by Paul R. Pillar Mainly because of domestic American politics and the workings of the U.S. Congress, everyone has a right to be confused about U.S. policy toward Saudi Arabia, including the Saudis themselves. The first Congressional override of any… Continue Reading
by Ryan Suto The current US presidential campaign debate on Middle East policy has focused disproportionately on the US response to the Islamic State (ISIS or IS). This series will focus instead on five alternative Middle East policy challenges facing… Continue Reading
by Thomas W. Lippman Now that Congress had made it possible for families of 9/11 victims to sue Saudi Arabia, the United States may find out if all the dire consequences predicted whenever this issue has been raised in the… Continue Reading
by Mansour Farhang A semi-irony of the 37-year-old animosity between Iran and the United States is the repeated convergence of short-term interests between hard-liners in the Iranian theocracy and right-wing political forces in America. The latest example is the dispute over… Continue Reading
by Thomas W. Lippman From the perspective of the Saudi Arabian government, no news was really good news. The long-withheld 28 pages of a 2002 congressional inquiry into the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, released on Friday, provided scant… Continue Reading