By: Matthew Wollen, F GS-13 USAF AFSOC OC/SPDP 14 June 2021 Introduction Throughout the decades following WWII, the U.S. was the dominant economic, political, and military influencer in the Middle East. Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Bahrain, Israel, Kuwait, Iraq, and Iran all benefitted from one form of U.S. assistance or another. No other Read More >
Syria
Will a Major US Disengagement in the Middle East Lead to Conflicts Resulting in More Refugees and Migration?
By LTC Ali AL-Kaabi, UAE Air Force, US Central Command: Strategy Plans and Policy Directorate; Combined Strategic Analysis Group 07 May 2021 Introduction: Recent indicators stress a likely US gradual disengagement from CENTCOM’s area of responsibility. This likely US disengagement would affect key areas including national/regional security, the change in migration patterns, the affected countries’ Read More >
Internally Displaced Persons and Refugees in a Time of Pandemic – A Global Challenge
By COL Arcangelo Moro, Italian Army, US Central Command: Strategy Plans and Policy Directorate; Combined Strategic Analysis Group 24 Aug 2020 Summary: Problems facing IDPs include gender-based violence, reduced access to food and healthcare, and increased social tensions. In Syria, the ongoing conflict has created a massive refugee crisis, and the situation remains a Read More >
Russian “Military Police” in Syria – A Successful Information Operation?
By Lieutenant Colonel Andrii Melnyk, Ukrainian Army, US Central Command: Strategy Plans and Policy Directorate; Combined Strategic Analysis Group 17 July 2020 Summary: Russia is using trained Military Police (MP) in Syria—compromised of personnel with similar religious views and ethnic origins as the Syrian population—who act as “Russian peacekeepers” to achieve strategic objectives. Russian Read More >
COVID-19: Health and Economic Crises
بالعربية Pусский Dr. Gawdat Bahgat, NESA Since mid-February, people in the NESA region and around the world have been suffering from two overlapping crises – a health crisis and an economic one. Turkey and Iran have had the largest number of infected cases, but the virus has not spared any country in the region or Read More >
A Double Humanitarian Crisis in Syria
بالعربية Pусский Dr. Michael Sharnoff, NESA Center After nine years of civil war, Syria has become a failing state with over half a million Syrians killed and 13 million displaced. The U.N. estimates restructuring efforts will cost over $300 billion. Moreover, Assad’s government does not exercise control over all of its territory. Pockets of political Read More >
Views on Syria: What Should the U.S. Do?
Dr. Dania Koleilat Khatib is a NESA Alumnus and a specialist in US-Arab relations with a focus on lobbying. She holds a PhD in politics from the University of Exeter and is an affiliated scholar with the Issam Fares Institute for Public Policy and International Affairs at the American University of Beirut. Dr. Khatib frequently Read More >
Turkey, US and Russia may Prioritize Stability in Syria
“US President Donald Trump on Tuesday March 31st had a phone call with Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdogan to discuss cease-fires in Libya and Syria in the light of the dangers posed by the coronavirus pandemic. This is a very positive sign that, when facing the same threat, which does not differentiate between nations, ethnicities or Read More >
Russia may Revive Astana Talks amid Virus Distraction
“Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu met with Syrian President Bashar Assad in late March to discuss the cease-fire in Idlib. While the West is scrambling to manage the coronavirus pandemic and Syria is not on its radar, Russia might find an opportunity to revive the stalled Astana talks — the parallel course to the Geneva Read More >
The Future of Middle East States
NESA Alumnus Hussein Solomon writes: “It is clear that the European Westphalian state system which was imported into the Middle East by colonial powers through the Sykes-Picot Line in 1916 is under threat. In some cases, such as Libya and Yemen, state collapse is a reality, while in others the future of political authority is Read More >