Policy Analysis

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
IraqRegional Relations and Geopolitics
Pragmatism Shapes Iraq’s Position Toward Post-Assad Syria
Jul 1, 2025Giorgio Cafiero
Sharing a 375-mile border with Syria, Iraq has high stakes in its neighbor’s successful transition following the December 2024 fall of Bashar al-Assad’s regime…
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
YemenConflicts and Conflict Resolution
Yemen’s Houthi Movement Reconsidered
Jun 12, 2025Nabeel A. Khoury
In January 2019, this author posed the question, “can one make peace with the Houthis of Yemen?” In the six years since, the Houthis, also known as Ansar Allah…
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…
Policy Analysis
Saudi ArabiaUS Foreign Policy
Trump’s Upcoming Trip to Saudi Arabia Amid Regional Uncertainties
Apr 25, 2025Gregory Aftandilian
President Donald Trump plans to make Saudi Arabia the first country he will visit during his second term in office—after his visit to the Vatican to take part …
Policy Analysis
IranUS Foreign Policy
Trump Might Go for a Nuclear Deal Without a Larger Middle East Strategy
Apr 22, 2025Daniel Brumberg
Over the last week, Iran hardliners in Washington have issued dire warnings about the Trump administration’s launching of nuclear talks with Iran. Iranian lead…