As Washington once again attempts diplomacy with Tehran amid an expanded US naval and air posture, the United States faces a familiar risk: defining success too narrowly. Past efforts to manage the Iran challenge have understandably focused on Iran’s nuclear program while treating regional…
The United States is returning to negotiations with Iran for the worst possible reason. Talking has become U.S. President Donald Trump’s Plan B, now that he realizes American forces are not “locked and loaded” with credible options to damage Iran’s…
As the Trump administration weighs strikes on Iran following the regime’s brutal killing of protestors, it must reckon with a hard lesson from last June: in just 12 days of Israel–Iran fighting, U.S. and Israeli munitions fell to dangerously low…
“The Syrian Democratic Forces’ [SDF] insistence on protecting what it has at all costs is the biggest obstacle to achieving peace and stability in Syria.” That’s what Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan said in early January, blaming Syria’s Kurdish-led SDF…
The Lebanese military has made little effort to disarm Hezbollah, despite the United States sending it $230 million in military aid in October. With this persistent failure, Israeli forces have conducted near-daily operations against the Iran-backed terrorist group, and the United States is preparing…
When world leaders gathered in Egypt last October to celebrate the cease-fire in Gaza, U.S. President Donald Trump was triumphant. “Nobody thought this could happen,” he said of the peace agreement. “Prayers of millions have finally been answered.” By stopping…
Syria is at a crossroads. President Donald Trump’s vow to do everything he can to help the wartorn country offers it a golden opportunity to wave goodbye to its dictatorial past. Unfortunately, Turkey’s regional ambitions are threatening to derail Syria’s…
Having warned Iran’s regime, repeatedly and explicitly, not to brutalize its own people, President Trump now must figure out how to uphold his red line, avoid losing credibility, and impose serious costs on the regime — all without triggering a wider conflict.…
The raid on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was a big surprise. But the absence of foreign interference during the U.S. military’s open buildup in the months leading up to it was anything but. For all the Trump administration talks of…
Protests have swept all 31 of Iran’s provinces, defying the regime’s efforts to crush dissent through internet blackouts and lethal force. In an unprecedented step, a U.S. president has publicly pledged support for the Iranian people, warning that continued repression could invite…