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.
Historically a reliable indicator of Khamenei’s thinking, the Supreme Leader’s annual Mashhad address focused mainly on foreign policy, especially why the West should not be trusted, along with his usual call for Iran to develop its non-oil economy.
An expert on Turkish politics expresses the view that alliance pushback may be weaker than in the past, but that the purchase could devastate U.S.-Turkish ties.
A February visit to Tehran by Syrian president Bashar al-Assad showcased just how close the Qods Force-Hezbollah alliance is when it comes to acquiring weapons.
A trip to Iraqi Kurdistan last week, my first since the abortive referendum on independence there in October 2017, revealed a political landscape at once utterly different and eerily familiar.
Farah Pandith, Juan Zarate, and Matthew Levitt
Three experts on countering violent extremism discuss a new book and offer ideas for how government, civil society, business, and citizens can act on this persistent policy challenge.
Articles & Op-Eds
Matthew Levitt and Aaron Y. Zelin
If the Syria withdrawal proves inevitable, officials should push to phase the departure, keep U.S. forces at Tanf, maintain the air campaign, forge a counterterror agreement with Turkey, and take other fallback measures.
Articles & Op-Eds
China likely hoped to find economic opportunities in Syria's reconstruction—yet another example of how it relies on the security umbrella provided by U.S. troops in international conflict zones.
PolicyWatch 3064
Jerusalem seeks to mitigate the potential risks of the president’s decision by shaping its implementation and obtaining U.S. security guarantees, though long-term concerns still loom.
PolicyWatch 3060
Despite the heavy risks created by recent policy reversals, a well-managed transition can help preserve the major gains against the Islamic State while protecting America’s local partners.