Iran

The signs are bad but there is international agreement when it comes to Syria. If they act now, Arab states can still re-establish control over events, but the usual statements of support won't cut it

The opposition fighters making such strides on the battlefield want to carry on all the way to Damascus. For everyone else, there are reasons to call a halt to proceedings sooner rather than later

Tehran is bracing for an even more aggressive US stance—one that leaves it little wiggle room. And this time around, the stakes are higher.

In 2015, Iran and world powers, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, China, France, and Germany, reached an agreement, the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), that saw the…

Expect a ramped-up version of Trump's first-term maximum-pressure campaign on Iran, only this time, he will have a stronger cast of US policymakers on board to implement it

Despite sanctions, Iran is still a big oil producer, with huge refining capacity. It also controls waterways crucial to the flow of Gulf oil. Yet the West has reserves and China's demand is dropping.

Iran's vision entails a region where US influence is minimised and Israel is isolated

As the flames of conflict spread, Iraqis—much like the Palestinians and Lebanese before them—could find themselves ensnared in a struggle they neither instigated nor can control

No matter who sits in the White House in 2025, Washington and Tehran will have to sit down and talk at some point