Research & Commentary

The Male Infertility Problem[1]

The Syrian government under both Hafiz and Bashar al-Asad has long pursued a strategy of intimidation and violence against political dissidents, while imposing legal and security structures that inhibit the growth of civil society. The resulting profound vacuum of civil society has made organizing for political change, both inside and outside of Syria, extremely difficult. Furthermore, this overall strategy of intimidation has led to “brain drain” as large numbers of highly educated Syrians flee to other countries.

This Commentary was first published as an op-ed in the Washington Post on August 22, 2011

A relatively successful transition from the Gaddafi regime to a united, stable, more open and democratic Libya would be seen in the region, and more widely, as a credit to the NATO-led intervention. It would enable Libya to resume its oil and gas exports, demonstrate international community capacity to manage such transitions and encourage positive outcomes to other Arab Spring protests.

The Middle East Institute is proud to host a discussion with Trita Parsi and Michael Singh on the prospects for a diplomatic solution to the Iran nuclear crisis in the wake of recently imposed UN and US sanctions.

Their discussion will draw upon a forthcoming Middle East Journal article entitled "The Case Against the Case Against Iran" written pseudonymously by a European diplomat, who argues for greater engagement by regional actors like Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Russia and China to mediate and mitigate Iran's nuclear ambitions.

The Middle East Institute (MEI) and International Relief and Development will jointly host a discussion on the reconstruction of Libya following the fall of the Qaddhafi regime and the humanitarian dimensions of the rebuilding efforts. As the rebels root out the last of Qaddhafi royalists and regime strongholds, the question of Libya's future looms large.

The Middle East Institute is honored to host Syria experts Radwan Ziadeh, Ausama Monajed, Amb. Theodore Kattouf, and Andrew Tabler for a panel discussion about the domestic and regional implications of the ongoing political unrest and violence in Syria. With protests continuing to rock Syria for the sixth month, the Assad government recently introduced a law allowing the formation of independent parties. But protesters say it's too little too late and point to the government's ongoing crackdown.

This Commentary was first published on Foreign Policy's Middle East Channel on August 4, 2011

This Commentary was first published as an op-ed in the Washington Post on August 4, 2011

The political crisis in Bahrain appears to have subsided, even if the issues that provoked it remain unresolved. Now, the challenge before Washington is redefining the terms on which it deals with an important but seriously tarnished ally.

F. Stephen Larrabee, Distinguished Chair in European Security at the RAND Corporation, and Gonul Tol, Executive Director of the Middle East Institute’s Center for Turkish Studies, highlight the importance of drafting a new civilian constitution to solve Turkey’s Kurdish issue.

The global community was surprised by the suddenness and intensity of democratic movements in the Arab countries. While universally welcomed, the global response in support of these movements has so far been reactive, uncertain, and slow to build up. The only coherent rendering of such an initiative is the declaration of Deauville Partnership by the Group of 8 countries on May26-27, 2011.

Originally posted August 2011

This Commentary was first published as an op-ed in the Washington Post on July 29, 2011

With debt talks at an impasse, foreign policy is the last thing on many American minds. But how Congress and the president deal with the debt will affect US relations with other countries and our national security for years to come.

It was a small group that set out on January 25, marching on National Police Day to decry the quotidian indignities they suffered at the hands of Husni Mubarak’s abusive police. Public protest in Egypt had long been a minority practice, rarely mustering more than a few hundred, or at best a few thousand, core movement activists. The organizers of the January 25 march expected the same base of dedicated demonstrators, and were shocked when the crowd swelled to more than 10,000.

Looking across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), there is a real fear that both reform movements and revolutions risk snatching defeat from the jaws of victory. The momentum that made so many inspirational gains a few months ago is slowing, and the forces of conservatism remain in control. The only hope is that stamina, vigilance, and strategy will lead to a complete transition to democracy in at least one of the region’s countries. Not one revolution has yet been completed. If such a success is to happen soon, I hope it will be in Egypt.

In January 2011, Syrian President Bashar al-Asad granted an interview to The Wall Street Journal in which he claimed that, because he was so close to the beliefs and aspirations of his people, Syria was “immune” to the revolutionary fever of nearby Arab lands.

Syria has the same preconditions for revolution as Tunisia and Egypt: poverty, unemployment, corruption, and repression. What Syrians were looking for was the spark.