Threats
Offering No Evidence, Esper Says Soleimani Attack On US Was ‘Days’ Away
Meanwhile, confusion continues over draft letter citing plans to move U.S. forces in Iraq.
Ideas
Trump’s Fixation on the Hostage Crisis Is Driving His Iran Policy
The president’s approach to the Islamic Republic appears stuck in 1979.
Ideas
Don’t Use the Iran Crisis As An Excuse To Boost Pentagon Spending
Use it to reconsider the American approach to national security.
Ideas
US-Iranian Diplomacy Almost Worked. Let’s Try It Again
Direct talks may be too much to ask for at this stage, but tension-reduction measures promoted by third parties are still very plausible.
Policy
Soleimani Strike Splits 2020 Democrats
It also opens up a key weakness for frontrunner Joe Biden.
Ideas
The Blueprint Iran Could Follow After Soleimani’s Death
Here’s what to expect after the U.S. killing of Iran’s most powerful military commander.
Policy
Iraqi Lawmakers Ask Government to Expel US Troops
Iraq analysts say the nonbinding vote is important but removal of U.S. troops is far from a done deal.
Ideas
The Soleimani Strike Defied the US Constitution
If Congress fails to respond effectively, the president will be left with the unmitigated power to take the country to war on his own—anywhere, anytime, for any reason.
Ideas
The Soleimani Assassination Is America’s Most Consequential Strike This Century
The U.S. attack against the top Iranian general will have far greater repercussions than the killings of al-Qaeda and ISIS leaders.
Threats
Soleimani Strike Could Imperil US Troops In Iraq
Trump and his allies have sought to frame Iraq’s response to the strikes as a choice between Tehran and Washington, but the situation is not so black-and-white for Baghdad.
Science & Tech
What's Next for Iran's Cyber Actors?
The country has grown as a talented, and destructive, network threat over the last several years.
Ideas
Who’s Next? Trump Crossed a Line with Soleimani’s Assassination
The Iranian was much more than a general. Who else is the U.S. president willing to kill?
Ideas
The US Recently Made a Smart Move Toward Iran. Killing Soleimani Wasn’t It
The decision to focus on Tehran’s proxies in the wake of the embassy attack was the right course.
Ideas
Iran Loses Its Indispensable Man
The killing of Qassem Soleimani robs the regime of the central figure for its ambitions in the Middle East.
Threats
Iran’s Soleimani Killed in Trump-Ordered Airstrike
The stunning killing of the Quds Force leader follows Iranian-backed militia attacks on U.S. embassy in Iraq, and months of Tehran testing Washington’s stomach for violence.
Ideas
A Bigger Foreign-Policy Mess Than Anyone Predicted
In the 2010s, global affairs turned out far worse than the most pessimistic scenario foretold by U.S. intelligence experts.
Ideas
In Iraq, the US Gets Hit Where It Hurts
The storming of the U.S. embassy in Baghdad demonstrated that America doesn’t have a monopoly on pressure.
Ideas
The Foreign-Policy Parallels Between Trump and the Ayatollahs Are Uncanny
Neither the U.S. president nor Iran's leaders are as willing to go toe-to-toe as they might seem.
Ideas
An End to Magical Thinking in the Middle East
It’s time to abandon the dogma that’s driven our foreign policy and led to so much disaster in the region.
Ideas