In The News

Saudi Arabia Signals a More Muscular Foreign Policy Less Reliant on the US

Alexandra Zavis April 27, 2015
Saudi Arabia’s new leadership under King Salman has ramped up involvement in regional conflicts. With Operation Decisive Storm, the Saudis have launched airstrikes against Houthi rebels in Yemen – a response to decreased US mobilization in the Middle East and a way to counter Iran’s expanding influence in the region. The lack of US support for Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak during the Arab Spring and...

Rebalancing the Middle East

Emma Sky April 23, 2015
The US invasion of Iraq in 2003 empowered Iran as did the abrupt American departure in 2011. Since then the region has unraveled. Emma Sky, author and senior fellow at Yale University’s Jackson Institute, suggests that US regional policy narrowly focuses on three objectives: the defeat of the Islamic State, neutralization of other extremist groups and a nuclear agreement with Iran. Bilateral...

No Clear Winners or Losers in Yemen as Conflict Rages

Frank Gardner April 15, 2015
Little progress has been made in Saudi-led air campaign to remove Houthi rebels in control of western Yemen, the country’s most populated area. The Saudi goal is to “reverse the takeover of Yemen by rebels and restore the legitimate president, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, to power,” reports Frank Gardner for BBC News. The Houthi success “is due, not so much to any alleged support from Iran, but to the...

The Evolving Jihad in South Asia

Arif Rafiq April 10, 2015
Improving ties between Afghanistan and Pakistan threatens extremists in both nations and in the neighborhood: “Pakistani Taliban factions are closing ranks; al-Qaeda aims to subvert peace talks between Kabul and the Afghan Taliban; and jihadists connected to the Islamic State appear to be seeking to establish a foothold in the region through sectarian violence,” writes strategic political and...

The Persian Paradox: Iran Is Much More Modern Than You Think

Erich Follath April 8, 2015
It’s a mistake to judge a nation by its most vocal extremists. Iran, a country of 80 million, is young, diverse, urbanized and entrepreneurial. The literacy rate is 85 percent and many Iranians pursue advanced degrees. The country’s ranking for inequality is near that of the United States. “There are few countries in the world that are subjected to as much Western prejudice and misunderstanding...

Iran Deal Reached, Struggle For Acceptance Begins

Dilip Hiro April 2, 2015
The cliff-hanging negotiations over curbing Iran's nuclear program have ended with preliminary agreement. Iran negotiators had to contend with six powers that rarely agree - the US, the UK, China, France, Russia and Germany - as well as internal US polarization. “The hard-knuckle bargaining that has marked high-level negotiations over the past several days at the Swiss resort of Lausanne...

China Evacuates Citizens From Yemen

James T. Areddy April 1, 2015
With civil war expanding in Yemen, China quickly evacuated 600 people, most by a navy frigate. A few Chinese chose to remain in Yemen and China diverted missile frigates and a helicopter-equipped supply ship engaged in anti-piracy patrols along the African coast to the area, reports the Ministry of Defense. In a separate military matter, China reported that its air force completed its first drill...