Muqtada al-Sadr’s alliance: An opportunity for Iraq, the US, and the region The United States and its allies face a dilemma and opportunity in Iraq. The October 2022 parliamentary elections produced a winner in Muqtada al-Sadr, the traditionally anti-Western cleric who leads Iraq’s most powerful socio-political movement and one of its most dominant armed groups. Sadr has long been at odds with the West. His militia, the…
Tue, 17 May 2022 17:43:25 +0000 A Marcos returns to power in the Philippines And so the unimaginable happened — the result of the Philippines’ long-awaited 2022 presidential elections is that Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., son of the former dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr., will becoming the country’s 17th president, succeeding the controversial Rodrigo Duterte in June. Marcos Jr.’s victory in one of the Philippines’ most consequential elections since the…
Fri, 13 May 2022 18:48:31 +0000 Tunisia is sliding back into authoritarianism. Here’s what the US should do. Nine long months have passed since the start of the slow-motion coup in Tunisia, a country that, until recently, offered one of the best hopes for democratization in the Middle East. After shuttering the parliament with tanks in July, President Kais Saied has suspended the constitution and dissolved the Supreme Judicial Council. In perhaps the most disturbing…
Thu, 12 May 2022 18:00:06 +0000 Taking stock of US-ASEAN relations as Biden convenes a special summit This week, eight Southeast Asian leaders descend on Washington for a special summit hosted by President Joe Biden. They represent most of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), a diverse grouping ranging from the city state of Singapore to the sprawling archipelago of Indonesia. Taken together, ASEAN's 10 countries boast a population of over…
Wed, 11 May 2022 20:52:19 +0000 How to bolster Yemen and Saudi Arabia’s brittle peace deal The fragile ceasefire in Yemen between the Saudis and the Zaydi Shia Houthi rebels has lasted more than a month, despite a key clause concerning resumption of commercial flights being blocked. The United States behind the scenes has quietly abandoned seven years of broken diplomacy to play a more useful and balanced role. American distancing…
