In the wake of President Trump’s decision to withdraw the United States from the Iran nuclear deal, and continued escalation between Israel and Iran in Syria, many question whether we are on the verge of a showdown between Israel and Iran, or worse, regional conflagration. Meanwhile, actors across the Middle East are anticipating shifts in the balance of regional power and the results of recent elections in Lebanon and Iraq may call into question the level of future U.S. support to those countries. 

Please join the Atlantic Council on Monday, May 21 from 2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m. for a conversation on rising tensions in the Middle East. Following an introduction by Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, Atlantic Council board director and former US permanent representative to the United Nations, panelists  Norman Roule, former national intelligence manager for Iran at the Office of the Director of National Intelligence; Nicholas Blanford, nonresident senior fellow and Beirut-based correspondent for Christian Science monitor; and Mona Yacoubian, senior advisor for Syria at the US Institute of Peace and former deputy assistant administrator in the Middle East bureau at the US Agency for International Development, will participate in a discussion moderated by Faysal Itani, senior fellow in the Council’s Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East.

How might we expect to see manifestations of rising Israel-Iran tensions? What are the implications for neighbors like Syria and Lebanon? What is the likelihood of new conflicts in the region, and how might the United States respond? We look forward to hearing from our expert panelists on the situation on the ground in Lebanon, Syria, Israel, and beyond, and potential US policy responses. We hope you can join us for a rich and timely discussion.

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Atlantic Council
1030 15th Street NW, 12th Floor (West Tower Elevator) 
Washington, DC 

This event is open to press and on the record.

VISITING THE COUNCIL: Metro and parking info