Middle East
-
Was Khamenei’s Funeral Iran’s New Instrument of Strategic Diplomacy?
On 28 February 2026, an opening strike in the joint US-Israeli campaign that came to be called Operation Epic Fury killed Ali Khamenei, Iran’s second Supreme Leader, along with his wife, mother, daughter, son-in-law and infant granddaughter, at the Office of the Supreme Leader in Tehran. The war that followed…
-
How Vulnerable Is the Global Economy to the Strait of Hormuz?
In recent months, the war in the Middle East has kept a narrow strip of sea at the centre of global coverage: the Strait of Hormuz. Stretching some 60 kilometers and narrowing to just 39 kilometres at its tightest point, the Strait has become a recurring reference point in discussions of…
-
Did Trump Just Rebuild the Deal He Destroyed?
Eight years of maximum pressure, a war, and a dead supreme leader later, Washington’s framework with Iran looks a lot like the deal it walked away from in 2018. Did Trump just rebuild the deal he destroyed? On June 14, 2026, Donald Trump signed a 14-point Memorandum of Understanding with…
-
How Will the War in Iran End?
After over a month of targeted air strikes against Iranian military and government infrastructure, Iran’s leadership has remained defiant in continuing to fight on, even as much of its military capability has been destroyed. In a speech yesterday, Donald Trump claimed the war was ‘nearing completion’ and had nearly accomplished…
-
How does the US–Israel Alliance Sustain American Influence in the Middle East?
To the casual observer, the foreign policy of major powers often appears guided by humanitarian concern, democratic values, and global stability. Yet a closer examination of international politics suggests that these narratives frequently coexist with, and sometimes obscure, deeper strategic calculations. In the case of the United States and Israel,…
-
Is the Saudi–UAE Partnership Beginning to Fracture?
While Saudi Arabia and the UAE enjoyed close relations throughout the 2010s, Riyadh has been disturbed by the UAE’s increasingly independent foreign policy, as growing mistrust threatens to further ignite tensions in conflicts in the region and beyond. While still aligned in many areas, developments in Yemen present a concerning…
-
What’s Next for Iran After Violent Protests?
Iran is experiencing some of the largest protests in the nation’s history since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, ignited by rises in the cost of essential goods, corruption, and economic malaise. Beginning on 28 December 2025, it is thought that 500 people have already been killed and over 10,000 arrested, with…
-
Will peace last in post-Assad Syria?
In December 2024, Bashar al-Assad’s government was finally toppled after 13 years of armed conflict which devastated Syria. Ahmed al-Sharaa, the new President of Syria, has stated his intention to unify and rebuild the country. However, Syria remains fractured, with the Syrian Democratic Forces still governing much of North and…