Security Council: Syria 'largest humanitarian crisis in the world'

UN, Russia and Iran coordinate new diplomatic effort on Syria; what did Zarif tell Nasrallah?; Egyptian government rejects mediation with Muslim Brotherhood; did US-trained force coordinate with Jabhat al-Nusra?

Qatar

Will US sanctions disrupt Iran-Russia economic ties?

Washington’s concerns about Russian actions, including its relations with Iran, and Moscow’s diminishing interest in accommodating them seem set to heighten competition and tensions in the Middle East.

Russia

Iran to Russia: Where are those missiles you promised us?

Following Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif’s trip to Moscow, Iranian media has been abuzz with talk about the long-awaited delivery of a long-rang S-300 missile defense system, which is still being held up by Russia.

Russia

Moscow's revolving door of Arab monarchs, Syrian opposition

Russia continues to navigate the complex process of tackling the Syria crisis, slating Damascus as a hopeful ally against the Islamic State.

Syria

Zarif presses diplomacy on Syria

Iran brokers humanitarian cease-fires in Syria; Yair Lapid discusses “dreadful gamble” in US-Israel relations; Turkey’s Stone Age temple may predate Stonehenge and Egyptian pyramids by thousands of years.

Oman

Turkey treads carefully on new gas pipeline with Russia

Ankara doesn’t want to put all of its energy eggs into the Russian basket.

Turkey

Will Saudi Arabia-Russia talks impact Syrian opposition?

Moscow has allegedly opened up channels of communication between the Syrian regime and Saudi Arabia, and many are speculating whether this will cripple the Syrian opposition forces’ capabilities.

Saudi Arabia

US wins support from GCC, Asian allies for Iran nuclear deal

Israel is outlier on nuclear deal; Rafsanjani tells Al-Monitor that Iran “does not inherently have any issues with Saudi Arabia”; Zarif proposes civil nuclear cooperation with Arab states; Syrian, Iranian and Russian officials meet in Tehran; Al-Monitor’s second annual Middle East lobbying investigation and cultural heritage series.

Israel

US, Russia in talks for UN resolution on Syria

Secretary of State John Kerry has cautiously heralded US-Russian agreement over a potential UN resolution on Syria's chemical weapons, though the two sides' differences over investigative processes and resultant military action are daunting.

Syria

Turkey needs to drop its dead-end foreign policy

Former diplomats say Ankara should act urgently with its NATO allies to face the new threats that have emerged to its security from groups like the Islamic State.

Syria

How US, Russia could solve Syria

The successful cooperation between the United State and Russia throughout the Iran nuclear negotiations could bode well for a new plan for Syria.

Syria

Kerry begins Iran deal sales push on Capitol Hill

A look at the Middle East issues Congress will be addressing the week of July 20.

Israel