Some Good News from the Middle East

Some Good News from the Middle East

There’s not much good news coming out of the Middle East these days. But one reason to take heart is the progress of nuclear negotiations between Iran and the West. Even as new conflicts sprout up elsewhere, a three-decade standoff between Tehran and Washington...
Burying the Hatchet with Iran

Burying the Hatchet with Iran

Don’t tell anyone, but the United States and Iran are getting closer — perhaps closer than ever — to letting go of 35 years of enmity. No, Washington and Tehran aren’t going to be BFFs or anything. But they do share a common interest in rolling back the...
Greasing the Path to Military Intervention

Greasing the Path to Military Intervention

What explains the never-ending justifications for U.S. involvement in Middle Eastern conflicts? In a word: oil. Sure, President Barack Obama may have dropped food and water on that desolate Iraqi mountaintop out of humanitarian concern for the persecuted Yazidi...
A Loveless Diplomatic Marriage with No Future

A Loveless Diplomatic Marriage with No Future

Among the would-be therapists of the foreign policy world, the alliance between the United States and Saudi Arabia is a textbook case of a “loveless marriage.” Though the values of the two states are at odds, or so the thinking goes, the great democracy...
The Diplomatic Dance with Iran

The Diplomatic Dance with Iran

A six-month diplomatic dance with Iran is underway — each step as dainty as a minuet because any misstep is weighted with danger. The issue is Iran’s nuclear research program and the UN inspections that are taking place as a result. And while each side has its...