Category: Politics & Diplomacy

As the US election nears, anxiety is mounting in Ukraine

The coming United States presidential election will have truly global ramifications. Few countries have more at stake than Ukraine, which is heavily reliant on continued US support to maintain the fight against Russia’s invasion. As the November 5 vote draws nearer, Ukrainians are anxiously observing the final weeks of the campaign. Over the past two-and-a-half

From Dushanbe to Berlin: The emerging ISIS-K threat

Although the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) was officially defeated by coalition forces in 2019, its offshoot branch focused on Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia has recently pursued high-profile attacks outside of the region. Central Asian nationals, particularly Tajiks, carried out many of the recent Islamic State-Khorasan (ISIS-K) attacks and plots in Europe

The countdown to Nasrallah’s assassination began with Majdal Shams

He certainly didn’t know it, but Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah signed his death warrant on July 27. That day, an errant Hezbollah rocket landed on a soccer field in Majdal Shams in the Golan Heights, where it killed twelve children—Israeli by citizenship but Syrian Druze by ethnicity. Hezbollah deployed every rhetorical and propaganda trick possible

If the Middle East conflict gets worse, don’t hesitate to tap the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve

The ongoing Israel-Iran hostilities risk disrupting global oil markets and reigniting inflation. But the United States and its allies should not hesitate to release strategic reserves if this conflict threatens to spike oil prices. The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) of crude oil is currently well-stocked for domestic needs. After accounting for fifty-two-week averages of

Ending Russian impunity: Why Ukraine needs justice as well as security

With no end in sight to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, some members of the international community are now advocating for a negotiated settlement that risks rewarding Moscow for its aggression. The idea of offering the Kremlin concessions is dangerously shortsighted and overlooks the central importance of justice in any future peace settlement. Failing to

Israel has lost its patience

As the first anniversary of the conflict along the Lebanon-Israel border approaches, what has been, for the most part, a simmering daily series of tit-for-tat strikes between Israel and Hezbollah has escalated at an alarming pace and brought the region perilously close to a full-scale war. Since September 16, Israel has removed the gloves to

How American diplomacy can stabilize Lebanon—and the Middle East

The events of the past two weeks have witnessed an unprecedented degradation of Iran’s so-called Axis of Resistance. These developments present the Biden administration with more complex policy choices, but also some strategic opportunities. The reason why is because Israel is back at a point where it is not only deterring Iran, but dismantling key