Iraq is a developing democracy, but its location — between Iran, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Syria — means that it always faces pressure from outside its borders. The list of challenges it faced in 2024 ranged from ongoing security threats, including attacks on U.S. military bases by armed groups, political shifts and discussions about the... Read More

The year just ended was a tumultuous one for Afghanistan, marked by many significant events that will continue to challenge the country in 2025. ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K) carried out at least 19 terrorist attacks, targeting Hazara and Shia civilians, Sufi adherents, foreign nationals and Taliban officials. One notable incident was the assassination of Khalil Rahman Haqqani,... Read More

The shame of American military assistance in Iraq and Afghanistan is that while our troops and their local allies were fighting bravely, the leaders of our so-called allies were getting rich. We have seen something even worse in Ukraine: While Ukrainian military personnel and civilians fight valiantly in a fierce contest for independence, Ukrainian leaders... Read More

Donald Trump is back, and so is the “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran to “drastically throttle” Tehran’s oil sales. But 2025 is not 2018. Although Iran was on the ropes then, things are different now. America’s support for Israel’s campaigns against the Palestinian and Lebanese people has eroded local support for U.S. moves, as many... Read More

Israel recently attacked banks in Lebanon it alleges are part of the financial network that supports Iran-backed terror group Hezbollah (a member of the Lebanese government). While Israel is great at the blowing-up aspect of fighting Hezbollah’s financial network, a bank is just a building, a mailing address — not “the network.” The U.S. government... Read More

Ahmad Massoud, the leader of the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, recently declared he will defeat the Taliban “no matter the odds.” For Massoud to mount a military threat to the Taliban, he would need the cooperation of the Central Asian republics, Iran or Pakistan (among others) to do the job. However, Afghanistan’s neighbors have... Read More

“You’ve come a long way, baby” — but not far enough, according to Democrats in the U.S. Congress. Senate Republicans were angered by the Democrats’ proposed amendment to the annual National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) last week that would require women 18-26 years of age be automatically enrolled in the Selective Service System (commonly known... Read More

On April 22, Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi, is scheduled for a state visit to Pakistan. Their number one topic probably won’t be Hamas or the Houthis, but rather a pipeline. The Iran-Pakistan natural gas pipeline was conceived in 1950, and in 2010 — despite U.S. opposition — the countries concluded a 25-year Gas Sale and... Read More

On Feb. 18 and 19, United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres convened a meeting in Doha, Qatar, to discuss the “evolving situation” in Afghanistan and future engagement with the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan. The Taliban declined an invitation to the meeting after the U.N. refused their conditions, including recognizing the Taliban as the legitimate government of... Read More

While the U.S., Russia and Europe are trying to quell (or aggravate) crises simultaneously in Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, Israel/Gaza, the Persian Gulf and the Red Sea/Yemen, Uzbekistan and China have quietly elevated their partnership. Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev made a state visit to China on Jan. 23-25, visiting Beijing and Shenzen. While there he met... Read More

On Jan. 4, 2024, the U.S. assassinated Mushtaq Jawad Kazim al-Jawari, a commander in an Iran-linked Iraqi militia. The Pentagon press release called the militia a “terrorist group” and claimed the strike was in “self-defense.” But it neglected to mention the militia was also part of the Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF), an Iraqi government body... Read More

Israel’s counterattack on the Gaza Strip, in retaliation for the Oct. 7 attack by the Islamic Resistance Movement (“Hamas”), has caused allegedly 20,000 deaths among Palestinian civilians. Every country in the Muslim world has seen popular rejection of Israel’s assault, and the Central Asian republics are no exception. The Central Asian people identify with their... Read More

Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rep. Mark Green (R-Tenn.) recently sent a letter to the Department of Homeland Security asking for it to take data security and hacking attempts by America’s enemies more seriously. Green also wrote to the Government Accountability Office (GAO), asking it to investigate the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), especially USA Staffing... Read More