Policy Analysis

Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfSecurity and Defense
Israel’s Attack on Qatar and the Failure of GCC Defense Cooperation
Oct 14, 2025Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
On September 9, 2025, Israel attacked Qatar in an act of international aggression that caused shockwaves in Doha, across the Gulf states, and around the world.…
Policy Analysis
IraqDemocracy and Governance
Baghdad Between Tehran and Washington: The Struggle for a Sovereign State
Oct 9, 2025Patricia Karam
Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani is walking a delicate tightrope between asserting the country’s sovereignty and maintaining relations with Iran a…
Policy Analysis
QatarThe War on Gaza
Israel’s Attack on Qatar and the End of Diplomacy
Sep 30, 2025Nabeel A. Khoury
On September 9, 2025, Israel attacked a Hamas delegation in Doha, Qatar, as it was meeting to discuss the latest US-brokered ceasefire proposal to halt the war…
Policy Analysis
YemenDemocracy and Governance
Fueling Instability: Hydrocarbons, Protests, and the Limits of Yemen’s Internationally Recognized Government
Sep 12, 2025Nicholas Brumfield
In late July 2025, large-scale protests against electricity outages, economic deterioration, and general mismanagement by Yemen’s Internationally Recognized Go…
Policy Analysis
QatarThe War on Gaza
Striking a US Ally: Israel’s Attack on Qatar and the Erosion of Regional Stability
Sep 9, 2025Hanna Alshaikh Charles W. Dunne Khalil E. Jahshan Tamara Kharroub Yousef Munayyer Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
On the morning of September 9, 2025, 15 Israeli jets carried out an airstrike on residential buildings in Doha, Qatar. Israel claimed that the strike was a pre…
Policy Analysis
IranDemocracy and Governance
Political Divisions in Iran and the Uncertain Path to a New Nuclear Deal
Sep 4, 2025Daniel Brumberg
Some analysts have argued that the unprecedented Israeli and American June 2025 assault on Iran has created a “new regional order” in the Middle East. But what…
Policy Analysis
The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfEnergy and Economics
OPEC Is Pushing Down Oil Prices Despite a Cash Crunch in Saudi Arabia. Here Is Why
Aug 21, 2025Jim Krane
Something odd is happening in oil markets. Demand is weaker than it has been in many years, yet OPEC+ is unwinding cuts and increasing production at a brisk pa…
Policy Analysis
LevantIsraeli War Tactics and Genocide
Saudi Arabia’s Response to Israel’s New Security Doctrine in the Levant
Aug 14, 2025The Unit for Political Studies
In July 2025, Saudi Arabia and France jointly convened a high-profile diplomatic conference in New York dedicated to reviving momentum for a negotiated two-sta…
Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaRegional Relations and Geopolitics
Saudi Arabia and the New Syria: Constructive Pragmatism?
Aug 7, 2025Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
A large Saudi business delegation traveled to Syria on July 23-25, 2025, and participated in an inaugural Syrian-Saudi Investment Forum at the presidential pal…
Policy Analysis
Palestine/IsraelConflicts and Conflict Resolution
Palestine and the Middle East After the Iran-Israel war
Jul 15, 2025Rami G. Khouri
The Middle East in recent months has witnessed multiple military and ideological confrontations. Historic changes in regional power balances signal new strateg…
Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaConflicts and Conflict Resolution
Israel-Iran Confrontation Tests Saudi Arabia’s Quest for Neutrality
Jul 2, 2025The Unit for Political Studies
Overnight on June 21-22, American military aircraft launched strikes on three nuclear facilities inside Iran, most notably the fortified Fordow plant. To reach…
Policy Analysis
IranConflicts and Conflict Resolution
The GCC States and the US-Iran Dance Near the Abyss
Jul 2, 2025Kristian Coates Ulrichsen
Years of shadowboxing and increasingly direct skirmishing between Israel and Iran erupted into 12 days of conflict that began in the early hours of June 13 and…