In many ways, the U.S.-Israeli war against Iran and the war in Gaza that preceded it seem transformative. After decades of shadow warfare, Iran and Israel have now attacked each other’s homelands directly. And Israel and the United States have joined forces in a genuinely novel way to wage war against Iran.
It is now clear the United States is sinking into the quagmire of its war with Iran with no clear idea of how to get out. More than five months of intermittent bombing of Iran have not brought Tehran any closer to surrender. Recurring threats by US President Donald Trump to launch a massive military campaign against the country aren’t causing Iran to submit to US demands.
As the US-Israel-Iran war enters its sixth month, the conflict has taken a sharp turn. After a brief lull in the fighting, Iran launched a surprise ballistic missile attack on US forces on July 28, and the US and Saudi Arabia struck back at Iran-backed militias in Iraq, marking Riyadh’s entry into the war. MEI Senior Fellow Alex Vatanka joins host Alistair Taylor to discuss the escalation, what may come next, and the state of talks over sharing the Strait of Hormuz.
United States Central Command (CENTCOM), one of the US Department of Defense’s (DoD) six geographical combatant commands, is responsible for countering threats, responding to crises, and strengthening regional stability in the Middle East, Central Asia, and parts of South Asia.
Iran is transforming its Axis of Resistance into a decentralized, Yemen-centered network that leverages the Houthis to threaten both the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb, extending Tehran’s coercive reach over the world’s key maritime chokepoints and reshaping the post-war balance in the Middle East and Red Sea.
As part of a report outlining an actionable US roadmap to win in Lebanon, this paper examines how the United States might mediate the settlement of Israel-Lebanon differences over the line that divides them into separate jurisdictions.
As part of a report outlining an actionable US roadmap to win in Lebanon, the author discusses options for American military assistance to the Lebanese Army in the effort to disarm Hizballah and regain Lebanese sovereignty.
As part of a report outlining an actionable US roadmap to win in Lebanon, this article analyzes the Tripartite Framework Agreement signed by representatives of the United States, Israel, and Lebanon, and compares previous US-led peacekeeping mechanisms.
As part of a report outlining an actionable US roadmap to win in Lebanon, this article argues that to strengthen the Lebanese state, accelerate economic recovery, and permanently reduce Iran’s influence, the United States should support efforts to dismantle Hizballah’s financial networks, political influence, and parallel institutions as well as reform the judicial system.
This past June, I had the opportunity to visit Ukraine and see a bit of a war I heretofore had only read about. The contrasts with the Middle Eastern wars I had experienced were stunning, as was, in particular, the juxtaposition with the current Iran conflict and the ongoing threat to our Gulf allies. There are lessons to be learned about commitment, intensity, self-reliance, and the importance of alliances. They could serve our allies and ourselves well in both theaters.
US President Donald Trump recently proposed that Syria intervene militarily against Hizballah in Lebanon. Is that a good idea? This episode of Middle East Focus features a recent MEI Virtual Briefing. Director of Communications Zeina Al-Shaib is joined by Ambassador David Hale, MEI Distinguished Diplomatic Fellow and Charles Lister, MEI Senior Fellow. Together they examine the prospects and implications of renewed Syrian involvement in Lebanon, the potential impact on US relations with both countries, and how evolving dynamics in Lebanon and Syria could reshape the regional balance of power and affect countries such as Turkey and Israel.
After the US-Israel-Iran war — and the strikes that followed the cease-fire — the Gulf states find themselves dangerously exposed. Host Alistair Taylor is joined by MEI Associate Fellow Gregory Gause to discuss the war’s impact on the Gulf, their partnership with the United States, and whether the turmoil of recent months will push Gulf leaders to reassess their alliances and international engagement.
The Islamabad Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the United States and Iran may have ended one of the most consequential Middle Eastern crises in decades, but it has not resolved the strategic problem it exposed. Whether the 60-day talks it set in motion will produce a final agreement remains far from certain.Yet the central lessons are already clear: Iran has preserved significant leverage, Washington has had to scale back its ambitions, and Europe and the Gulf face the prospect of protracted regional tension. Europe and the Gulf should therefore use the aftermath of the US-Iran deal to articulate their own “other MoU”: a Europe-Gulf Resilience initiative.
Much work lies ahead, but the June 26 agreement is a rare act of constructive statesmanship in the Middle East.