Author: Jordan Henry

• 

  March 1, 2026: Watching Iran from Moscow

  March 1, 2026: Watching Iran from Moscow As the U.S.-Israeli airstrikes on Iran commenced this weekend, Russian state media took a surprisingly muted tone, avoiding condemnation of President Donald Trump despite characterizing the strikes as a “treacherous attack” on an erstwhile ally. Vladimir Putin, seemingly taken by surprise, has conspicuously withheld any formal opposition, signaling

  MORE
• 

  Briefing: Russia, Scandinavia, and the Arctic

  The decisions by Finland and Sweden to join NATO, and their accession to the alliance, have been among the most consequential results of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Yet the impacts extend well beyond continental Europe and into the Arctic, which has also drawn growing attention from the Trump administration. On February 25, the Center for

  MORE
• 

  President Paul Saunders in The Washington Post: How to Make NATO Great Again

  In a new op-ed for the Washington Post, Center President Paul Saunders and former Under Secretary of State Paula Dobriansky outline a roadmap to revitalize NATO by embracing a new era of burden sharing and industrial cooperation. Amidst the collapse of the old rules-based order, the authors argue that the alliance must adapt to the

  MORE
• 

  February 22, 2026: Is Putin Looking for an Exit?

  February 22, 2026: Is Putin Looking for an Exit? The third round of trilateral peace negotiations in Geneva ended abruptly, with Moscow’s lead negotiator Vladimir Medinsky appearing visibly defeated after sessions described as “very difficult”: a diplomatic euphemism for near-breakdown. Despite these outward signs of failure, state media depicts Vladimir Putin as a leader genuinely

  MORE
• 

  U.S.-Saudi Arabia Civil Nuclear Agreement: U.S. Interests and Priorities

  In late 2025, the Trump administration notified the U.S. Congress that officials had concluded a so-called 123 agreement on civil nuclear cooperation with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The administration will reportedly present this agreement to the Congress in the near future. The Biden administration had earlier explored such an agreement within a wider effort

  MORE