Issue Brief

Nov 9, 2017

Iran’s bottom line in Afghanistan

By Alex Vatanka

Due to proximity and historical ties, no other country is as well placed as Iran to play a dominant role in Afghan society, as Middle East Institute senior fellow Alex Vatanka shows in his new paper, Iran’s Bottom Line in Afghanistan. However, Tehran is focused on short-term tactical gains at the expense of a sustainable, […]

Afghanistan Iran

Issue Brief

Oct 31, 2017

Tehran stands atop the Syria-Iran alliance

By Danielle Pletka

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has managed to hold onto power through the civil war and has the determined support of Iran to thank for his position. In Tehran Stands Atop the Syria-Iran Alliance, author Danielle Pletka examines ties between Syria and Iran, the power relationship that has emerged, and the legacy it leaves for the […]

Iran Politics & Diplomacy

Issue Brief

Oct 19, 2017

Iran’s fingerprints in Yemen: real or imagined?

By Elisabeth Kendall

In Iran’s Fingerprints in Yemen: Real or Imagined?, Dr. Elisabeth Kendall, nonresident senior fellow with the Brent Scowcroft Center’s Middle East Peace and Security Initiative and senior research fellow in Arabic and Islamic studies at Pembroke College at Oxford University, investigates the true extent of Iran’s presence in Yemen, including both military and cultural aspects. […]

Iran Security & Defense

Report

Oct 10, 2017

US strategy options for Iran’s regional challenge

By Kenneth M. Pollack and Bilal Y. Saab

In their new paper, entitled US Strategy Options for Iran’s Regional Challenge, Kenneth M. Pollack, resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, and Bilal Y. Saab, senior fellow and director for defense and security at the Middle East Institute, present five alternative strategies that the United States could pursue to limit Iran’s destabilizing activities. After […]

Iran Security Partnerships

Issue Brief

Oct 2, 2017

The roots and evolution of Iran’s regional strategy

By Suzanne Maloney

Understanding what drives Iran’s regional policies is crucial to confronting its challenges. In her new paper, entitled The Roots and Evolution of Iran’s Regional Strategy, Suzanne Maloney, deputy director of foreign policy and senior fellow for Middle East policy at the Brookings Institution, explores how the Islamic Republic operates throughout the Middle East, and the […]

Iran Politics & Diplomacy

Report

Sep 14, 2017

Revolution unveiled: A closer look at Iran’s presence and influence in the Middle East

By Phillip Smyth, Tim Michetti, and Owen Daniels

Revolution Unveiled: A Closer Look at Iran’s Presence and Influence in the Middle East, by Phillip Smyth, Tim Michetti, and Owen Daniels, pieces together snapshots of Iran’s influence in the region using photographic analysis, geolocation, social media monitoring, and other methods. Through four case studies, this report systematically examines new or lesser-known methods Iran employs […]

Iran Middle East

Report

Mar 22, 2017

From the Gulf to the Nile: water security in an arid region

By Peter Engelke and Howard Passell

Fresh water is fundamental to human health, social development, peace, and economic growth everywhere in the world. Yet in a great many places, and for a great many people, clean freshwater is scarce. Current trends on both the supply and demand sides strongly suggest that clean freshwater availability will become more challenging in more places […]

Issue Brief

Oct 14, 2016

History’s lessons for resolving today’s Middle East conflicts

By Mathew J. Burrows

In the spirit of the adage that “those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it,” History’s Lessons for Resolving Today’s Middle East Conflicts, by Mathew J. Burrows, examines past precedents for resolving highly complex conflicts, by delving into seven historic examples of peacemaking.

Conflict Middle East

Regional Security Initiative

Apr 18, 2016

After hub-and-spoke: US hegemony in a new Gulf security order

By Bilal Y. Saab

The era of Pax Americana in the Gulf, and perhaps in the broader Middle East, is changing. Regional transformation and chaos resulting from the Arab uprisings, the rise of ISIS and its global terrorist reach, shifting US priorities around the world, and the rise of other outside powers in the Gulf have contributed to an […]

Middle East Security & Defense

Regional Security Initiative

Jul 6, 2015

The new containment: Changing America’s approach to Middle East security

By Bilal Y. Saab

Securing the Middle East after an Iran nuclear deal is the next big challenge for both the region and the international community. The United States and its allies have engaged in tireless diplomacy with Iran over the past few years to produce an agreement that would limit Tehran’s nuclear program for the next decade and […]

Middle East Security & Defense
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