Columnist

Joseph Braude

Middle East specialist Joseph Braude is the author of Broadcasting Change: Arabic Media as a Catalyst for Liberalism (Rowman & Littlefield). He is Advisor to the Al-Mesbar Center for Research and Studies and tweets@josephbraude.

Latest Articles

  • By Joseph Braude

    Iran Seeks to Exploit Political Disarray in Washington, But Trans-Atlantic Unity is Growing

    Iran seeks to capitalize on distraction within the White House by ramping up its defiance of the terms of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, which aimed to curb its nuclear program, by unveiling a new round of uranium enrichment. In response, Washington has unveiled a new package of...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Baghdadi’s Death Strengthens the Case for American Forces to Remain in Eastern Syria

    The din of partisanship in Washington quieted briefly this weekend as figures across the political spectrum hailed the demise of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi. Early reports indicate intelligence cooperation from the Kurdish-dominated SDF was indispensable to the operation which killed al...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Democratic Presidential Hopefuls Air Foreign Policy Differences Over Syria Withdrawal

    Over the past two weeks, a foreign policy debate has re-emerged within the Democratic party, stemming from President Trump’s decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria. Vice President Joe Biden and South Bend, Indiana mayor Pete Buttigieg have begun to articulate a more forceful defense of...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Fallout from Syria Withdrawal Continues, SDF Allies with Damascus

    As America withdraws from northeastern Syria and Turkey invades, international actors are rapidly adjusting to a new reality. Though initially neutral toward the Turkish move, a deluge of negative outcomes, including reports of ISIS detainees escaping SDF detention facilities en masse, drove Pr...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Decision to Withdraw from Syria Sparks Debate Among Republicans

    President Donald Trump surprised friends and adversaries alike this week by announcing that the U.S. would be withdrawing the roughly 2,000 troops deployed in northeastern Syria as part of the counter-ISIS campaign. While Democratic lawmakers condemned the initiative as a matter of course, an...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Iran Declines an Off-Ramp Overture

    Tehran has doubled down on a course of diplomatic brinkmanship that may inadvertently consolidate the Western alliance. President Rouhani spurned a long-planned overture by French President Macron to broker a clandestine meeting with U.S. President Trump, while publicly expanding Iran’s list of...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Unprecedented Iranian Attacks Spark a Paradigm Shift in the West

    In the aftermath of the mid-September attacks on Saudi oil production facilities, American and Saudi officials maintain that they do not seek military conflict with Iran, but have intensified their campaign to isolate the country diplomatically....

  • By Joseph Braude

    Drone Attacks on Saudi Oil Fields Reinforce Tensions in Gulf

    An apparent Iranian attack on Saudi oil facilities has escalated tensions in the Gulf to new heights. American officials swiftly dismissed Houthi claims of responsibility and pointed an accusing finger at Iran. The affair seems to have quashed any possibility of American-Iranian diplomatic...

  • By Joseph Braude

    Iran Throws Down the Gauntlet

    Tehran’s contest of nuclear brinkmanship with the West entered a new phase as Iran moved this week towards resuming uranium enrichment with advanced centrifuges, signaling a deepening break with the provisions of the 2015 JCPOA. For its part, the American-led sanctions regime on Iranian crude o...

  • By Joseph Braude

    While an Iranian Satellite Goes Up in Flames, France Explores an Economic Bailout for Tehran

    The first week in September marked a new phase in the ongoing confrontation between Tehran and the West. While Israel uncovered a new Iranian base in Syria of unprecedented size, President Trump made cryptic comments over Twitter suggesting that the U.S. may have claimed another success in cont...

Editor's Pick

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Oct 12,2019
A New Regional Order in the Middle East
How the Gulf Crisis is Rewriting the Rules that Governed Regional Affairs
Politics
Oct 04,2019
Iran Is Testing the Trump Administration
Tehran Thinks There Are No Rules, No Limits, and Anything Goes
Culture
Sep 20,2019
Just How Special is the Spire of Salisbury Cathedral?
How the Kremlin Pioneered the Concept of 'Alternative Facts'

Opinion

Decision to Withdraw from Syria Sparks Debate Among Republicans
By Joseph Braude
How Will Hezbollah Respond to Israel’s Drone Attack?
By Hanin Ghaddar
Hezbollah’s Lebanese Allies Can Be Contained
By Hanin Ghaddar
Iran Turns Its Economic Hopes to China — But Its Hopes May be Dashed
By Joseph Braude
Iranian Oil Smuggling and Naval Piracy Fail to Blunt Sanctions
By Joseph Braude
US-Iran Tensions: From Maximum Pressure to Maximum Leverage?
By Dennis Ross