Introduction: On September 15, 2020, the United States, under President Donald Trump, mediated an agreement known as the Abraham Accords, which formally normalized diplomatic relations between the State of Israel, the United Arab Emirates, and the Kingdom of Bahrain. What was initially a trilateral agreement between Israel and two of the Persian Gulf’s wealthiest states expanded in the subsequent months to also include Morocco and Sudan. As such, the Abraham Accords marked one of the most significant developments in the Arab-Israeli peace process in decades. Today, three years since the Accord ..read more

The use of the cryptocurrency Bitcoin spread throughout Lebanon like wildfire in the wake of the country’s financial collapse in 2019.[1] Yet, many people, both Lebanese and in general, still do not know how digital currency works or whether or not they should use it. Bitcoin first earned widespread attention in the United States and Europe a few years after the 2008 financial crisis generated intense skepticism of the global monetary system, but Lebanon took less notice because the crisis barely affected the country.[2] Distrust of the monetary system grew rapidly in Lebanon in 2019 after the ..read more

Iran and Saudi Arabia made steady progress in their negotiations through four rounds of talks that took place throughout 2021 in Baghdad, Iraq, with foreign ministers from each party indicating that the conversations were constructive and could lead to a rapprochement.[1] As their dialogue continues and hopefully leads to mutually acceptable agreements, we consider the regional implications of improved relations between Tehran and Riyadh. For decades, these two Middle Eastern superpowers influenced and directed the affairs of multiple neighboring states. Accordingly, any agreement between them ..read more

Many leading political theorists and experts in the MENA region have referred to the relationship between Iran and Saudi Arabia over the past few decades as a new Cold War in the Middle East.[1] Much like the United States and the Soviet Union during the second half of the twentieth century, Iran and Saudi Arabia have not directly engaged with one another in war but instead competed for spheres of influence and regional dominance using statecraft and proxy warfare in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. Tensions between the two great powers went through cycles of highs and lows over the past few d ..read more

Secretary Pompeo Meets with Prime Minister Netanyahu [Wikimedia Commons] U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo announced on April 22, 2020 that Israeli annexation of parts of the disputed Israeli-Palestinian territory, known as the West Bank or Judea and Samaria, would be a decision for the State of Israel to make. While ultimately annexation plans "would have to be greenlighted by the United States,"[1] the eager attitude of Secretary Pompeo—without openly-expressed, public limitations—may not have been beneficial to American or Israeli interests. Many today might appreciate the instances when ..read more

Beirut, Lebanon. [Flickr] Starting on October 17, 2019 and continuing onto now, December 2019, 1.5 million Lebanese citizens have taken to the streets of Beirut to protest government corruption in the face of a looming economic crisis. Triggered by government proposals to tax WhatsApp calls, gas, and tobacco, the debt-ridden nation experienced waves of protests amongst its citizens demanding the resignation of Prime Minister Saad Hariri for economic mismanagement and political corruption. Within the first week alone, a ..read more

Lebanese coins. [Flickr] Over the past two decades, the Lebanese government slowly became trapped into creditor dependency. Like so many developing countries before, the government now faces a dilemma between preserving its financial credibility or the livelihood of its citizens. Its policies have been oriented to the former, much to the detriment of the real economy. With no other ways to receive government funding, Lebanon will likely have to embrace international loans with strict conditions imposed.  To understand Lebanon’s situation ..read more

Iranian Flag. [Pixabay] When examining International Relations in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), one bedrock assumption of Realism does not apply to the current political landscape. In Realist theory power, whether economic or military, is the “currency” of nation-states. Yet, when viewing developments in the MENA, this distinction fails to take into account the great influence of sub-national and non-state actors. Such groups in many cases challenge and in a few cases exceed the “power” of the nation-state in which they share ..read more