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Saudi Oil Attack Points to More Advanced Iranian Missiles and Drones

If Iran is in fact responsible for the recent attack on Saudi oil facilities, whether directly or through its proxies in Yemen, it suggests that Iranian cruise missiles and drones are getting more sophisticated. Unlike its ballistic missile program, which receives considerable international attention, Iran’s cruise missile capabilities have long …

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Though Strengthened in Syria, Hezbollah Faces Unprecedented Dangers Within

In late August, an Israeli airstrike on a compound south of Damascus killed two Hezbollah fighters, who had reportedly been working alongside members of the Quds Force, the elite branch of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, to launch drone attacks on Israeli territory. According to the Israeli army, the airstrike …

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How Saudi Arabia Is Trying to Counter Iranian Influence in Iraq

Last month, Iraqi Prime Minister Adel Abdul Mahdi made his first trip to Saudi Arabia, where he met with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. The visit was part of a broad effort by Saudi Arabia to counter the growing regional influence of its rival, Iran, by deepening political and economic …

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The Case for Leaving the Iran Nuclear Deal on Life Support

Will the next U.S. president have any incentive to revive the Iran nuclear deal? The status of the agreement has steadily eroded since the U.S. unilaterally pulled out of it in May 2018 and subsequently reimposed punishing economic sanctions on Iran and any entities that do business with it. And …

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How Biden Can Score a Diplomatic Win in the Gulf, With Europe’s Help

Many world leaders, dismayed by four years of Donald Trump, are hoping that President-elect Joe Biden will return to an American foreign policy that is more pragmatic and balanced, less fickle and pettily punitive. One region crying out for an urgent recalibration in the U.S. approach is the Persian Gulf. …

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Iran Is Already Raising the Stakes for Biden in the Middle East

Just days into the new year, Iran announced that “a couple of hours ago,” it had started enriching uranium to 20 percent—a level that experts say would put it within a six-month sprint of converting its entire nuclear stockpile to bomb-grade material. Tehran’s move Monday raises the pressure on President-elect …

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Having Won Syria’s War, al-Assad Is Mired in Economic Woes

After a decade of war, the biggest threat now to President Bashar al-Assad is an economic crisis. But at a recent meeting, he had no concrete solutions to his country’s extreme distress. In a private meeting with pro-government journalists, President Bashar al-Assad was asked about Syria’s economic meltdown: the currency …

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Resisting Russia

At some point in the next generation, the Kremlin will realize that the United States is not its principal national security challenge. AS SURELY as geese fly south every autumn, the arrival of a new American president resounds with calls for a new policy toward Moscow. To be sure, there …

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The Real Russia ‘Reset’: Reassessing US Sanctions Policy Against Russia

The use of targeted sanctions has been arguably the central response of U.S. foreign policy against Russia since the annexation of Crimea in 2014. U.S. government officials have touted sanctions as having imposed heavy but targeted economic costs on the Russian economy and deterred Moscow from further malign behavior. Yet …

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At the mercy of foreign powers

Libyans ousted a dictator, but an ensuing civil war hasdrawn in Russia, Turkey and others with a thirst for control The Soviet-era cargo plane rose from a frigid Moscow runway and banked south toward Syria, landing at a Russian air base on the coast several hours later. It ascended again …

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