The Stimson Center’s Middle East Program seeks to inform policy discussions on the Middle East by leveraging regional expertise, convening dialogues, and producing rigorous, non-partisan analysis and scholarship. The program assesses regional geopolitical developments with a focus on conflict management, regional security, and post-conflict peacebuilding. Through sustained engagement with policymakers, scholars, and subject-matter experts, the program aims to advance practical policy thinking rooted in on-the-ground realities.
A core pillar of the program is the convening of high-level Track 1.5 and Track 2.0 regional dialogues that bring together policymakers, academics, and experts to conduct joint analysis, discuss de-escalation processes, and advance regional cooperation. The program also organizes issue-area roundtables to develop impactful policy recommendations informed by global lessons learned and regional experience. The program’s analysis and policy outputs are directly informed by the insights generated through these dialogues and roundtables.
Without structural solutions that address both fronts together, the region is heading toward another cycle of sectarian violence
January 21, 2026
Not bombing Iran does not mean abandoning its people
January 15, 2026
In seven months after Assad fell, Israel attacked Syria nearly 1000 times
January 14, 2026
Kawa Hassan analyses the fundamental contradiction: Turkey viewing the Kurdish issue as a security matter whilst the Kurdish movement sees it as democratization
January 14, 2026
The internationally recognized government of Yemen remains in place, but the locus of decision-making has shifted to Riyadh
January 12, 2026
From Iran to Yemen, Lebanon to Syria to Gaza and the West Bank, more people are likely to die from armed confrontations, humanitarian failures, and external intervention
January 7, 2026
Greater access to information, ironically, limits the ability of protestors to coalesce into a single, decisive political force
January 5, 2026
A major challenge to the peace process involves the future of the Syrian Democratic Forces, the Kurdish forces in Syria
December 17, 2025
