The Other MoU: Launching a Europe-Gulf Resilience Initiative After the US-Iran Deal
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.
A Post-War Model for Verifying Iran’s Missile Arsenal
This study proposes a model for constraining and verifying Iran’s ballistic missile arsenal by employing a layered Strategic Verification Model with seven components: comprehensive baseline declarations; missile test and launch monitoring; intrusive inspections; quantitative and qualitative limits on missile capabilities; production controls, especially on solid-fuel manufacturing; a robust enforcement and compliance architecture; and regional confidence building measures.
The Houthis are a political-military faction and Zaydi religious movement founded in northwestern Yemen in the 1980s. A key member of Iran’s Axis of Resistance with links to other militant organizations in the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa, the group has continued to pose a threat to Western interests on a global scale.
This backgrounder provides an overview of how the Abraham Accords came about, the US interests involved, their economic and strategic consequences, and the prospects for further enlargement going forward.
After a decade of post-Arab Spring isolation, Turkey’s leaders have recognized that their ambition to position the country as an agenda-setter on the world stage requires active engagement in all directions. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s consolidation of executive authority has centralized foreign policy decision-making and tied it to his domestic political priorities, transforming the country’s revisionist approach to one shaped primarily by personal and pragmatic interests.
As the Western Sahara conflict reaches its fifth decade, the territorial dispute remains unresolved and largely unknown. MEI’s Intissar Fakir unpacks the Western Sahara’s complex history and the rival claims by Morocco and the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic. She examines recent developments, such as President Trump’s recognition of Moroccan sovereignty over the territory and the collapse of a 30-year cease-fire, as well as the core questions that remain unanswered after half a century.
Podcasts
Middle East Focus
MEI’s flagship weekly podcast on US foreign policy and contemporary political and social issues in the Middle East.
MEI Senior Fellow Brian Katulis engages friends, colleagues, and policy experts in casual conversations on the most important happenings in the Middle East.
Pope’s Egypt Visit to Reassure MidEast Christians | Monday Briefing
In this week’s Monday Briefing, MEI experts Paul Salem, Alex Vatanka, Eran Etzion, and Gerald Feierstein provide analysis on recent and upcoming events including the Pope’s upcoming visit to Egypt, Ahmadinejad’s public feud with Ayatollah Khamenei, Israeli efforts to draw Russian support away from Iran, and the appointment of Prince Khalid bin Salman as Saudi Ambassador to the U.S.
Iranian Student in Rare Video Blasts Regime for Repression at Home and Foreign Wars
A rare video circulating on Iranian social media shows a university student strongly denouncing the Iranian regime’s acts of oppression at home as well as costly military engagements abroad at the expense of domestic priorities. “Mr. Hassan Abbasi: Your theory is the theory of terror and horror and exporting arms and war.
I.R.G.C. Navy Receives New Anti-Ship Cruise Missiles
The Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.) Navy received the first consignment of the new Nasir anti-ship cruise missile on April 22, the Iranian media reports.
Iran-Backed Iraqi Mobilization Forces Urge Baghdad to Expel Turkish Ambassador
The Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (P.M.F.) – an alliance of largely Shiite militia groups dominated by Iran – has called on the Baghdad government to expel the Turkish ambassador from Iraq, Fars News Agency reported. The call came after President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the P.M.F.
Tillerson’s Remarks Draw Angry Reaction from Iran’s Foreign Minister
Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Thursday issued a strongly-worded statement in reaction to the latest allegations by the Trump administration about Iran’s destabilizing role in the Middle East and the 2015 Iran nuclear deal. “The Islamic Republic of Iran entered the JCPOA (Jointed Comprehensive Plan of Action, or Iran nuclear deal) with the view that it would be prudent way to address shared concerns and achieve shared objectives specifically related to the nuclear issue, without entering into other contentious issues, including the nefarious activities of the U.S.
Iranian Cleric Admits I.R.G.C. Provides Weapons to Houthis in Yemen
A senior Iranian cleric, who reportedly advises Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, has in a rare video admitted that Iran provides weapons to the Houthi rebels in Yemen.
Iran Unveils New Domestically-Built Military Equipment
Iran unveiled a series of domestically-made military equipment on Thursday, during a ceremony on Thursday which was attended by President Hassan Rouhani and Defense Minister Brigadier General Hossein Dehqan.
An Evolution of Rohingya Persecution in Myanmar: From Strategic Embrace to Genocide
This essay discusses the persecution of, and violence committed against, Rohingya. The authors argue that recent waves of state-directed violence communal destruction, far from being a new phenomenon, have been occurring since 1978 and are part of a process of “slow-burning genocide.”
Since its inception in 1993, the Sharjah Biennial has become the biggest art event in the Arab world. It is an enormous cultural podium whose breadth, scope, and ambition is unrivaled in the region. Encompassing new commissioned pieces, film screenings, video and audio installations, and copious talks throughout its lengthy duration, the Sharjah Biennial has transcended its fine arts origins to evolve into a global endeavor.
Iran-Supported Iraqi Militia Leaders Ramps up Anti-American Propaganda
A prominent Iran-backed Iraqi militia commander has accused the United States of providing weapons and food to Islamic State fighters trapped in western Mosul, according to Fars News Agency, an Iranian outlet affiliated with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (I.R.G.C.).
The oldest peer-reviewed publication dedicated to the study of the modern Middle East, MEI’s flagship journal covers politics, society, and culture in the region.
