The United States removed one of Iran’s most dangerous enemies when it overthrew Saddam Hussein. More than two decades later, Iraq reveals an unintended consequence of the 2003 invasion: a political and security landscape in which Tehran found opportunities it never possessed under Saddam. Continue reading America Removed Saddam. The Iraq War Then Opened Space for Iran
American forces are leaving Iraq again after more than two decades of war and intervention. The harder question begins after their departure: can Baghdad control the militias, security forces and competing foreign interests operating inside Iraq? Continue reading America Is Leaving Iraq Again. The Real Test Is Who Controls Iraq Afterward
Iran’s latest Hormuz proposal exposes a change in Gulf strategy. Tehran may not need to close the Strait completely. Uncertain and conditional passage can impose economic costs while giving Iran something potentially more useful: negotiating leverage. Continue reading Iran’s New Hormuz Strategy: Why Uncertainty May Be More Powerful Than Closure
A federal threat case involving a California mosque exposes a larger American contradiction. Twenty-five years after 9/11, Muslim Americans have gained political visibility and built thousands of institutions, yet new Pew data show deep public suspicion of Islam persists. Continue reading When Anti-Muslim Rhetoric Becomes a Federal Criminal Case
Pakistan has emerged as an important intermediary in efforts to revive Iran-US diplomacy. From the Islamabad understanding to this week’s UN meetings, Islamabad now has access to Washington, Tehran and key Gulf capitals. The opportunity is significant, but so are the risks for an energy-dependent Pakistan caught between Iran and Saudi Arabia. Continue reading Why Is Pakistan Suddenly in the Middle of Iran-US Diplomacy?
President Trump has extended the controversial $100,000 H-1B payment policy through September 2027, but a federal court has blocked its implementation. Here is what the legal battle and wider H-1B crackdown mean for Indian technology workers, international students and American employers. Continue reading The $100,000 H-1B Barrier: Is America Closing the Door on Indian Tech Workers?
A phone call with relatives in America rarely ends with someone saying they are coming home. Politics may enter the conversation. Immigration certainly does. Then the talk drifts toward the price of ordinary American life. Leaving is another matter. That is why a new survey of Indian Americans caught my attention. Its headline finding sounds dramatic: four in ten Indian Americans say they have frequently or occasionally thought about leaving the United States. Look deeper and the story becomes harder to package. Indian Americans are questioning America. They have not stopped choosing it. The 40 Percent Number Needs Context The … Continue reading Indian Americans Are Thinking About Leaving America. But They Still Point Others Toward It
A reader challenged my argument about Iran with a question I could not dismiss. He said I was using the same logic for Iran and the Houthis that America once used to justify war in Iraq and Afghanistan. I went back to the Bush Doctrine. The comparison became uncomfortable. America argued that waiting for a future threat could become more dangerous than striking first. Iran developed a very different doctrine of forward defence under very different conditions. But a familiar political argument appears underneath both. The enemy may become stronger tomorrow, so military action today starts looking defensive. A weaker … Continue reading When America Did It, We Called It Preventive War. What Do We Call Iran’s Version?
The Islamabad Breakthrough: A Massive Shift in Power The 2026 peace talks in Islamabad didn’t just end a fight; they flipped the script on global politics. While the world held its breath during a “fragile ceasefire” after seven weeks of … Continue reading Pakistan’s Role as Mediator: Bridging the US-Iran Conflict 2026
Sanctions were meant to break Iran. They ended up training it. The story of Iran economic resilience under sanctions is a testament to the country’s ability to adapt and persist. Iran economic resilience sanctions is often framed as a countdown. When will pressure finally break the system?That question keeps returning. The answer keeps refusing to.Iran does not collapse. It adjusts.And that changes the logic of this war.Sanctions Didn’t Stop Iran. They Reshaped It.For more than a decade, Iran has operated under escalating pressure.Oil exports restrictedBanking access limitedTrade channels disruptedYet the system did not shut down.It moved sideways.Oil still flows. Not … Continue reading Iran Won’t Collapse. It Will Adapt. That’s the Real Problem.
