http://rusi.org/ web@rusi.org en-us Copyright 2012 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4F328B3696A01/ Something needs to be done to stop the Syrian Army killing ever increasing number of its citizens. But Syria is far more complex than Libya and simply sending arms and further internationalising the Syrian Civil War will only exacerbate the war and elongate suffering. A more viable solution is for Arab states to use their muscle as energy suppliers to slow down the Assad regime. 2012-02-08 14:53:23 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4F0D7C4C3DB37/ The killing of a nuclear scientist in Tehran may well be the latest in a line of skirmishes between Iran and its American-led adversaries. Both sides are playing a zero-game, and neither coercive actions nor more negotiations are likely to bring a durable settlement. 2012-01-11 12:18:57 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4EEA41041E169/ If this year brought us an earthquake, then 2012 will be a year of aftershocks and transitions. Speculate as we might, we must still prepare for the predictable but watch for the surprises. 2011-12-15 18:56:54 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4ED8C83A526AC/ With the ransacking of the British embassy in Tehran, the West has further shrunk its repository of policy options, leaving sanctions as the policy tool of choice. However, while sanctions may slow Iran's forays into the nuclear field, they are unlikely to divert their course entirely. 2011-12-02 13:00:21 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:A4ECCE29339F64/ Saudi Arabia's response to the Arab Spring has ranged from apparent inertia to the financing and leadership of counter-revolution, but at all times the stability of the kingdom has been its primary objective. 2011-11-23 12:11:07 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4EC268A09E267/ The International Atomic Energy Agency's latest report on Iran describes in unprecedented detail a country moving slowly towards a nuclear weapons option, rather than a bomb itself. This lack of a 'smoking gun' removes military response from the international community's toolbox of policy options. But this is no grounds for complacency. 2011-11-15 13:37:10 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4E9D50E58B5A6/ Iran is accused of attempting to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the United States on American soil. It is the stuff of spy thrillers. If proved true, then both Saudi Arabia and the United States are well within their rights to declare war on Iran. Why would Iran embark on such an irrational action at a time of great internal and external vulnerability? 2011-10-18 11:12:36 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4E9D4DD961F79/ There are many questions remaining in the accusations that Iran planned to assassinate the Saudi Ambassador to the United States. Yet the consequences are real: the failed plot, regardless of its actuality, heightens Iran’s conspiratorial view of the international community, while further closing hope for dialogue. 2011-10-18 11:05:46 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4E5F66F731EAB/ A new eavesdropping attack on Iranian GMail users suggests that the Islamic Republic is stepping up its digital offensive against dissidents. But Iran is not unique - it is just ahead of the curve. There is no simple response for Western governments. 2011-09-01 12:10:16 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:A4DE516766B88A/ The departure of Al-Assad could lead the Syrian-Iranian alliance to stumble, but it will not destroy the relationship's foundations 2011-05-31 17:25:31 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:A4DE513969D7DB/ Some might see Iran's engagement in the Middle East as the final ingredient to a Shia crescent, but Arab Shia could just find it meddlesome 2011-05-31 17:17:58 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4DA47282158B0/ The uprisings have affected the governments of some of the world's largest oil exporters. In the long-term, however, supply is unlikely to be affected. 2011-04-12 16:41:45 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4D9DD62361AF0/ Saudia Arabian foreign policy is determined - to a disproportionately large extent - by its fear of Iran, and its insistence that its neighbours fall in line could jeopardise the fragile alliances of the Gulf. 2011-04-07 16:29:57 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4D91E71FD3A73/ Western policymakers may weigh up a number of ways to help the rebels in Libya - what should not be in doubt, however, is their obligation to provide some much-needed assistance. 2011-03-29 15:11:57 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:A4CED5C261C56E/ The Gulf States are arming, but they will still rely on others for security 2010-11-24 18:40:40 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4CE3E15FF40BD/ Advocates of pre-emptive attacks on Iranian nuclear related facilities and/or regime change should recognise that the risks and costs of such an attack remain prohibitive. 