Through our Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East and Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative, the Atlantic Council works with allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

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Meet our blogs

MENASource

MENASource follows movements across the region and provides news and analysis on current events, including a platform for Middle Eastern perspectives, among others, on major issues—economic, political, security, cultural—that are at stake in the post-Arab Spring era.  

IranSource

IranSource provides a holistic look at Iran’s internal dynamics, global and regional policies, and posture through unique analysis of current events and long-term, strategic issues related to Iran.

All commentary & analysis

MENASource

Feb 3, 2021

Preventing partition: The case against a diplomatic band-aid in Libya

By Will O’Brien

There are three primary arguments against partitioning Libya: the historical outcomes of partitioned countries, the potential for exacerbating the ongoing proxy war in Libya, and the risk of degrading international institutions.

Libya
Middle East

Op-Ed

Feb 2, 2021

Fontenrose in The National Interest: How Joe Biden hopes to shift US policy in the Middle East

In real terms, what aspects of US policy toward the Middle East will remain relatively unchanged under Biden, and what will be notably different?

Middle East
Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Feb 2, 2021

Israel, UAE leap ahead in vaccination drive against coronavirus

By Jonathan H. Ferziger

The efficient manner in which Israel and the UAE have acquired and administered the vaccines contrasts with what has been described as a bumbling process in the United States and some of Europe’s most advanced economies.

Israel
Middle East

empowerME Conversations

Feb 2, 2021

From Fashion to Fintech

By Atlantic Council

In Season 1, Episode 4 of empowerME Conversations podcast, host Amjad Ahmad interviews Tabby Co-Founder and CEO Hosam Arab about why he became an entrepreneur and what it takes to succeed, the customer needs his companies have met, how he scaled his businesses across regional borders, the changes in e-commerce and payment options in recent years in the Middle East, and changes to laws and regulations that would boost business.

Economy & Business
Iran

MENASource

Feb 1, 2021

Syria: Which way forward under Biden?

By Frederic C. Hof

The default position of President Joe Biden and his team will likely be along the lines of trying to manage the mess.

Middle East
Syria

MENASource

Feb 1, 2021

How President Biden can tackle the Middle East’s biggest problems

By Kirsten Fontenrose, Ebtesam Al-Ketbi, and Udi Dekel

In a first project of trilateral collaboration, the directors and strategists from leading think tanks in the US, the UAE, and Israel have submitted nine recommendations on issues that deserve priority treatment from the new administration.

Israel
Middle East

IranSource

Jan 28, 2021

Iran is actually reducing its weapons-usable uranium inventory

By Robert Kelley

Iran’s growing stockpile of 20 percent UF6 is far less worrisome when it is converted to a form not suitable for further enrichment. This is a nonproliferation victory.

Iran
Politics & Diplomacy

Arab Spring

Jan 27, 2021

The unlikely success of Egypt’s 2011 revolution: A revived women’s movement

By Sara Khorshid

What distinguishes the past decade from other parts of contemporary Egyptian history is the growing interest in women’s rights among broader segments of Egyptian society, including non-ideological women with little to no experience in political or social activism. This has occurred despite the general oppressive atmosphere that has cast a dark shadow over the January 25th revolution and its memory.

Middle East
North Africa

empowerME Conversations

Jan 26, 2021

Double Vision

By Atlantic Council

In Season 1, Episode 3 of empowerME Conversations podcast, host Amjad Ahmad interviews eyewa Co-Founders and Co-CEOs Anass Boumediene and Mehdi Oudghiri about the mindset that will create more entrepreneurs in the Middle East, policy changes that will lead to more unicorns, the acceleration of online payments and e-commerce, and new technologies that will soon replace in-person fitting rooms and eye tests.

Economy & Business
Middle East

IranElections2021

Jan 25, 2021

Iran’s hardliners think Biden might hurt their June presidential election strategy

By Saeid Jafari

Hardliners had hoped that Donald Trump’s re-election would help them to oust the reformist and moderate candidates in June’s presidential election. Now hardliners are concerned that the new US administration will destroy their plans.

Iran
Middle East
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