Research Library

This month, the Syrian Civil War will have lasted seven years. The authors of this brief explore how the United States — first under President Barack Obama and now under President Donald Trump — has struggled to develop a coherent strategy that balances U.S. interests in the conflict with the military, financial and diplomatic resources necessary to pursue them.

Cultural myths — and by extension, the suppositions they inspire — have played a major role in shaping Venezuela's relationship with and management of oil resources throughout much of the last 100 years, writes nonresident fellow Luis Pacheco. To achieve sustainable economic and social development, Venezuela must move beyond such beliefs and establish a new approach that is more attuned to current times.

This brief on the Trump administration's approach to the battle against ISIS is the first of a three-part series on America's foreign policy in the Middle East. Subsequent reports will examine U.S. policy in Syria and the intensified competition between Iran and traditional U.S. partners in the region, notably Saudi Arabia and Israel.   

The list of 13 demands presented in June 2017 by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates suggests a supremely ambitious set of goals behind their embargo of Qatar, including “red lines” that touch directly upon Qatari sovereignty and that Doha will almost certainly reject. The stage is thus set for a contest of endurance, one that with every passing month looks more likely to result in favor of Qatar, writes fellow Gabriel Collins in this brief.

This brief explores how a quirk in the measurement of women’s labor force participation and the demographic peculiarities of the Persian Gulf have resulted in the significant undercounting of female citizen labor in the Gulf Cooperation Council. I

OPEC may opt to continue or deepen its oil production cuts at its upcoming May meeting, as a growing number of highly efficient U.S. shale operators now appears able to maintain oil production — and even expand it — at prices that likely are unsustainably low for many major exporters’ national budgets, writes energy fellow Gabriel Collins.

Fellow Joe Barnes looks back, and ahead, at the impact of President Obama's foreign policies.

This paper examines the progress of energy subsidy reforms in the Persian Gulf, documenting policy changes in all six monarchies and briefly examining the role of energy and the state.

This issue brief examines the various foreign policy strategies advanced by Worker’s Party-led administrations in Brazil since 2003. The brief also analyzes the current political and economic crises that have increased strain on the party’s leaders.

Modern contraceptive methods, such as condoms, can be stigmatized in Middle Eastern culture due to their perceived connection to illicit sexual activities, and some believe the use of condoms to be incompatible with the teachings of Islam. This issue brief examines condom use rates in the Middle East and the role of cultural orientations in contraceptive choice.