SOF’s Evolving Role: Warfare “By, With, and Through” Local Forces
The role of U.S. special operations forces (SOF) in the Middle East has expanded steadily since the inception of the counter-ISIS campaign in 2014. In […] More
Middle East
Don’t Expect Popping Champagne Corks at Trump-Abbas Meeting
President of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, traveled to the White House on Wednesday for his first meeting with President Donald Trump. In brief comments […] More
Vying for Power in Iran
With one of the most complex systems of governance in the world, Iran finds itself at perhaps its most daunting political crossroads since the 1979 […] More
Uncertainty in Iran
In the perennial effort to deduce the likely evolution of the tumultuous relationship between the United States and Iran, all eyes today seem to be […] More
Iranian Leadership: Over the Horizon
As the Islamic Republic readies itself for another presidential election in May 2017, now is a good time to size up the state of affairs […] More
U.S. Credibility in the Middle East
“America has lost.” Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte used this phrase last October when announcing his split from the United States and his country’s realignment toward […] More
Russia-Gulf Arab States: A Relationship of Convenience
The United States and the oil-rich Gulf Arab states have long been traditional allies. But now the Gulf states – collectively known as the Gulf […] More
The Gulf Cooperation Council Operates in a Tumultuous Region
At a time that several Middle Eastern nations are plagued with civil strife, the Gulf Cooperation Council is a beacon of unity that has contributed […] More
GCC: A Force for Regional Stability
The Cipher Brief sat down with Marcelle Wahba, President of the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Arab […] More
Saudi-Iranian Tension Drives GCC Policy
The Cipher Brief sat down the Former U.S. Ambassador to Oman, Gary Grappo, to discuss the current state of affairs in the Gulf Cooperation Council. […] More
Trump and the New Map of the Middle East
The Middle East that the Trump Administration must now come to grips with is not the one Barack Obama envisioned leaving his successor when he […] More
Change Has Not Come to the Middle East
At first glance, it would appear that the Middle East President Donald J. Trump now faces is far different than the region which confronted President […] More
The Mideast’s Front Burner Issues
The Middle East went through maelstrom developments during the Obama Administration. Some of these were put into motion by the 2003 American invasion of Iraq. […] More
The Potential to Increase the Terrorist Threat
The Cipher Brief sat down with Michele Dunne, Director and Senior Fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace’s Middle East Center, to discuss the […] More
The U.S. Should Be Wary About Overplaying Its Hand
The Muslim Brotherhood preaches a violent, exclusivist ideology. Its websites and social media accounts are chock-full of anti-Christian and anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. Its affiliated networks in Istanbul have threatened foreign […] More
Trump So Far: The Middle East View
When Donald Trump was elected as the 45th U.S. President, there was reason for some comfort amongst the United States’ traditional Arab allies in the […] More
Principles to Guide U.S. Military Engagement in the Middle East
Some of the most significant challenges the Trump administration will face are in the Middle East. These include the threat of salafi-Jihadist terrorism, Iran’s efforts […] More
Cybersecurity in the Gulf: The Middle East’s Virtual Frontline
Cybersecurity is often discussed in relation to the major global powers: China’s economic espionage, Russian influence operations, and U.S. dragnet global surveillance to thwart terrorism. […] More