Analysis Netanyahu 'skeptical' as Trump doubles down on Iran diplomacy President Trump says he’d prefer a deal but warns of "traumatic” consequences for Iran if diplomacy fails. By Elizabeth Hagedorn In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights
Iran’s Larijani in Qatar, meets Hamas leadership: What to know Qatar and Oman have played a vital role in mediating between Iran and the United States to avoid military confrontation that would spill over to the rest of the region. Iran
Fidan: Iran nuclear breakout could drag Turkey into regional arms race The top Turkish diplomat said an Iranian nuclear breakout could push Ankara into a nuclear race but declined to say whether Turkey would pursue its own nuclear weapons. Turkey
Analysis Fearing Iran deal, Netanyahu races to US to sway Trump, sidestep Witkoff Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu is flying to Washington to persuade President Donald Trump not to forget Iran's ballistic missile project and its proxies in the talks with Tehran. By Ben Caspit In Tel Aviv, reporting on national security, Israeli politics, defense
Analysis New nuclear deal is no silver bullet for Iran's untapped gas reserves By Jack Dutton In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech
Analysis From 'help is on the way' to nuclear talks, Iranians wary of Trump's shift By Elizabeth Hagedorn In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights
Salih: Iraq can be a 'bridge to the economies of the region' Iraqi president charts new direction for Iraqi foreign policy based on "interrelated interests" at Sulaimani Forum; Iraq-Jordan trade deal should help address Jordan’s unemployment crisis; Rouhani arrives in Iraq to boost trade; US shifted arms from Iraq to Syria in second half of 2018. Iraq
Exodus by big firms pushes Iran toward smaller Chinese enterprises To mitigate the impact of harsh US sanctions, Iran is increasingly turning to China by dispatching high-ranking delegations to Beijing to augment trade. But China is also mindful not to cross the red lines drawn by the United States. United States
Zarif’s stock rises with support from Soleimani While Iran’s foreign minister carries the day against hard-liners, Israel hopes to exploit possible cracks in Tehran’s Syria policy. Israel
US shrugs off Zarif resignation reversal Before Iran’s foreign minister had returned to the job, the Donald Trump administration dismissed Mohammad Javad Zarif’s resignation as essentially irrelevant, as the prospect of getting to the negotiating table looks increasingly remote. United States
Intel: Iran’s top diplomat offers resignation after being iced out of Syria talks Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif suddenly resigned Monday in a post on Instagram where he expressed gratitude “to the dear and honorable Iranian people for the last 67 months” while apologizing for “all the shortcomings during my service.” Syria
Iran claims US sabotage of missile program used to its ‘benefit’ Iran has for the first time successfully launched a cruise missile from a submarine. United States
Iran questions Iraq's promise to import oil despite sanctions In a surprising statement, Iran's oil minister recently complained that Iraq is abiding by the US sanctions and canceling some energy deals with Iran. Iraq
Veteran peace hands see growing Israeli-Arab alignment in Warsaw While the Palestinians boycotted the meeting in Poland, a number of Arab delegates showed an interest in engaging with US plans for the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Legacy: Gulf
Trump allies hijack Warsaw summit with calls for Iran war, regime change Giuliani's meeting with Iranian opposition group and Israeli prime minister's tweet about war with Iran gets conference on promoting peace in the Middle East off to problematic start. Yemen
Will Warsaw summit unite US, EU against Iran? Despite a likely Western European snub in terms of level of representation, the Warsaw summit holds the possibility of being a starting point for a European-American consensus against Iran down the line, potentially depriving Tehran of even the minimum benefits of the nuclear deal. United States
Iranian opposition unwelcome at Pompeo’s anti-Iran bash Iranian opposition gets left out of meeting on Iran taking place in Poland next week. Legacy: Gulf
Why Europe just made Rouhani’s effort to exit FATF blacklist even harder The E3’s seeming tying of the launch of its new trade mechanism to Iran’s passing of controversial bills has energized hard-line calls for refusal to accede to the FATF’s action plan. Iran
