Policy Analysis

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  • Policy Analysis
    SyriaUS Foreign Policy

    Lifting US Sanctions on Syria: A New Chapter for Damascus and Beirut?

    Jul 18, 2025Patricia Karam

    In a May 13, 2025, speech in Riyadh, President Donald Trump surprised the world by pledging to lift all US sanctions on Syria. Trump’s unexpected announcement …

  • Policy Analysis
    Palestine/IsraelUS Foreign Policy

    A Trump-Netanyahu New Middle East?

    Jul 9, 2025Nabeel A. Khoury

    The Trump administration and the right-wing government of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have been following a roadmap toward their own version of a…

  • 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…

  • Policy Analysis
    IranUS Foreign Policy

    Perspectives on the US Attack on Iran and Its Repercussions 

    Jun 23, 2025Charles W. Dunne Imad K. Harb Khalil E. Jahshan Tamara Kharroub Assal Rad Annelle Sheline Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

    After waiting for a week following Israel’s June 13 attack on Iran, US President Donald Trump decided to involve the United States directly in the Israeli-Iran…

  • Policy Analysis
    US Foreign Policy

    Trump’s Cuts Badly Affect Promoting International Democracy and Human Rights

    Jun 16, 2025Charles W. Dunne

    The Trump administration’s swift demolition of key governmental and government-funded institutions promoting democracy abroad is a clear attack not just on imp…

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfUS Foreign Policy

    Will Trump’s Gulf Trip Exacerbate or Mitigate the Arab World’s Three Plagues?

    May 22, 2025Rami G. Khouri

    The lasting effects of US President Donald Trump’s visit to the Gulf region may only become clear in the year ahead, making any suggestions of profound changes…

  • Policy Analysis
    Saudi ArabiaUS Foreign Policy

    Deals Without Guarantees: Trump’s Gulf Visit and the Future of US–Saudi Relations

    May 22, 2025The Unit for Political Studies

    On May 13, US President Donald Trump began a four-day tour of Gulf countries, during which he traveled to Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates (UA…

  • Policy Analysis
    YemenUS Foreign Policy

    Implications of the US-Houthi Ceasefire Deal

    May 21, 2025Gregory Aftandilian

    President Donald Trump’s surprise announcement on May 6 of a ceasefire deal with Yemen’s Houthis—in which the militant group pledged not to target American shi…

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfUS Foreign Policy

    President Trump’s Gulf Trip: Post-Visit Observations

    May 20, 2025Charles W. Dunne Dana El Kurd Imad K. Harb Khalil E. Jahshan Assal Rad Annelle Sheline

    Last week President Donald Trump ended a three-country trip to the Arabian Gulf—Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates—where he signed lucrative arm…

  • Policy Analysis
    IranUS Foreign Policy

    Changing GCC Outlook Toward US-Iran Talks

    May 7, 2025Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

    Leaders of the six GCC states have worked assiduously since 2021 to repair and rebuild ties with Iran as part of a ‘de-risking’ strategy designed to take the s…

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfUS Foreign Policy

    US Policy and Gulf Arab Interests: More Clash, Less Harmony

    May 6, 2025Jim Krane

    Gulf sovereign wealth funds are grappling with zig-zagging share valuations, while the falling oil price—compounded by a falling dollar—is throttling capital f…

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