Near East Policycast

Speaking to Middle Eastern publics was difficult enough when friendly (and some not-so-friendly) autocrats were in charge; projecting American interests and values to Middle Easterners at a time of tumultuous political change may be even more challenging. To discuss the many facets of U.S. engagement with the region in the post-Tahrir Square era of uncertainty, The Washington Institute invited The Honorable Tara D. Sonenshine to address a Policy Forum luncheon in Washington, DC, on January 16, 2013. Tara D. Sonenshine has served since April 2012 as undersecretary of state for public diplomacy and public affairs. Previously, she was executive vice president of the U.S. Institute of Peace, a senior National Security Council official during the Clinton administration, and an Emmy-winning producer of news programs on domestic and international issues for network television.

The Future of the Palestinian Authority: Is Collapse an Option?

On September 21, 2012, Patrick Clawson and Dennis Ross addressed a Policy Forum at The Washington Institute to discuss the findings of the soon-to-be-released study Preventing an Iranian Nuclear Breakout: U.S.-Israel Coordination. Dr. Clawson is director for research and head of the Iran Security Initiative at the Institute. Ambassador Ross is the Institute's counselor and former special assistant to President Obama. The following is a rapporteur's summary of their remarks. Institute fellow David Makovsky also addressed the forum; an account of his remarks will be published separately.

On July 31, David Crist and Ambassador James Jeffrey addressed a Policy Forum at The Washington Institute. Dr. Crist, a senior historian for the U.S. government and a special advisor to the head of U.S. Central Command, is author of the new book The Twilight War: The Secret History of America's Thirty-Year Conflict with Iran. Mr. Jeffrey has served as U.S. ambassador to both Iraq and Turkey.

Washington Institute scholars David Makovsky and Eric Trager report on recent extended research trips to Israel, the Palestinian Authority, and Egypt.

Shaul Mofaz's victory in the Kadima primary election and subsequent decision to bring his party into the governing coalition sent shockwaves through Israel, changing the dynamics of regional politics. To discuss his strategy for security and peace, and ways in which the expanded coalition can promote these goals, The Washington Institute invited Lt. Gen. (res.) Shaul Mofaz, vice prime minister of Israel, minister without portfolio, and leader of the Kadima Party, to address a Policy Forum in Washington on June 19, 2012.

Former DEA operations chief Michael Braun, illicit finance expert David Asher, and Institute counterterrorism expert Matthew Levitt explore Hizballah's growing involvement in global organized crime, stretching from the ports of Asia to the markets of West Africa to the streets of America.

Ambassador Dennis Ross, the Institute's counselor and formerly special assistant to President Obama and senior Iran advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, briefs journalists on a conference call ahead of Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu's White House meeting with President Barack Obama.

Institute Iran expert and Qom-trained Shiite theologian Mehdi Khalaji joined Carnegie Endowment Iran expert Karim Sadjadpour and Dennis Ross, counselor at the Institute and formerly special assistant to President Obama and senior Iran advisor to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, to discuss likely scenarios for Iran's transition to post-Khamenei rule.

Two heroes of the campaign for freedom and human rights in the Middle East -- Natan Sharansky of Israel and Saad Eddin Ibrahim of Egypt -- jointly received the Washington Institute's Scholar-Statesman Award at a benefit dinner in Manhattan on December 5, 2011.