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The surprise announcement that President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had won outright the first round of Iran’s presidential election has been met with widespread allegations of fraud and domestic unrest.
A recent heated televised debate between Iran's two leading presidential candidates and accusations of corruption by President Ahmadinejad toward leading clerics, have called into question whether the incumbent still has the backing of Iran's conservative political establishment.
With both Mahmoud Ahmadinejad and Mir Hossein Mousavi declaring victory in the first few hours into the election on Friday, the incumbent's future remains uncertain, even with the endorsement of the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Khamenei.
Obama's speech to the Muslim world focused on two of the main obstacles to making progress on the Israeli-Palestinian dispute: violence by Palestinians against Israelis and settlement acitvities by Israelis in the West Bank.
President Obama's recent address to the Muslim world dissapointed many democracy promotion supporters, who felt it did not strongly address the issue.
The Egyptian government sees President Obama's decision to address the Muslim world from Cairo as a validation of its importance in the region.
Despite President Obama’s upcoming participation in the Russia-U.S. summit in St. Petersburg, much of the American foreign policy community remains at odds over U.S. policy towards Moscow.
North Korea's recent nuclear test seems to erase any progress in six years of multilateral negotiations. The United States can still pressure North Korea, but it will need China's cooperation.
Guantanamo remains the most powerful recruiting tool terrorists have, and though closing the facility poses numerous challenges, it is vital for U.S. national security.
At a time when U.S. policy toward Iran is shifting toward a strong push for diplomacy, the U.S. should show patience as it works toward defining a new relationship with the regime.