The stage that followed the assassination of Qassem Soleimani, the commander of Iran's Quds Force (QF), the arm of its Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) early 2020 has shown a state of defect in the strategy of QF in Iraq. The notable feature of this defect was the failure of the new commander of QF Esmail Ghaani to fill the vacuum left by Soleimani’s absence. Moreover, new Iranian actors – who did not have strong presence during Soleimani’s era - have entered the Iraqi scene. In addition, the rise of other factors related to Iraqi Shiite actors has also complicated the strategy of QF in Iraq.
EPC | 20 Jun 2021
During his visit to the Syrian capital Damascus on 12 May 2021, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif announced the inauguration of the Iranian Consulate General in the city of Aleppo, located in the north of the country, with the approval of the President of the Syrian regime Bashar al-Assad, with the aim of expanding the scope of cooperation between the two countries.
Malik al-Hafez | 15 Jun 2021
The six members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are very directly affected by the fate of Iranian politics – and thus by the outcome of the upcoming presidential elections. In moving forward, the United Nations should sponsor an initiative at the regional level, with the ultimate goal of bringing Iran back into the fold of the international community.
Dr. Ebtesam al-Ketbi | 26 May 2021
EPC | 30 Dec 2020
Ahmed Nadhif | 21 Jun 2021
EPC | 19 Jun 2021
Nizar Abdul Kader | 17 Jun 2021
EPC | 17 Feb 2021
The global economy was hit by higher uncertainty as global production has dropped by 4.5%, global labor income is estimated to h...
Read More
Despite burdens of the COVID-19 pandemic on the global economic system and heavy pressure on the structures of national economies all over the worl...
EPC | 14 Feb 2021
The global health care systems were full of gaps that were not evident before. We have realized the limitation of the capability of our health syst...
The world has seen health crises in the past. The impact of these crises, however, was not like the COVID-19 impact. The health care systems in the...
I think that the process of political transition from the Trump administration to the Biden administration will take some time (maybe 6 months). Th...
The tendency is to see a lot more continuity in the American approach towards the Middle East in terms of relations and style, despite significant...
The Biden administration will be dealing with an evolving Middle East that is different from the one that both administrations of Obama and Trump h...
EPC | 20 Dec 2020
We can argue that most world countries are happy for electing Joe Biden as US President. The four years of President Donald Trump’s era were...
First of all, we cannot ignore that the US is internally divided and suffers from an internal crisis. Dealing with this crisis poses a challenge to...
U.S elections proved that a large segment (47%) of American people is not satisfied with Washington’s policies and economic performance. Pres...
EPC | 14 Sep 2020
The Turkish government lacked transparency in dealing with the COVID-19 crisis. The number of cases announced by Ankara was not accurate and lacked...
Turkey’s economy was strongly hit by the Coronavirus crisis particularly in trade, services, transport and tourism sectors. For example, the...
The toughest thing facing Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan now is economic recession. It is likely that this recession will last for a long t...
EPC | 06 Sep 2020
The Emirati-Israeli peace treaty was dubbed as a “historical moment” or a “historical breakthrough” because it is the first...
The Emirati-Israeli Peace Treaty came in the context of the geopolitical shifts in the Middle East since the 2000s. These shifts have shown the nee...
The treaty reflects a new spirit in the UAE leadership based on the fact that we, as Arabs, can bring about a change to the current path in the reg...
EPC | 17 Aug 2020
There are several motives for the issuance by the US of the Caesar Act, mainly sending a message to the allies of the Syrian regime that they will...
From the political perspective, the Caesar Act constitutes one of the US foreign policy tools to influence the Syrian crisis and impose its conditi...
Even before the Caesar Act was passed, Syria had reached the point of chaos and collapse due to the deterioration of the economic and living condit...
EPC | 11 Aug 2020
There is no doubt that at the beginning of the coronavirus epidemic crisis, the Iranian regime took wrong decisions, such as insisting on holding t...
The health crisis in Iran has exacerbated as a result of the government’s delay in taking the necessary measures to combat the spread of the...
During the period of the current Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, Iran has shifted from a revolutionary regime to a police state. In the event of Khame...
EPC | 20 Feb 2020
What President Trump is doing is different from former US presidents; he is putting more pressure on Palestinians to accept his vision for a soluti...
We can say that three people in the Trump Administration were responsible for drafting the “Deal of the Century” in its current form in...
In my estimation, the “Deal of the Century” has nothing to do with the priorities of the current U.S administration and it’s an i...
EPC | 05 Nov 2019
Addis Ababa thinks that the Renaissance Dam is a project of economic integration that will benefit the whole region, not only Ethiopia. Despite dif...
I think that the scenario of direct military confrontation between Egypt and Ethiopia is unlikely if the upcoming trilateral talks in Washington fa...
Washington’s call for a meeting between the three parties to the dam crisis in 6 November 2019, came to revive the hopes for reaching an unde...
Iran Strategic Report is designed to provide an impartial and objective reading of the situation in Iran. The importance of this strategic report stems from the political, geographic and social importance of Iran and the impact of its ideological orientations and alliances on regional policies, security and stability in the Gulf region and broader Middle East. Particular importance is attached to the 2020 report given its contribution to the understanding of Iran’s question and drivers of Tehran’s behavior in this potentially decisive year in the life of the Iranian revolution amidst the preparations of the forthcoming presidential elections in June 2021, which will also be pivotal for reasons the reader will find out as she/he reads the report.
EPC | 11 Apr 2021
The United Arab Emirates represents an ideal case to study of a small state’s effective response to strategic challenges and contemporary shifts in the Middle East. Regional and international geopolitical developments in the region since the dawn of the twenty-first century have forced radical changes in UAE foreign policy and power-building.
Dr. Ebtesam al-Ketbi | 22 Mar 2021
Over the past four decades, the issue of relations between the Islamic Republic of Iran and the United States have dominated the Iranian political arena. Such is the extent of this preoccupation with America, that some argue it is more influential than all other objective and subjective factors in the politics and economics of the region.
Dr. Ebtesam Al Ketbi | 24 Feb 2021
President of the Emirates Policy Center (EPC), Dr. Ebtesam Al-Ketbi, and Róbert Vass, President of GLOBSEC based in Bratislava, Slovakia on Thursday signed a memorandum of cooperation and partnership. The signing ceremony was attended by Emirati Ambassador in Vienna HE Ibrahim Salem Al Musharrakh.
EPC | 17 Jun 2021
Dr. Ebtesam al-Ketbi, President of the Emirates Policy Center (EPC), on Tuesday received H.E. Marianne Nissilä, Ambassador of Finland to the United Arab Emirates.
EPC | 08 Jun 2021
Dr. Ebtesam al-Ketbi, President of the Emirates Policy Center (EPC), on Thursday received Clare Dalton, the Head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) Mission in the United Arab Emirates.
EPC | 27 May 2021
EPC | 26 May 2021
EPC | 23 May 2021
EPC | 20 May 2021