Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
The crown prince has a very big ego, and he was personally humiliated by Biden but in what's happening, of course, this is payback time.
The impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine continues to reverberate in the Middle East and around the world.
... both the Russians and the Chinese don't fear Iran with a nuclear weapon as much as the United States does and values Iran as a potentially important commercial energy partner.
Most of these countries in the (Middle East) region, most of the leaders have seen a good many American presidents come and go.
If Iran goes back to enrichment, then you have the rather nightmare prospect, even though the odds are poor of success, of an Israeli preemptive military strike or a conflict in which the United States could be involved
Despite soaring inflation rates and dwindling currency reserves, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan remains committed to the Turkish Growth Model. Beyond monetary policy, Turkish foreign policy is being recalibrated to account for the country’s political, business, and economic interests.
So the killing of Soleimani, I think it certainly constrained Iran's capabilities. He was the tip of Iran's spear in the Middle East and the places where Iran wields enormous influence - in Iraq, Syria, Lebanon, and Yemen. So, his absence has certainly been felt.
Local Lebanese politicians are incapable or unwilling to come together to reform the country, to reform its institutions, to reform its politics and its economy. But I would put it in bigger terms and say that they're unwilling to do anything that would undermine their own grip on power
It did raise serious questions about the administration's competency and credibility and whether or not it could basically deliver on commitments that it had made to its allies. Getting out of lost wars is never an easy enterprise.
There is an aspect of having to be able to persuade, not just your adversaries that you might not want to fight you, however you also need to persuade your fellow citizens to come along with you.