Analysis
Since 2012, the Week in Review keeps you ahead of the curve with in-depth analysis of the trends in the region, based on Al-Monitor’s world class reporting.
US permits civil nuclear ties with Iran despite 'maximum pressure'
Iran’s economy struggles under sanctions, floods, mismanagement; Al-Monitor’s Jack Detsch recognized for "exemplary reporting."
![The reactor building at the Russian-built Bushehr nuclear power plant in southern Iran, 1200 Kms south of Tehran, where Iran has began unloading fuel into the reactor core for the nuclear power plant on October 26, 2010, a move which brings the facility closer to generating electricity after decades of delay. AFP PHOTO/MEHR NEWS/MAJID ASGARIPOUR (Photo credit should read MAJID ASGARIPOUR/AFP/Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/GettyImages-106056793.jpg/GettyImages-106056793.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=BXiz5Nhq)
Syrian Kurds fear US sellout to Turkey on ‘safe zone’
Zarif meets Assad and Erdogan; is Erdogan banking on Trump to avoid S-400 sanctions?
![Fighters from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) sit in the bucket of an excavator in the village of Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, Syria March 20, 2019. Picture taken March 20, 2019. REUTERS/Rodi Said - RC115D5A9480](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTS2E321.jpg/RTS2E321.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=TejcDwx8)
Putin exploits crisis in US-Turkish relations
The Russian president has suggested more defense cooperation with Turkey and says Turkey's president may be willing to coordinate with Syria's Bashar al-Assad.
![RTS2GUAI.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTS2GUAI.jpg/RTS2GUAI.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=Q_-Q3lE3)
Putin plays Syria card in Israeli, Turkish elections
Russian President Vladimir Putin may be the winner with regard to his influence in Syria.
![Russian President Vladimir Putin and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, talk to each other during their meeting in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, April 4, 2019. Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTERS TPX IMAGES OF THE DAY - RC197C470650](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/04/RTS2GB28.jpg/RTS2GB28.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=oub_4vT0)
Did Trump’s decision on Golan undercut Putin mediation on Syria?
Russian President Vladimir Putin thought he had a deal in Helsinki; Turkey rethinks Syria ties over Kurds.
![A general view shows the town of Majdal Shams near the ceasefire line between Israel and Syria in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights March 25, 2019. REUTERS/Ammar Awad - RC1195E40A50](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/03/RTS2ETN3.jpg/RTS2ETN3.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=t7aZqB7p)
SDF commander lays out conditions for reconciliation with Damascus
In an exclusive interview, Mazlum Kobane warns of a “second great war” if Turkey intervenes militarily; State Department officials explain consequences of "undisciplined armed groups" in Iraq.
![A fighter from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) holds a weapon in the village of Baghouz, Deir Al Zor province, Syria March 17, 2019. REUTERS/Stringer - RC1A73E73120](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/03/RTS2DKRR.jpg/RTS2DKRR.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=VbjmDPDs)
Barzani: Russia key to settlement between Assad and Syrian Kurds
Manbij leaders prefer the United States, but would rather deal with Russia and Syria than Turkey; Amberin Zaman gets exclusive access to a prison for IS terrorists; did HTS force the resignation of a Syrian opposition leader?; Syrians protest Turkish truckers; Rouhani’s meeting with Sistani is "crowning achievement" of trip to Iraq.
![Nechirvan Barzani, Prime Minister of Iraq's Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), speaks during an electoral rally for the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP) in Arbil, the capital of the northern Iraqi Kurdish autonomous region on April 29, 2018. (Photo by SAFIN HAMED / AFP) (Photo credit should read SAFIN HAMED/AFP/Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/03/GettyImages-952752700.jpg/GettyImages-952752700.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=PwNSh55Q)
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.
![RTX6OIJA.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/03/RTX6OIJA.jpg/RTX6OIJA.jpg?h=b2c59e98&itok=1usUfrU0)
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.
![RTX6N4H3.jpg](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/02/RTX6N4H3.jpg/RTX6N4H3.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=PbHbfwHx)
Iraq-Jordan trade deal opens new doors for regional trade
A breakthrough trade agreement may signal new trend toward integration; Erdogan plays Syria card in Turkish elections; HTS undermines Turkish-backed groups in Idlib.
![Jordan's King Abdullah meets with Iraq's President Barham Saleh, during his visit in Baghdad, Iraq January 14, 2019. REUTERS/Khalid Al-Mousily - RC1347B8B2D0](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/almpics/2019/02/RTS2AJK5.jpg/RTS2AJK5.jpg?h=a5ae579a&itok=Yl0qL0Yy)
Pagination
Netanyahu, regional leaders hedge on possible Trump win in November
The Israeli prime minister is under pressure to deliver on a cease-fire during his Washington visit next week; Biden can’t heal Democrat divisions over Israel and the Gaza war.
![JACK GUEZ/AFP via Getty Images](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-1230516369.jpg?h=1d34674f&itok=-Zxq4qmm)
Lebanon FM warns of 'devastating’ regional war if Israel escalates campaign against Hezbollah
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Lebanon's top diplomat, Abdallah Bou Habib, adds that security in the south ultimately depends on a strong Lebanese army and an agreement on the border – not war.
![BERLIN, GERMANY - DECEMBER 15: Lebanese Minister of Foreign Affairs Abdallah Bou Habib speaks to the media following talks with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock on December 15, 2023 in Berlin, Germany. The two diplomats discussed mutual measures to prevent the current Palestinian-Israeli conflict from expanding to other regions, among other issues. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-1857491748.jpg?h=9855f42d&itok=rgoJZYYE)
US, Iran guarantors of shaky deterrence between Israel and Hezbollah
Hezbollah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah is not ready to go to the mattresses over the killing of another senior commander on Wednesday, and Iran doesn't want a war while it favors the threat of confrontation as a deterrent.
![A portrait of Musa al-Sadr sits amid the rubble of a destroyed building in the heavily damaged, Hezbollah stronghold town of Aita al Chaab on June 29, 2024 in Aita al Chaab, Lebanon. Hezbollah and the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) have been trading cross-border fire since the October 7 attacks, with the conflict escalating in May when the group launched a missile-carrying drone against Israel for the first time. The conflict intensified in June when Hezbollah fired hundreds of rockets and drones at Israeli m](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-07/GettyImages-2159834748.jpg?h=4296c093&itok=iuOsSvRF)
G42-Microsoft partnership in Kenya 'just the beginning,' says UAE trade minister
In an exclusive interview with Al-Monitor, Dr. Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi discusses momentum in UAE trade with the US, the benefits of economic diversification and Africa’s priority in UAE trade policy.
![Indonesian President Joko Widodo (L) listens to a speech by United Arab Emirates (UAE) Minister of State for Foreign Trade Thani Ahmed Al Zeyoudi (R) during the inauguration of the newly built floating solar power plant on the water that can generate 192 mega watts of peak electricity in cooperation between the Indonesian government and Masdar from the UAE, at Cirata Reservoir, West Java, on November 9, 2023. (Photo by BAY ISMOYO / AFP) (Photo by BAY ISMOYO/AFP via Getty Images)](/sites/default/files/styles/article_header/public/2024-06/GettyImages-1771551969.jpg?h=1dfc45c8&itok=YsgRPZu4)