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  • 26 Jun 2025
    • China
    • Nuclear Weapons
    • Iran
    • Israel

    China sits out Iran conflagration

    Henry Storey
    Beijing sees little upside in getting entangled in Middle Eastern wars and currently lacks the bandwidth to be a truly global security player.
  • 17 Jun 2025
    • Russia
    • Iran
    • Israel

    Israel–Iran conflict: Moscow positions itself for advantage

    Ian Hill
    Russia is once more on no-one’s side but its own.
  • 23 May 2025
    • Intelligence and security
    • Terrorism
    • International law
    • Israel
    • Middle East Conflict

    Israeli embassy staff killings expose the limits of diplomatic protection

    Nina Marković Khaze
    Transnational dangers are amplified by extremist ideologies online.
  • 21 Nov 2024
    • North Korea
    • Intelligence and security
    • Iran's Nuclear Program
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Iran
    • Israel

    Cat-astrophe! What happens when dirty-minded North Koreans meet Iranian nuclear purrfidy

    Daniel Flitton
    I spy an invisible cat. Two, in fact.
  • 15 Nov 2024
    • Russia
    • Iran
    • Israel
    • Yemen
    • United States

    What does Trump’s return mean for America’s relations with Russia?

    Ian Hill
    Whatever happens over the next four years, the underlying causes of Russia–US confrontation won’t go away.
  • 8 Oct 2024
    • Defence & Security
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Ukraine
    • Global Issues
    • Iran
    • Israel

    When the friendly skies above go dark, rockets light up

    Kazimier Lim
    How airspace closures signal the geopolitical strategies unfolding in the Middle East.
  • 7 Oct 2024
    • Middle East
    • Iran
    • Israel
    • The Trump Presidency
    • United States
    • US Elections

    Trump would put personality over policy in the Middle East

    Lydia Khalil
    Donald Trump’s overarching impulse towards the Middle East can be boiled down to: look strong, but don’t do too much.
  • 18 Sep 2024
    • Defence & Security
    • Israel
    • Lebanon

    Pager bombs: Precision warfare takes a personal turn in Lebanon

    Mick Ryan
    The implications of this attack stretch far beyond Hezbollah to future threats.
  • 7 Aug 2024
    • China
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Trade
    • Iran
    • Israel

    China’s high-stakes diplomacy: Managing Middle Eastern turmoil

    Joseph Webster
    Will Beijing exert more effort to calm the region and protect its economic interests and credibility?
  • 2 Jul 2024
    • North Korea
    • France
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Human rights
    • Iran
    • Israel

    Pariah states and the Olympic Games

    Gabriela Bernal
    With the Paris Games only weeks away, the controversy around athletes from “rogue” countries is set to intensify.
  • 17 Apr 2024
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Iran
    • Israel

    Iran-Israel: The escalation calculus

    Lydia Khalil
    Iran’s weekend strike against Israel was thwarted, but how should we calculate its impacts?
  • 28 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Israel

    Hamas's position is stronger than many think

    Ben Scott
    Hamas has demonstrated surprising resilience and capability since its founding in 1987. It would be a mistake to believe it can be eliminated.
  • 20 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Egypt
    • Iran
    • Iraq
    • Israel
    • Lebanon
    • Qatar
    • Saudi Arabia
    • Syria
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Yemen

    The war in Gaza has not destroyed normalisation … for now

    Lydia Khalil
    Despite deepening hostilities, common strategic interests still bind Israel and most of the Arab states.
  • 16 Nov 2023
    • India
    • Middle East
    • Israel

    India’s Gaza dilemma

    Henry Storey
    The Israeli–Palestinian conflict exposes a gap between New Delhi’s Global South leadership aspirations and its realpolitik.
  • 13 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Middle East
    • Israel
    • United States

    1947 and now

    Steven Casey
    Strife in the Middle East, hyper-partisans in the US Congress, and Russian troops on the march. We've been here before.
  • 10 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Israel

    Israel-Palestine: It’s not too late for the two-state solution

    Ben Scott
    But the world can’t expect Washington to make it happen.
  • 6 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Transnational Challenges
    • Middle East
    • Israel

    Gaza and re-imagining international order

    Bobo Lo
    The events of the past month show that the usual recipes for global problem-solving are no longer fit for purpose.
  • 3 Nov 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Russia
    • Ukraine
    • Israel

    Russia seeks benefit from the Gaza conflict

    Ian Hill
    Moscow hopes the Middle East will distract the West from supporting Ukraine – but old troubles at home could stir again.
  • 1 Nov 2023
    • India
    • India's Economy
    • Europe
    • Europe's Economy
    • Trade
    • Middle East
    • Iran
    • Israel
    • Saudi Arabia
    • United Arab Emirates
    • United States
    • US Economy

    History repeats: A new (old) economic corridor emerges

    Ved Shinde
    Renewed connectivity between India, the Middle East and Europe shows how maps are temporary, but geography persists.
  • 12 Oct 2023
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Israel

    Israel–Palestine conflict once more the overriding issue of regional security

    Lydia Khalil
    The Palestinian cause remained, but for the region had become a second or third-order issue among diplomatic normalisation and other pressing challenges.
  • 26 Sep 2023
    • Middle East
    • Egypt
    • Iran
    • Israel
    • Saudi Arabia
    • Türkiye
    • United Arab Emirates

    Israel and Saudi Arabia: Finally, a New Middle East?

