All Policy Analysis by Anna Borshchevskaya

As Washington pushes Erdogan to act responsibly in northeast Syria, the Turkish leader may face contrary pressures from Russia and Iran, who are keeping forces on the ground to back up whatever demands are made at this week’s summit and beyond.

Russia has steadily inserted itself into Iraq's military, energy, and educational sectors, and these relationships could turn Baghdad further away from the United States now that the Trump administration has ceded Syria to Moscow.

Muddled governance, harsh crackdowns, and outside interference threaten to overturn the fragile freedom that Iraqis have won at great cost.

In September 2015, Moscow made its first push outside former Soviet borders when it authorized airstrikes in Syria. More pertinently, the move—and Russia's broader intervention in Syria—constituted a step toward reshaping the whole regional balance of power, taking advantage of a diminishing U.S. footprint. According to the Russian defense minister

Armenia, Georgia, and Azerbaijan still have pro-Western democratic aspirations, so U.S. policymakers should continue engaging them on ways to reduce interference from Moscow and Tehran.

Ultimately, no deal is better than a bad deal, and Moscow’s track record in Syria suggests it is both unable and unwilling to keep Iran out.

An in-depth look at Putin’s economic, military, and diplomatic outreach to the continent, which has extended well past North African states following his successful power play in Syria.

To counter Russia’s long game, Washington must show its willingness to compete by maintaining a credible regional presence, crafting a clearer message about its intentions, and moving beyond sanctions.

Rather than acknowledge history and face the future, the Russian government keeps celebrating a past in which the people were suppressed, secrecy was championed, and fear nurtured.

A recent spate of high-level regional visits may pave the way for Moscow to entrench itself from the East Mediterranean to the Gulf of Aden, with help from the Gulf states.

Moscow will likely continue using the struggle over Karabakh to pursue its own interests.

Moscow casts itself as a reliable mediator and security partner, but in actuality it benefits from playing all sides of regional disputes and fostering perpetual low-level conflict.

The Kremlin often becomes more aggressive abroad to help shore up its legitimacy at home, so it may be more than happy to maintain a permanent state of low-level, managed conflict in the region.

If recent history is any indicator, ceding further ground to Russia virtually guarantees that the conflict will keep simmering for years to come.

All eyes will be on the secretary’s speech this week, so striking the right balance between President Trump’s domestic imperatives and the realities of regional policy is crucial.

Explore the subtle strategies, including information manipulation, that Moscow is using to expand Russian influence in the Middle East.

The Italian-sponsored stabilization conference produced some positive outcomes, but a genuine breakthrough requires U.S. involvement.