When the world's at stake,
go beyond the headlines.

A lot happens every day. Alliances shift, leaders change, and conflicts erupt. With In Brief, we’ll help you make sense of it all. Each week, experts will dig deep into a single issue happening in the world to help you better understand it.***Things are changing in the Middle East. Alliances are shifting, with longtime enemies making peace while global powers like China and Russia play an ever-more prominent role. A conservative government has emerged in Israel, while the long-exiled government of Bashar al-Assad is now being integrated back into the Arab League. All this while conflicts still rage in Syria and Yemen, and the region deals with an ongoing refugee crisis. And that’s just the tip of the iceberg. What does all this mean, and what will the coming years look like in the region?We asked three experts to weigh in. Mona Yacoubian Vice President, Middle East and North Africa, U.S. Institute of PeaceThe Middle East is at a hinge moment, marked by the end of the 9/11 era and heralding the beginning of a more volatile multipolar order. This pivot from an era of U.S. dominance will highlight the agency of regional powers — Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Israel, and Iran — to reshape the contours of regional ties, but it will also underscore the liabilities of corrupt, poor governance models across the region. At a time of increased strategic rivalry, Middle East nations will strive for a neutral posture, exploiting competition among the United States, an ascendant China looking to expand beyond economic influence, and a waning Russia. Steven Cook Senior Fellow, Council on Foreign RelationsThree trends in the Middle East will shape the region in the coming years. First, there is grave economic distress among non-oil and gas producers, resulting from the lingering effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the shock of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Second, the region will