From the Middle East to Middle America: Engineering Better Policy with Andrew J. Tabler
Brian sits down with Andrew J. Tabler, the Martin J. Gross Senior Fellow in the Linda and Tony Rubin Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute, to trace his unique and distinctive path from Oil City, Pennsylvania, to fourteen years living and working in the Middle East. Tabler discusses his time in Syria under the Assad regime, his service as director for Syria at the National Security Council and as senior advisor to the Special Envoy for Syria Engagement at the US State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs in the first Trump administration, and explains how these experiences shaped his perspective and inspired him to found the Drake Energy Forum.
When the US and Israel launched military action against Iran on February 28, 2026, it set in motion a chain of events that saw violence spread across the Middle East. Yet as the region found itself engulfed in conflict, Syria has experienced its most peaceful months in 15 years, and the government in Damascus appears determined to stay its course toward recovery.
Unlocking the Levant: Why the United States and Syria Must Pursue a Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement
Apart from the brief honeymoon period between 1961 and 1963 under President John F. Kennedy and President Nazim al-Qudsi, US-Syria relations have never held such optimistic potential as they do today. Today, following the fall of Bashar al-Assad regime and the rise of a new government under President Ahmad al-Sharaa at the end of 2024, a new geopolitical window has opened.
MEI’s Syria Initiative seeks to provide insightful and grounded research and analysis on all things Syria in order to better inform a wide range of audiences and to help sustain and shape a more meaningful policy-oriented discussion.
The Middle East Institute, The Atlantic Council, and European Institute of Peace collaborate with subject matter experts and policymakers in the US, Europe, and the Middle East to develop a holistic strategy to sustainably forge a pathway to resolving Syria’s crisis.
The International Response to Syria's Humanitarian Catastrophe
Tue, 5/7/2013 12:15 pm to 1:15 pmLocation: Carnegie Endowment – Root Room1779 Massachusetts Ave NWWashingtonDistrict of Columbia20036 The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome Valerie Amos, the UN under-secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs, for a discussion about the humanitarian crisis inside Syria. Now in its second year, the Syrian conflict has generated more than 1.3 million refugees and left 4.25 million internally displaced. According to the UN, some 6.8 million people are in desperate need of assistance.
The International Response to Syria's Humanitarian Catastrophe
Tue, 5/7/2013 12:15 pm to 1:15 pmLocation: Carnegie Endowment – Root Room1779 Massachusetts Ave NWWashingtonDistrict of Columbia20036 The Middle East Institute is pleased to welcome Valerie Amos, the UN under-secretary-general for Humanitarian Affairs, for a discussion about the humanitarian crisis inside Syria. Now in its second year, the Syrian conflict has generated more than 1.3 million refugees and left 4.25 million internally displaced. According to the UN, some 6.8 million people are in desperate need of assistance.
Syria Beyond Assad: Building a New Syria from the Grassroots
The Stimson Center and the Middle East Institute are pleased to co-host a panel discussion on grassroots efforts to begin laying the groundwork for a new Syria. As the second anniversary of Syria’s uprising approaches, its deepening turmoil and expanding humanitarian crisis underscore the tragic dimensions of the Arab world’s bloodiest uprising. The Assad regime maintains its hold on power, but has retreated from vast swathes of territory, particularly in northern and eastern areas of the country.
Syria Beyond Assad: Building a New Syria from the Grassroots
The Stimson Center and the Middle East Institute are pleased to co-host a panel discussion on grassroots efforts to begin laying the groundwork for a new Syria. As the second anniversary of Syria’s uprising approaches, its deepening turmoil and expanding humanitarian crisis underscore the tragic dimensions of the Arab world’s bloodiest uprising. The Assad regime maintains its hold on power, but has retreated from vast swathes of territory, particularly in northern and eastern areas of the country.
Syria Beyond Assad: Building a New Syria from the Grassroots
The Stimson Center and the Middle East Institute are pleased to co-host a panel discussion on grassroots efforts to begin laying the groundwork for a new Syria. As the second anniversary of Syria’s uprising approaches, its deepening turmoil and expanding humanitarian crisis underscore the tragic dimensions of the Arab world’s bloodiest uprising. The Assad regime maintains its hold on power, but has retreated from vast swathes of territory, particularly in northern and eastern areas of the country.
Syria Beyond Assad: Building a New Syria from the Grassroots
The Stimson Center and the Middle East Institute are pleased to co-host a panel discussion on grassroots efforts to begin laying the groundwork for a new Syria. As the second anniversary of Syria’s uprising approaches, its deepening turmoil and expanding humanitarian crisis underscore the tragic dimensions of the Arab world’s bloodiest uprising. The Assad regime maintains its hold on power, but has retreated from vast swathes of territory, particularly in northern and eastern areas of the country.
Syria Beyond Assad: Building a New Syria from the Grassroots
The Stimson Center and the Middle East Institute are pleased to co-host a panel discussion on grassroots efforts to begin laying the groundwork for a new Syria. As the second anniversary of Syria’s uprising approaches, its deepening turmoil and expanding humanitarian crisis underscore the tragic dimensions of the Arab world’s bloodiest uprising. The Assad regime maintains its hold on power, but has retreated from vast swathes of territory, particularly in northern and eastern areas of the country.
The Middle East Institute is honored to host the Hon. Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, for a discussion about the status and plight of Palestinian refugees. Since its creation in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been at the forefront providing essential humanitarian and human development services to the now approximately 5 million registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
The Middle East Institute is honored to host the Hon. Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, for a discussion about the status and plight of Palestinian refugees. Since its creation in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been at the forefront providing essential humanitarian and human development services to the now approximately 5 million registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
The Middle East Institute is honored to host the Hon. Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, for a discussion about the status and plight of Palestinian refugees. Since its creation in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been at the forefront providing essential humanitarian and human development services to the now approximately 5 million registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
The Middle East Institute is honored to host the Hon. Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, for a discussion about the status and plight of Palestinian refugees. Since its creation in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been at the forefront providing essential humanitarian and human development services to the now approximately 5 million registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
The Middle East Institute is honored to host the Hon. Filippo Grandi, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, for a discussion about the status and plight of Palestinian refugees. Since its creation in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has been at the forefront providing essential humanitarian and human development services to the now approximately 5 million registered Palestinian refugees in Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza.
Never before have China’s Middle East policies been less motivated by direct economic interests than by Beijing’s desire to prevent foreign (namely, Western) military intervention and forcing regime change in the region, even for the sake of humanitarian intervention.
MEI’s Syria Initiative seeks to provide insightful and grounded research and analysis on all things Syria in order to better inform a wide range of audiences and to help sustain and shape a more meaningful policy-oriented discussion. Drawing on the expertise of over a dozen renowned scholars, the Syria Program covers all aspects of Syria and its ongoing crises – from political, economic, legal, social, ethnic and religious dynamics, to conflict, insurgency and terrorism and the country’s history and possible futures.
