Policy Analysis

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  • Policy Analysis
    North AfricaDemocracy and Governance

    Tunisia Struggles to Project Foreign Policy Independence

    Aug 22, 2019Daniel Brumberg

    Tunisia’s leaders would do well to balance their hopes for democracy and human rights with the pragmatic exigencies of an independent foreign policy that prote…

  • Policy Analysis
    LevantIdentity Politics and Sectarianization

    Partition and Spheres of Influence in Syria

    Aug 5, 2019Radwan Ziadeh

    Radwan Ziadeh opines that Syria can no longer be considered a homeland for all Syrians and that its partition has become a reality. Restoring its societal make…

  • Policy Analysis
    North AfricaDemocracy and Governance

    Tunisia’s Fragile Democracy after Essebsi

    Aug 2, 2019Daniel Brumberg

    Daniel Brumberg argues that Tunisia’s Essebsi leaves behind a political crisis that is partly rooted in a convoluted constitutional language that does not clea…

  • Policy Analysis
    IranRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Hamas Plans a Comeback to Damascus: US and Regional Implications

    Jul 31, 2019Joe Macaron

    Hamas is looking to realign itself with Syria as the Trump Administration floats ideas about Palestinian-Israeli peace; however, it appears that the Syrian reg…

  • Policy Analysis
    LevantConflicts and Conflict Resolution

    Various Players Maneuver for an Uncertain Future in Syria

    Jul 24, 2019Gregory Aftandilian

    Russia, Iran, Turkey, and Israel are positioning themselves to play a role in Syria’s uncertain future now that the Assad regime is defeating the opposition in…

  • Policy Analysis
    IranRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Hard Choices Facing Tehran and Washington

    Jul 10, 2019Daniel Brumberg

    If the Trump Administration decides to adhere to a strategy of pushing for regime change in Tehran, Iran’s leaders might eventually embrace a fraught nucleariz…

  • Policy Analysis
    EgyptRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Saudi-Emirati-Egyptian Alliance Steering US Middle East Policy

    Jun 26, 2019Charles W. Dunne

    With the American retreat from the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt are presenting themselves as reliable allies. However, they are pursuing an ag…

  • Policy Analysis
    IranIdentity Politics and Sectarianization

    Iraq’s Militias and the US-Iran Impasse

    Jun 6, 2019Abdulwahab Al-Qassab

    The Iraqi government has a difficult time managing its mutual relations with Iran and the United States because of the influence of Iran-supported militias in …

  • Policy Analysis
    The Arabian Peninsula and The GulfJustice, Equality, and Human Rights

    Is Partition Becoming a Reality in Yemen?

    May 22, 2019Imad K. Harb

    If Yemen’s southern secessionists succeed in establishing a UAE-controlled rump state, Saudi Arabia will have to contend with either continuing the conflict in…

  • Policy Analysis
    LibyaConflicts and Conflict Resolution

    Libya and the Outsiders: Games of Power

    May 22, 2019Federica Saini Fasanotti

    Despite President Trump’s ill-advised contact with Khalifa Haftar as the general attacked Tripoli, it is still possible for the United States to play an import…

  • Policy Analysis
    LibyaConflicts and Conflict Resolution

    Haftar’s Losing Hand and Scenarios for Libya

    May 17, 2019Karim Mezran

    To achieve peace and stability, Libyans must find common ground and shared goals to devise a cohesive plan for resolving domestic grievances in a constructive …

  • Policy Analysis
    IranRegional Relations and Geopolitics

    Is War Coming to the Arabian Gulf?

    May 3, 2019Imad K. Harb Daniel Brumberg Abdulwahab Al-Qassab Kristian Coates Ulrichsen

    Given current conditions and the parties’ limitations, the chance of a military confrontation with Iran is remote—although the sharp rhetoric and counter-accus…