Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
The United States and its Gulf Arab partners need a new security arrangement that effectively shares the burden of defending against Iranian hostility and goes beyond deterrence.
The July 2022 leaders’ meeting took good steps on energy and food security, but Egypt and Saudi Arabia can help take the I2U2 to the next level when it comes to regional security.
In June, Iran and Venezuela signed a 20-year road map on cooperation. As much as Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi has wanted to differentiate himself from his predecessor, his Venezuela policy has so far closely resembled that of Hassan Rouhani during the latter’s second term.
مثل الولايات المتحدة وأوروبا، شهد المغرب بدوره ارتفاعًا في معدلات التضخم مؤخرًا، مسجلة معدلا وصل 6.4 في المائة خلال يوليو 2022، وهو تضخم قادم من الخارج، يسمى ب”التضخم المستورد”. فبفضل سياسته النقدية المتينة، تمكن البلد من إبقاء التضخم عند الحد الأدنى في الماضي، لكن الوضع تغير الآن، كما أن السياسة النقدية المحلية غير قادرة على مواجهة العوامل الخارجية التي أدت إلى الارتفاع الأخير في الأسعار.
Chechen strongman and close Putin ally Ramzan Kadyrov claims he met with Turkish officials to discuss cooperation. If true, the claim would signify Turkey’s possible backsliding on some of its previous commitments as well as trigger a negative reaction from Ukraine.
Like the U.S. and Europe, Morocco, too, has seen inflation rates rise recently. Morocco was able to keep inflation to a minimum over the past decade, but now things have changed and domestic monetary policy seems unable to address the external factors driving the recent rise.
Multiple factors converged to derail the peace process prior to the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan. The lessons from this failure can inform policymakers on how to successfully pursue a new round of political peace talks involving the Taliban and all major segments of Afghan society.
There is currently an ongoing conversation in Europe around how to hold the Iranian government accountable for its crimes. While efforts to bring justice to the regime’s victims continue, the road ahead will be difficult and as the recent Swedish and Belgian cases make clear, sometimes it will be one step forward and one step back.
There is no shortage of U.N. interest in Taiz or concern over the Houthis’ blockade and truce violations in the city, but pressure on the Houthis to commit to relieving the humanitarian suffering of the Taizi people remains lacking.
As the first of two consecutive global climate conferences to be held in the MENA region, COP27 could provide a new opportunity for international leaders to overcome the failures of COP26, especially the censorship of the voices of vulnerable communities from the Global South. Addressing the legacy of climate coloniality means decolonization is a key part of tackling the climate crisis.
Read MEI’s weekly briefing featuring expert analysis of key regional developments for the week ahead.
The Iranian government has invested heavily in trying to sway public attitudes to embrace closer relations with Russia; but a plurality of Iranians would like to see balanced ties with all nations and for Tehran to pursue a mature, pragmatic overseas agenda.
MEI Arts and Culture Center Director Lyne Sneige speaks with photographers Eman Ali and Samar Hazboun, who are featured in MEI’s latest gallery exhibition “More Than Your Eyes Can See: Contemporary Photography from the Arab World” – curated by Laila Abdul-Hadi Jadallah and in partnership with Tribe Magazine.
In July 1987, Iran lost the opportunity to end the Iran-Iraq war as part of a U.N. deal by imposing two preconditions, one of which was impossible to meet. In 2022, Iran is likely to lose another opportunity, this time to return to the 2015 nuclear deal, once again by imposing two preconditions, one of which is also impossible to meet.