A thaw in Turkey’s relations with Egypt? Gulf Cooperation Council reconciliation may have set in motion Ankara’s desire for a reset with Cairo. Egypt
Biden's deputy secretary of state nominee OK'd by Senate committee The Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved moving Wendy Sherman's nomination to the full Senate, with some Democrats and Republicans who had disagreed with her on the Iran deal voting to confirm her anyway. United States
Biden's CIA nominee stresses China over Iran during Senate hearing Ambassador William Burns said that China is the biggest challenge for the United States, but that Iran and Russia cannot be overlooked. Regional
Post-COVID Mideast economies look to the Gulf and Egypt The region took a hard hit from the pandemic, and it’s far from over, but Egypt and Saudi Arabia are managing better than expected. Regional
Trump talks Israel-UAE deal, Biden’s Middle East record at last night of Republican convention The president slammed his Democratic rival for voting for the 2003 Iraq war, but there's no record Trump opposed the invasion at the time. United States
Pompeo praises killing of Iranian commander at Republican convention US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Qasem Soleimani was responsible for killing US soldiers and other rogue actions in the Middle East. Israel
What's next for Turkish-Iraqi ties after deadly drone strike? The killing of Iraqi border guards in a Turkish drone strike undermines Baghdad’s traditional flexibility toward Ankara at a time when Turkey’s Arab adversaries are seeking to draw Iraq to their side. Iraq
Iraq's al-Faw port project's endless delays The al-Faw grand port project has been long delayed due to financial problems, among other issues. Iraq
Trump Pentagon nominee questioned about firm's link to killing of Saudi journalist The Senate Armed Services Committee is holding up the nomination of Louis Bremer over questions whether his firm trained those implicated in the murder of Jamal Khashoggi. United States
Coronavirus likely to delay Pentagon war games in Mideast to 2021 Mideast war exercises planned for this year are likely to be delayed until 2021, and other war games scheduled for next year may be delayed until 2022. Egypt
Intel: Democrats seek path for Biden to close Guantanamo Bay after obstructing Obama After years of obstructing Barack Obama’s efforts to close Guantanamo Bay when he was president, House Democrats have reversed course and are quietly trying to clear the way for Joe Biden to close the notorious detention facility should he win the presidential election in November. Congress
Intel: Democrats advance legislation to restrict Trump’s Middle East war powers House Democrats advanced three provisions today that would broadly curtail President Donald Trump’s ability to conduct offensive military action across the Middle East — and the world — should they become law as part of the annual defense spending bill. Congress
Erdogan: Turkey on path to ‘unstoppable power’ in region Turkish president throws his lot in again with Russia and Iran in Syria, expands plans for influence in North Africa and moves to convert the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque. Turkey
OPEC continues oil export cuts in June Global oil prices continue to hold up relative to earlier in the year as oil-producing countries in the Middle East struggle economically. Gulf
Egypt calls emergency Arab League meeting on Libya The meeting is expected to be held next week to discuss recent developments in the Libyan conflict. Egypt
Intel: Democrats condemn US broadcasting CEO’s Middle East purges after expanding office’s powers President Donald Trump’s new CEO of the US Agency for Global Media on Wednesday fired the heads of at least three of its outlets who collectively oversaw its Middle East and Iran coverage. The move sparked immediate condemnation from key Democrats despite their previous bipartisan support for expanding the CEO’s powers. Congress
