Several factors are at the base of the military success of ISIS and other jihadist organizations: the structural and functional weaknesses of Arab nation states; the organizations’ networked and decentralized structure, which makes it easier for them to operate and sustain themselves in the region; the ineffectiveness of the international community, first and foremost the United States, stemming from the lack of a solution to the problem and an unwillingness to become militarily involved; and the erosion of the United States’ image...
Anyone following the development of Iran’s cyber capabilities is not surprised that Iran has slowly become a significant power in the cyber arena. Recently, a long term Iranian cyber espionage campaign in the United States was uncovered that made use of “social engineering” and phishing in order to gather information from important officials in the United States, Israel, Great Britain, and other countries. The campaign is one of a long list of actions in cyberspace attributed to Iran designed to hurt the United States, Israel, and...
The fall of major Iraqi cities to Sunni extremists belonging to the Sunni group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) may well have implications beyond the borders of Iraq. Indeed, all of Iraq’s neighbors, as well as the United States, have cause for major worry about the immediate and long term implications of the recent developments. Paradoxically, a coalition of sorts has formed comprising countries that have an interest in nipping the ISIS territorial entrenchment in the bud. While the United States will need to take the leading...
Over the past eight months of negotiations between Iran and the P5+1, Tehran’s ballistic missile program has been mainly relegated to the sidelines. Yet given the attention devoted to the Iranian ballistic missile threat in the context of US plans for missile defense, it is difficult to comprehend why the US would bypass the threat in the nuclear talks. What could account for the US agreeing to concede the issue, focusing only on the nuclear program for now? Is the US worried that inclusion of the ballistic missile threat would...
Although the official topic of the international security conference held in Moscow on May 20-23, 2014 was Middle East regional security, the conference actually dealt with the Russian perspective on the linkage between the crisis in Ukraine, where elections were held two days after the conference ended, and the upheavals in the Middle East. Regardless of the debate on the validity of this approach, its presentation at the conference should be seen as a message to the West that Russia is considering a change in its policy, by...
The Israeli-Palestinians negotiations mediated by US Secretary of State John Kerry were a failure, and at the end of the allotted nine month period the two sides could not even agree on a document of principles, the so-called framework agreement. At the same time, the two parties fear the ramifications of the collapse of the talks: the risks are great, and the available options are problematic. The Palestinians often speak of the benefits of appealing to the international system to force an agreement on Israel, although they are...
In an address to the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies in Washington on May 1, 2014, Ron Dermer, Israel’s ambassador to the United States, spoke at length about a number of subjects on Israel’s national agenda. Presumably his comments reflect not only his personal opinion, but also assessments and stances acceptable to senior Israeli leaders. The ambassador did not state that the relationship between the US and Israel is becoming symmetrical. Nevertheless, he stressed that Israel is no longer a country that only receives; it...
What will US-Russia relations look like in the next few years? Where is Russia under President Putin headed? Is a military conflict over the Ukraine crisis a possibility? Are we facing a clash of blocs? Are we on the verge of a new era in international relations, or are we going back to Cold War patterns? What are the interrelations between national interests and global norms? These are just some of the questions asked by those following the Ukraine crisis that are addressed in this article.
The articles compiled in this volume grapple with questions and dilemmas that arise from a growing sense in recent years that the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) has reached a critical juncture, and that its continued role as the centerpiece of the nuclear nonproliferation regime is at risk. This is the result of a process that has unfolded gradually since the end of the Cold War, which also spelled the end of the bipolar global structure that, in the minds of many, helped keep nuclear proliferation in check.
The interim agreement between Iran and the world powers, led by the United States, entered into force in January 2014 and was designed to allow six months of negotiations on a final agreement. Now, halfway through this period, it appears that Tehran and Washington have begun to implement their negotiations tactics and have chosen respective strategies to shape the final agreement and market it as a strategic accomplishment. This situation requires both a more flexible Israeli position and improved US-Israeli coordination so that any...
On April 17, 2014, the foreign ministers of all the parties involved in the Ukrainian crisis – Russia, Ukraine, the US, and the European Union – met in Geneva. The purpose of the meeting was to resolve the escalating crisis in Ukraine, which has evolved into a significant confrontation between the global powers. The meeting, which in effect was a Russian-US dialogue, was described as successful. The significance of the understandings reached is that Ukraine is in effect becoming a neutral country and is under ongoing...
President Obama’s recent visit to Saudi Arabia was aimed at restoring Riyadh’s confidence that the United States would come to the monarchy’s defense in times of need. The bilateral bargain of oil for security has long been the underpinning of US-Saudi relations, and Saudi Arabia has upheld its part of the bargain by regulating its oil exports, partly on the basis of US strategic considerations. However, US conduct on certain regional issues, particularly the Iranian nuclear project and the situation in Syria, has led to a growing...
