Will Todman

Chief of Staff, Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department; and Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Will Todman

Will Todman is the chief of staff of the Geopolitics and Foreign Policy Department and a senior fellow in the Middle East Program at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS). He was previously deputy director of the Middle East Program. He has over a decade of experience working on conflict, governance, and displacement in the Middle East, and has conducted field research in 12 countries across the region. Will has written for, contributed to, and commented on leading outlets, including the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, BBC, CBS, and CNN, and he has testified to the UK Parliament. He has also taught and lectured graduate students at various universities. Before joining CSIS in 2016, Will worked at the Institute for the Study of International Migration, for the office of the UN special envoy to Syria, and at the British Embassy in Beirut. Will is a Penn Kemble fellow at the National Endowment for Democracy, a Global Diversity in International Affairs fellow at the Atlantic Council, and a fellow at the Centre for Syrian Studies at St. Andrews University. He also co-founded a nonprofit organization that works with refugees and immigrants in the Washington DC area, which he led for seven years. Will holds a BA in Arabic and modern Hebrew from Oxford University and an MA in Arab Studies from Georgetown University, where he studied Persian intensively. He is also proficient in French and Spanish.

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State of Play

Are President Trump's tariffs working?

Navin Girishankar and Phil Luck join Will to discuss President Trump’s foreign policy and economic agendas.

Podcast Episode by Will Todman, Navin Girishankar, and Philip Luck — November 12, 2025

Photo: iLab/CSIS
State of Play

Was President Trump's Asia trip a success?

Victor Cha and Brian Hart join Will to discuss if President Trump’s meeting with Xi Jinping met expectations.

Podcast Episode by Will Todman, Victor Cha, and Brian Hart — October 31, 2025

Photo: iLab/CSIS

The UK's National Security Strategy in the Middle East

The UK’s National Security Strategy (NSS) lists the different tools the UK has in the Middle East – diplomatic, humanitarian, military, and prosperity footprint – but does not say which tools are most effective and should be prioritized with limited resources.

Congressional Testimony by Will Todman — October 20, 2025

What Comes Next for Israel-Hamas Ceasefire?

On October 8, President Donald Trump announced that Israel and Hamas had agreed to the first phase of his peace deal for Gaza. Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman unpack the agreement’s timing, Trump’s role, remaining challenges, and regional ramifications.

Critical Questions by Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman — October 9, 2025

Audio Briefs

What Comes Next for Israel-Hamas Ceasefire?

An audio version of “⁠What Comes Next for Israel-Hamas Ceasefire?⁠,” a new Critical Questions by Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs. 

Podcast Episode by Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman — October 9, 2025

Audio Briefs
State of Play

What can U.S. pressure on Venezuela achieve?

Mark Cancian and Ryan Berg join Will to discuss what U.S. military buildup tells us about its implications for Venezuela and more.

Podcast Episode by Will Todman, Ryan C. Berg, and Mark F. Cancian — September 18, 2025

Photo: iLab/CSIS
Audio Briefs

Israel Strikes Hamas in Qatar

An audio version of “⁠Israel Strikes Hamas in Qatar⁠,” a new Critical Questions by CSIS’s Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman. This audio was generated with text-to-speech by Eleven Labs. 

Podcast Episode by Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman — September 9, 2025

Audio Briefs

Israel Strikes Hamas in Qatar

On September 9, the Israeli Defense Forces announced that the Israeli Air Force conducted an assassination attempt against Hamas leaders in Doha. This comes as Israel is escalating its efforts to force Hamas to surrender.

Critical Questions by Mona Yacoubian and Will Todman — September 9, 2025

Pekingology

State of Play: Are U.S. tariffs bringing India and China together?

In this State of Play episode, Henrietta Levin and Rick Rosso discuss the China-India relationship, alongside host Will Todman. How real is the China-India rapprochement, and what does it mean for the United States?

Podcast Episode by Henrietta Levin, Will Todman, and Richard M. Rossow — September 5, 2025

CSIS Pekingology