Middle East Programs Commentary & Analysis

Our blogs feature thoughtful reflections and opinions on current events in the Middle East & North Africa.

Through our Middle East Programs, 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

New Atlanticist

Feb 9, 2017

Iran Tests Trump

Iran is testing the weight of US President Donald J. Trump’s words with its latest missile tests, said an Atlantic Council analyst. Tensions between Iran and the United States have been ratcheted up as Trump and his National Security Advisor Michael Flynn said they were putting the Islamic Republic “on notice” in response to Iran’s […]

Iran

Video

Feb 9, 2017

Saab and Daniels on Iran

MENASource

Feb 6, 2017

Putting Institutions First

By Salam Fayyad

While initiating political reform is difficult, sustaining it is even more so. This is not unique to Arab societies. Rather, it is a challenge that today’s well-functioning democracies had to contend with in their often-turbulent formative years. The answer is a process of smart incrementalism, which establishes and safeguards state institutions while creating the potential […]

IranSource

Feb 3, 2017

US-Iran Tensions Could Boost Hardline Presidential Candidates

By Adam Weinstein

This week a photo of former Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad appeared on social media in front of the ruins of Persepolis. Ahmadinejad’s supporters quickly spread the photograph on Facebook and Twitter with election-like endorsements, even though his candidacy for another term as president has been tacitly barred by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Feb 2, 2017

Iran Nuclear Deal: Future Tense

The future of the Iran nuclear deal—a multilateral agreement that cuts off the Islamic Republic’s path to a nuclear weapon—appears uncertain with US President Donald Trump in the White House. On the campaign trail, Trump pledged to rip up the deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). His top cabinet picks […]

Congressional Relations

Feb 1, 2017

Iran Symposium: Does the Iran Nuclear Deal Help or Harm US Interests in the Middle East

By Future of Iran Initiative

On Monday, January 30, 2017, the South Asia Center’s Future of Iran Initiative co-hosted a half-day symposium with The Iran Project. The event focused on the record of the Iran nuclear deal and its likely fate under the Trump administration. The intent was to help forge a bipartisan path forward that will preserve the non-proliferation gains […]

Iran

Event Recap

Jan 30, 2017

Iranian Attitudes About US-Iran Relations in the Trump Era

By Future of Iran Initiative

On Wednesday, January 25, the South Asia Center’s Future of Iran Initiative co-hosted a panel discussion entitled Iranian Attitudes on Iran-US Relations in the Trump Era with the University of Maryland’s Center for International and Security Studies, featuring Dr. Ebrahim Mohseni, Research Scholar, Center for International and Security Studies, University of Maryland, Ms. Sanam Naraghi-Anderlini, […]

Iran

IranSource

Jan 30, 2017

Trump Order Initiates Unnecessary Conflict and Ends a New Horizon with Iran

By Mehran Haghirian

Iranians are in shock and dismay following the implementation of President Trump’s executive order halting refugee acceptance and banning entry of people from seven Muslim majority countries: Iran, Iraq, Syria, Sudan, Yemen, Libya, and Somalia.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Nov 30, 2016

The War on ISIS: Trump’s ‘Steep Learning Curve’

The United Nations’ Syria envoy, Staffan de Mistura, called on US President-elect Donald Trump to work with Russia in the fight against the Islamic State in Syria, however, many other factors must be considered before the United States enters into such an alliance, according to an Atlantic Council expert. “Putting together a coherent strategy around […]

Iran Russia

New Atlanticist

Nov 21, 2016

Lebanese Hezbollah Offers a Glimpse of its Firepower

By Nicholas Blanford

Lebanon’s militant Shi’ite Hezbollah displayed its new armored capabilities for the first time during a military parade in the Syrian town of Qusayr in Homs province, offering the most compelling example yet of the Iran-backed group’s adoption of conventional military tactics and equipment alongside its traditional low-signature asymmetric doctrine. The parade was held on November […]

Middle East Syria
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