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The latest pieces from MENASource:

MENASource

Apr 29, 2025

Why the US must not let Syria slip away

By Luke Wagner

Reconsidering the uneasy US-Syria relationship amid reports that Trump and al-Sharaa will meet during the US president’s Saudi Arabia visit.

Economic Sanctions Middle East
Scenes of destruction at the UN Blue Line, Southern Lebanon.

MENASource

Apr 29, 2025

Dispatch from the UN Blue Line: Israel’s ‘systematic destruction’ in Lebanon

By Nicholas Blanford

If Hezbollah refuses to disarm, Israel would almost certainly escalate its attacks possibly to the extent of resuming the war in Lebanon.

Iran Israel

MENASource

Apr 28, 2025

Why Israel will resist any US-Iran nuclear deal

By Danny Citrinowicz  

Negotiations between the United States and Iran have displayed a significant divide between Washington and it’s ally Israel.

Iran Israel
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Through our Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East, 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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Content

MENASource

Apr 29, 2025

Why the US must not let Syria slip away

By Luke Wagner

Reconsidering the uneasy US-Syria relationship amid reports that Trump and al-Sharaa will meet during the US president's Saudi Arabia visit.

Economic Sanctions Middle East
Scenes of destruction at the UN Blue Line, Southern Lebanon.

MENASource

Apr 29, 2025

Dispatch from the UN Blue Line: Israel’s ‘systematic destruction’ in Lebanon

By Nicholas Blanford

If Hezbollah refuses to disarm, Israel would almost certainly escalate its attacks possibly to the extent of resuming the war in Lebanon.

Iran Israel

Event Recap

Apr 29, 2025

Wargaming the Middle East: How Iran might reshape its Hezbollah proxy playbook

By Maayan Dagan and Luke Wagner

In March 2025, the Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative at the Atlantic Council hosted a War Game to explore how Iran will shape the future of its proxy strategy, particularly its relationship with Hezbollah.

Conflict Crisis Management

MENASource

Apr 28, 2025

Why Israel will resist any US-Iran nuclear deal

By Danny Citrinowicz  

Negotiations between the United States and Iran have displayed a significant divide between Washington and it’s ally Israel.

Iran Israel

New Atlanticist

Apr 26, 2025

In a normalization agreement with Israel, Saudi Arabia should settle for nothing less than Palestinian statehood

By Amir Asmar

Saudi Arabia should make full Palestinian statehood part of the asking price for normalizing relations with Israel.

International Norms Israel

MENASource

Apr 25, 2025

Will Pope Francis’s Middle East legacy endure?

By Karim Mezran

The late Pope's final address on Easter Sunday was a capstone in a track record of advocacy for peace between the Israelis and Palestinians.

International Norms Middle East

MENASource

Apr 25, 2025

Geopolitics in orbit: What Gulf moonshots mean for Washington

By Isabella Torre

On a multipolar world stage with Russia and China power competition, it’s clear that space collaboration has all-too-earthly impacts.

Middle East Politics & Diplomacy

MENASource

Apr 25, 2025

One hundred days of Trump’s Middle East policy: money, mediation, and military force

By Stefanie Hausheer Ali

President Trump’s desire for more investment in the United States plays to the strengths of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Middle East Political Reform

MENASource

Apr 24, 2025

Can Russia’s defense sector break through in the Gulf?

By Jean-Loup Samaan

Despite speculation, the context is even less favorable today for the Russian defense industry to boom in the region than a decade ago.

Middle East Russia

MENASource

Apr 23, 2025

Gas diplomacy: A blueprint for Middle East peace and global energy security

By Luay al-Khatteeb

A US-Iran deal could serve as a turning point towards a wider strategy encompassing regional de-escalation and energy diplomacy.

Energy Markets & Governance Geopolitics & Energy Security
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Experts

Fellow

Alan Pino

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Intelligence Iran

Expert bio

Brett McGurk

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

English Middle East

Fellow

Amir Asmar

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center for the Middle East Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Intelligence Israel

Fellow

Owen J. Daniels

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Defense Policy

Staff

Alexander Young

Project Assistant

Forward Defense Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security

Defense Industry Europe & Eurasia

Fellow

David H. Young

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Scowcroft Center for Strategy and Security Transatlantic Security Initiative

Afghanistan Conflict
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