Nazanin Boniadi: How the World Can Help Iran’s Democratic Struggle
Just weeks before President Trump’s war began, Iran was in the midst of a powerful wave of anti-regime protests spreading across the country. But once the war started, that momentum largely came to a halt. The conflict shifted the focus from dissent to survival and gave the regime an opening to crack down harder. With tighter controls, heightened fear, and everyday life suddenly more precarious, people pulled back from the streets. The protests may have paused, but the resentments that fueled them haven’t gone anywhere.
Currency Boards as Political Commitments: Comparative Experience, Gold Reserves, and the Lebanese Case
The following study discusses the role of Lebanon’s gold reserves in the establishment of a currency board and evaluates four policy options: a true currency board, constrained central bank reform, full dollarization, and a unified managed float. Gold reserves are relevant under all four. The conclusion is consistent across them: no monetary framework, however carefully designed and however well backed, can substitute for the prior political decision on who bears Lebanon’s losses and how the state will finance itself sustainably.
US-Iran War Gives Syria’s Global Economic Pitch More Urgency
When the United States and Israel launched military operations against Iran a month ago, the Middle East was plunged into debilitating conflict. Nevertheless, Syria has remarkably just completed its most stable month in 15 years. Damascus and its international partners must capitalize on this opportunity.
Libya’s Fragile Equilibrium: Succession Risk and Energy Stability
Libya’s stability has taken on renewed strategic importance as the impact of the US and Israeli war with Iran reverberates through global energy markets. Sustaining existing Libyan oil production depends on a governing arrangement capable of keeping ports open, pipelines flowing, and revenues distributed without triggering conflict.
The Kurdish Card: Can Iranian Kurds Shape the War’s Endgame?
The war against Iran has entered its third week with no clear endgame—and no clear strategy from Washington.
At one point President Trump appeared to encourage Iranian Kurdish groups to rise up against the regime, before quickly walking it back. Meanwhile, some exiled Kurdish opposition figures say they already have an invasion plan and only need US air cover.
The Kurdish question is once again at the center of regional politics. In this episode, we examine the role of Iranian Kurds in the opposition—and what this moment could mean for their future.
As the war with Iran consumes regional attention, Gaza is again being pushed aside. That is not just a humanitarian failure. It is a strategic mistake that could squander a rare opening for political transition while allowing Hamas to weaponize abandonment once more.
Disarmament as a Means, Not an End: A Practical Strategy for Gaza’s Governing Transition
Disarmament is necessary in Gaza. It is the only way to realize the goals articulated in the internationally endorsed 20-point plan laid out by the Trump administration. But a policy approach that makes disarmament a prerequisite for action on governance, recovery, freedom of movement for Gazans, and any credible political horizon is structurally and strategically counterproductive.
Is Turkey the New Iran — Or Is that the Wrong Question?
The balance of power in the Middle East is shifting. Iran is on the defensive — its military capabilities were badly degraded by last year’s 12 days of Israeli and US strikes, and growing protests at home have made the regime look more vulnerable than it has in years.
How Lebanon’s authorities can keep the Iran war from engulfing the country
Today’s decision taken by the Lebanese government — to declare all of Hizballah’s security and military activities illegal — is a landmark development. But how the government and the Lebanese Armed Forces implement this directive now that a new round of attacks has actually taken place will be the ultimate test of their credibility.
Against the backdrop of one of the largest US military deployments to the Middle East since 2003, MEI Senior Fellow Alex Vatanka joins hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj to assess the situation inside Iran on the eve of potential war. Weeks after the Islamic Republic’s brutal crackdown on anti-government protesters and as negotiations with the US fail to find common ground, Donald Trump is reportedly weighing options for military action against Iran. Vatanka breaks down the regime’s strategic calculus, the current dynamics of Iran’s opposition movement, and the likely domestic political consequences of a military strike.
Brian sits down with Holly Dagres, Libitzky Family Senior Fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, to discuss Iranian public opinion and protest movements. Dagres, who was born in Los Angeles and moved to Iran at age thirteen, offers a rare insider perspective on the views and aspirations of the Iranian people. The conversation explores the formative experiences of her teenage years in Iran, the roots of the country’s powerful women’s movements, the power of youth voices, and US policy toward Iran.
Syria’s Path Toward Stabilization — and How the US Can Help
After more than 50 years of brutal dictatorial rule and 13 years of civil conflict, the first year of Syria’s transition has been complex, imperfect, and fraught with difficulties. However, despite some significant challenges, Syria is clearly stabilizing. To sustain this progress, the United States must remain engaged.
Syria’s transition still faces a formidable array of challenges — from the implementation of the deal to integrate the SDF into state structures and the military, to the economy, reconstruction, transitional justice and accountability, refugee returns, and geopolitical tensions with Israel. However, a steady and significant decline in violence offers perhaps the most encouraging and consequential metric.
