IranSource

May 28, 2019

Russia is a clear winner in US-Iran tensions

By Robert Czulda

Current tensions in the Persian Gulf are undoubtedly disturbing. Even if war is averted, the region faces a number of negative consequences, including lower investment and tourism as well as rising economic distress in an atmosphere of crisis and uncertainty.

Iran Russia

IranSource

May 23, 2019

Saudi Arabia and Iran are adapting to perpetual conflict

By Banafsheh Keynoush

When rogue intelligence officers at the Saudi consulate in Istanbul killed journalist Jamal Khashoggi in October 2018, an official of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) voiced concern over the surge of US media onslaught on Saudi Arabia. Echoing Iran’s conspiratorial views of the United States, the IRGC official questioned if Washington was planning to undermine Riyadh.

Iran Saudi Arabia

MENASource

May 21, 2019

What’s new, and what’s not, in the Kushner Middle East peace plan

By Ambassador Richard LeBaron

On May 19, The White House announced a “Peace to Prosperity” workshop to be held in Bahrain June 25-26 as the first step in its plan for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. The meeting was described as “a pivotal opportunity to convene government, civil society, and business leaders to share ideas, discuss strategies, and galvanize support for potential economic investments and initiatives that could be made possible by a peace agreement.” 

Israel Middle East

MENASource

May 21, 2019

Kuwait’s apprehension about normalizing relations with Syria

By Theodore Karasik and Tristan Ober

With the Syrian civil war winding down, politicians and observers alike recognize that President Bashar al-Assad has managed to retain his position as Syria’s head-of-state. Some countries have moved swiftly in acknowledging the outcome of the conflict by reinstating diplomatic ties with the Assad regime and reopening embassies in Damascus. The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Bahrain, which, to varying degrees, opposed Assad after the civil war erupted, are two salient examples of this trend.

Middle East Syria

IranSource

May 15, 2019

A week of looming conflict between the United States and Iran

By Nader Uskowi

May 8 was the first anniversary of US President Donald Trump’s exit from the Iran nuclear deal, also known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA). The Islamic Republic marked the occasion by announcing that it would defy the JCPOA’s limits on the amounts of enriched uranium and heavy water in its inventory.

Iran

MENASource

May 14, 2019

How climate change could exacerbate conflict in the Middle East

By Sagatom Saha

Global warming will do the Middle East no favors. Evidence abounds it will be the region that climate change will hit hardest. Summer temperatures across the region are expected to increase more than twice the global average.

Climate Change & Climate Action

IranSource

May 13, 2019

On Iran, Europeans caught between multilateral and transatlantic realities

By Tarja Cronberg

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani announced on May 8 that Iran may reduce its compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) if the non-US parties to the deal don’t find a way to provide Tehran with promised economic benefits.

Iran

MENASource

May 9, 2019

Xi Jinping’s promise of an open BRI bodes well for Chinese-Gulf relations

By Dan Katz

Promises made by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the biennial Belt and Road Forum about opening the Belt and Road Initiative to multilateral and third-party investment could bode well for Gulf-China relations and the Middle East more broadly by creating new opportunities for energy and economic cooperation.

China International Organizations

MENASource

May 9, 2019

Can there be a peaceful solution for Libya’s conflict?

By Mustafa A.G. Abushagur

If the international community continues to stay on the sidelines, watching and allowing Haftar’s international allies to continue providing him with support, this war will continue with no foreseeable end and at a heavy price

Libya

IranSource

May 9, 2019

Former state broadcaster head does tell-all interview about the IRGC

By Maysam Behravesh

While growing US-led pressure on Iran is helping unify the Iranian polity around the flag of nationalism, it is also exposing fault lines among the ruling elite as they search for the key causes of the Islamic Republic’s failures forty years after its birth.

Iran
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