    Dave Sharma
    A deal with the Middle East’s two most significant powers could transform the volatile region, but the stakes are high.
  • 14 Oct 2022
    • Israel
    • Lebanon

    The good oil: Israel and Lebanon strike a border deal

    Rodger Shanahan
    In a region where good news is rare, patient diplomacy can celebrate a win.
  • 25 May 2021
    • Indonesia
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Israel

    How Gaza occupies Indonesia’s identity wars

    Johannes Nugroho
    Israel-Palestinian issues have long featured in Jakarta’s worldview but with a domestic edge, too.
  • 21 May 2021
    • Middle East Conflict
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Türkiye
    • Qatar
    • Israel

    The challenge to the Abraham Accords

    Rodger Shanahan
    A reckoning over the Palestinian issue was always coming for those countries that normalised ties with Israel.
  • 13 Apr 2021
    • United States
    • Iran's Nuclear Program
    • Iran
    • Israel

    Iran-US-Israel: Boxing out of the shadows

    Rodger Shanahan
    Gradual progress in talks to revive the nuclear deal may be dealt a blow by a series of “grey-zone” attacks.
  • 15 Mar 2021
    • Middle East Conflict
    • Iran
    • Israel

    An oil spill nobody owns

    Rodger Shanahan
    A clandestine operation? Environmental terrorism? Israel and Iran both deny responsibility for a mysterious event.
  • 30 Nov 2020
    • Iran's Nuclear Program
    • Iran
    • Israel

    The fallout of assassinating Mohsen Fakhrizadeh

    Bob Bowker
    The killing of the head of the Iranian nuclear program may make it even harder to revive the nuclear deal.
  • 26 Oct 2020
    • Israel
    • Lebanon

    The other Arab diplomatic talks with Israel

    Rodger Shanahan
    Lebanon wants to settle its maritime borders to exploit rich oil and gas fields. Nothing more.
  • 16 Oct 2020
    • Iran
    • Russia
    • Türkiye
    • Israel
    • Caucasus

    The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict: Increasingly deadly and destabilising  

    Marianne Hanson
    An eruption of bitter fighting in a seemingly intractable conflict is aggravating wider regional tensions.
  • 1 Sep 2020
    • Middle East
    • Middle East Conflict
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Israel

    Why is the “Arab street” so silent on the Israel-UAE deal?

    Lydia Khalil
    Barely any outcry marked this latest shift, which probably reflects recognition of facts on the ground.
  • 21 Aug 2020
    • Middle East
    • Diplomacy
    • United States
    • China
    • Iran
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Israel

    Hidden seams in the UAE-Israel deal

    Ben Scott
    It’s all about Iran, right? Actually, the agreement has more to do with managing the US and China.
  • 17 Aug 2020
    • Middle East
    • United States
    • Iran
    • United Arab Emirates
    • Türkiye
    • Qatar
    • Israel

    The essence of timing in politics

    Rodger Shanahan
    The UAE earned goodwill for a deal with Israel, but the US is still struggling to win backers for its hard line on Iran.
  • 9 Jul 2020
    • Middle East
    • Syria
    • Iran
    • Saudi Arabia
    • Yemen
    • Türkiye
    • Israel

    Cashing in the chips at the Trump casino

    Rodger Shanahan
    The prospect of a Biden administration has pro-US leaders in the Middle East seeking to keep their political “winnings”.
  • 21 Feb 2020
    • Australia
    • Israel

    Australia and Israel should be partners in Asia

    Gedaliah Afterman
    In a changing strategic landscape, likeminded countries have the chance to identify and grasp new opportunities.
  • 17 Feb 2020
    • Israel

    Israel’s democracy: a systemic problem

    Ian Parmeter
    Israel will go to the polls for the third time in less than a year. What makes it so hard for a clear winner to emerge?
  • 25 Sep 2019
    • Israel

    Israel’s Arabs awaken to their electoral power

    Ian Parmeter
    Arab Israelis have been slow to realise their potential pivotal role in the nation’s politics. That’s changing.
  • 12 Sep 2019
    • Israel

    Will Israeli voters give Bibi a “get out of jail” card?

    Ian Parmeter
    The corruption allegations against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu are the subtext to the elections on 17 September.
  • 15 Apr 2019
    • Israel

    Israel’s elections: many messiahs, but only one king

    Anthony Bubalo
    Benjamin Netanyahu survived a scare, and why should anyone be surprised when a noble amateur loses to the ruthless pro?
  • 9 Apr 2019
    • Israel

    How Israeli elections fit – and don’t quite match – global trends

    Merriden Varrall , Louis Raymond
    Moderate centrism is out, while increasing nationalism seems to attract votes, even pushing aside a cloud of corruption.
  • 17 Dec 2018
    • Diplomacy
    • Australia
    • Israel

    Responses to Australia’s Israel capital decision

    Daniel Flitton
    <p>How the world reacted to Scott Morrison’s decision to formally recognise West Jerusalem Israel’s capital.</p>
  • 16 Oct 2018
    • Australia
    • Israel

    Australia’s Israel-Palestine conflict

    Daniel Flitton
    This is actually one of those rare issues in Australian foreign policy where the two major parties quite often disagree.

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