2010-11-17 14:10:57 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4C4EA914DD54F/ The leaking of 90,000 combat reports from Afghanistan reveals a familiar but depressing picture of operations in Afghanistan. Yet their revelation comes at a critical juncture for policymakers. 2010-07-27 10:38:53 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4C4DE4346B2D8/ How significant is the release of the Afghan war documents on WikiLeaks? RUSI Director Michael Clarke gives his assessment 2010-07-26 20:40:54 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4B2BAFC78828A/ Powerful structural forces inside Iran, not individual personalities, have brought Tehran to the brink of confrontation with the international community over its nuclear programme. Hope lies with closer US-Iran contacts - but this will come at the expense of even greater tensions with Britain and Israel. 2009-12-18 16:40:43 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4A9E4172ED746/ Internal upheaval has delayed Iran’s response, due this month (September), to the US offer of nuclear talks. The response of the international community to Iran's ongoing nuclear programme will be observed with keen interest by Gulf Arab neighbours whose attitude is governed by the overriding desire to constrain Iran’s regional role. This raises questions as to what options are open to them, including what part they would play in increased US economic or military pressure on Iran. 2009-09-02 11:14:59 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4A57630A8C4EC/ With the dispute of Iran’s election and new allegations of a plan by military officers in Turkey to discredit its own Islamic-rooted leadership, these seemingly-opposite governments both demonstrate a trend of uneasy relationships with their more progressive populations. 2009-07-10 16:54:08 http://rusi.org/news/ref:N4A26AB1E9B754/ His Excellency Minister Taieb Fassi Fihri gives an overview of Morocco’s position in international security 2009-06-03 17:58:09 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4A0A8EF2C9DBF/ The Obama Administration’s call for a fresh start with Iran have so far been met with hostility, a result of political battles within Iran’s governing faction. Yet the political squabbling masks a tentative movement in Iran away from hostility and towards engagement. 2009-05-13 10:32:10 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C479637092C586/ The British left must face-up to the truth: Iran could still develop a nuclear bomb in the next few years. This can only be avoided, says Malcolm Chalmers, by engagement and diplomacy. 2008-01-22 18:40:00 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4784DF6A9E6B2/ The US President visits the Gulf amidst heightened tension between the United States and Iran. But the latest episode in the Straits of Hormuz only underlines the wariness towards both countries by Gulf Arab States. 2008-01-09 14:52:23 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C47289E3D4C118/ An analysis of the means the US should employ in its policy towards Iran's nuclear ambitions. A combination of sticks, carrots and diplomacy might serve Washington's aims better than sanctions and rhetorical brinksmanship. 2007-11-01 00:00:00 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C46EE8C1BA48B6/ For British leaders Iran may seem like a basket case at present, but it has to be handled politically not militarily. 2007-09-17 15:16:47 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C46080D68E3CB6/ In light of the established evidence, the Iranian seizure of Royal Navy personnel seems bizarre 2007-03-26 19:14:26 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:A45D996252CA69/ The heat may be rising on Ahmadinejad, but Tehran’s fundamental strategic position has not altered. 2007-02-19 12:21:00 http://rusi.org/analysis/commentary/ref:C4534C62EF11B3/ The end of ambiguity about Pyongyang's nuclear capacity raises fundamental questions affecting China, the United States, and the future of international non-proliferation strategy. Indirectly, these consequences could actually work to the advantage of the West in its attempts to prevent Iran 'going nuclear'. 2006-10-17 13:00:00 http://rusi.org/publications/journal/ref:P4173B26FAACDA/ Is the threat of UN-imposed economic sanctions on an oil-dependent country, widely regarded as the most effective way of bringing the nuclear programme to heel, really the only way of meeting the Iranian challenge? 2004-10-18 13:09:19 http://rusi.org/publications/journal/ref:J40c1f77d04cab/ Short of a truly radical upheaval in global energy markets, the world is likely to rely increasingly on Middle East oil for the next twenty years or so. 2004-06-18 12:23:42 http://rusi.org/publications/newsbrief/ref:J40d32ea719263/ The recent elimination of long-standing disputes and other diplomatic hurdles in relations with Iran and Libya has enabled London some room for manoeuvre in the Middle East, but without causing serious difficulties in Britain’s relations with Washington. 2000-02-21 09:00:00 http://rusi.org/publications/journal/ref:A4CEBBBD10F73C/ 1857-05-01 13:00:00