Iraq’s relationship with the Gulf has been tense for two decades, riven by sectarian conflict and a foreign policy closely aligned with Iran. While recent efforts to mend ties have shown promise, can they advance under the new Prime Minister in Baghdad?

Ranj Alaaldin

ME Council's experts survey the region’s socio-political and economic landscape and offer their outlooks for the year ahead.

In 2002, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) produced a remarkable and far-reaching document titled the Arab Human Development Report. Written largely by Arab authors, the report mobilized a wealth of data to argue persuasively that the lack of socio-economic development within the Arab region is the product of three fundamental deficits in freedom, knowledge,… Continue reading Twenty Years of Governance Reform: What’s Next for the MENA Region?

Tarik M. Yousef, Robert P. Beschel Jr.

IRAQ’S POLITICAL SYSTEM IS nearing irreversible collapse after months of escalatory measures by rival Shi’ite factions have brought the country to the brink of civil war. The trajectory of conflict appears irreversible and would imperil not only the rebuilding of Iraq after years of upheaval but hold implications for stability in the broader region, as… Continue reading Iraq is Moving Toward Civil War

Ranj Alaaldin