Skip to main content
  • Sections
  • Search

Center for Strategic & International Studies

User menu

  • Subscribe
  • Sign In

   Ranked #1 Think Tank in U.S. by Global Go To Think Tank Index

Topics

  • Climate Change
  • Cybersecurity and Technology
    • Cybersecurity
    • Data Governance
    • Intelligence, Surveillance, and Privacy
    • Military Technology
    • Space
    • Technology and Innovation
  • Defense and Security
    • Counterterrorism and Homeland Security
    • Defense Budget
    • Defense Industry, Acquisition, and Innovation
    • Defense Strategy and Capabilities
    • Geopolitics and International Security
    • Long-Term Futures
    • Missile Defense
    • Space
    • Weapons of Mass Destruction Proliferation
  • Economics
    • Asian Economics
    • Global Economic Governance
    • Trade and International Business
  • Energy and Sustainability
    • Energy, Climate Change, and Environmental Impacts
    • Energy and Geopolitics
    • Energy Innovation
    • Energy Markets, Trends, and Outlooks
  • Global Health
    • Family Planning, Maternal and Child Health, and Immunizations
    • Multilateral Institutions
    • Health and Security
    • Infectious Disease
  • Human Rights
    • Civil Society
    • Transitional Justice
    • Human Security
  • International Development
    • Food and Agriculture
    • Governance and Rule of Law
    • Humanitarian Assistance
    • Private Sector Development
    • U.S. Development Policy

Regions

  • Africa
    • North Africa
    • Sub-Saharan Africa
  • Americas
    • Caribbean
    • North America
    • South America
  • Arctic
  • Asia
    • Afghanistan
    • Australia, New Zealand & Pacific
    • China
    • India
    • Japan
    • Korea
    • Pakistan
    • Southeast Asia
  • Europe
    • European Union
    • NATO
    • Post-Soviet Europe
    • Turkey
  • Middle East
    • The Gulf
    • Egypt and the Levant
    • North Africa
  • Russia and Eurasia
    • The South Caucasus
    • Central Asia
    • Post-Soviet Europe
    • Russia

Sections menu

  • Programs
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Analysis
    • Blogs
    • Books
    • Commentary
    • Congressional Testimony
    • Critical Questions
    • Interactive Reports
    • Journals
    • Newsletter
    • Reports
    • Transcript
  • Podcasts
  • iDeas Lab
  • Transcripts
  • Web Projects

Main menu

  • About Us
  • Support CSIS
    • Securing Our Future
Photo: DELIL SOULEIMAN/AFP/Getty Images

You are here

  1. Home
  2. Middle East Program
  3. Themes
  4. Great Powers and Geostrategy
Connect

Great Powers and Geostrategy

Analyzing Great Power engagement with the Middle East and the region’s geostrategic questions.

Most analysts note the growing Russian and Chinese presence in the Middle East and presume that the Great Powers will increasingly compete for influence there, given the region’s energy reserves and security vulnerabilities. Yet, even now, the Great Powers see the Middle East differently from each other. Changes in the global energy mix, demographics, trade patterns, and other factors are likely to heighten those differences in the coming decades. The Middle East Program examines evolving trends in Great Power-Middle East engagement, as well as Great Power conflict and collaboration within the region, with a focus on geostrategy. 

 

Featured

Commentary
Iran Will Still Be a Slog
By Jon B. Alterman
January 25, 2021
Newsletter
Russia Podcast Miniseries
September 15, 2020
Newsletter
China Podcast Miniseries
January 21, 2020
Congressional Testimony
Chinese and Russian Influence in the Middle East
Statement by Jon B. Alterman
May 9, 2019
On Demand Event
Online Event: U.S. Grand Strategy in the Middle East
June 22, 2020
Commentary
Designating the Houthis as Terrorists Would Be a Mistake
By Jon B. Alterman
November 30, 2020

Middle East Program

  • About the Middle East Program
  • Arab Gulf and Iraq
  • Major Projects
  • Sub-Regions
  • Themes
    • Social and Political Change
    • Environment and Governance
    • Humanitarian Aid and Reconstruction
    • Great Powers and Geostrategy
      • China-Middle East
      • Russia-Middle East
  • Research and Commentary
  • Events
  • Internships and Career Advice
Find Additional Content
Media Queries

Contact H. Andrew Schwartz
Chief Communications Officer
Tel: 202.775.3242

Contact Caleb Diamond
Media Relations Manager and Editorial Associate
Tel: 202.775.3173

Most Recent

Commentary
Iran Will Still Be a Slog
By Jon B. Alterman
January 25, 2021
Commentary
Enemies—and Partners—Will Get a Vote in the Middle East
By Jon B. Alterman
January 11, 2021
Commentary
Enemies—and Partners—Will Get a Vote in the Middle East
By Jon B. Alterman
December 17, 2020
Interactive report
In the Mediterranean Sea, the nuclear submarine "Saphir" surfaces during training exercises in 2009 off Toulon, France. | Alexis Rosenfeld/Getty Images
Securing U.S. Interests Across the Greater Mediterranean
By Rachel Ellehuus, Donatienne Ruy
December 16, 2020
Commentary
Designating the Houthis as Terrorists Would Be a Mistake
By Jon B. Alterman
November 30, 2020
Podcast Episode
Sanam Vakil: Iran and the New U.S. Administration
By Jon B. Alterman, Natasha Hall, Will Todman
In Babel: Translating the Middle East
November 17, 2020
Podcast Episode
Hassan Barari: How the Middle East Views the U.S. Election
By Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, Daniel Sharp
In Babel: Translating the Middle East
November 3, 2020
Podcast Episode
Hassan Hassan: The Rise of Iraq’s Shi'ite Militias
By Jon B. Alterman, Will Todman, Natasha Hall
In Babel: Translating the Middle East
October 20, 2020
View all content associated with this program
Footer menu
  • Topics
  • Regions
  • Programs
  • Experts
  • Events
  • Analysis
  • Web Projects
  • Podcasts
  • iDeas Lab
  • Transcripts
  • About Us
  • Support Us
Contact CSIS
Email CSIS
Tel: 202.887.0200
Fax: 202.775.3199
Visit CSIS Headquarters
1616 Rhode Island Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20036
Media Queries

Contact H. Andrew Schwartz
Chief Communications Officer
Tel: 202.775.3242

Contact Caleb Diamond
Media Relations Manager and Editorial Associate
Tel: 202.775.3173

Daily Updates

Sign up to receive The Evening, a daily brief on the news, events, and people shaping the world of international affairs.

Subscribe to CSIS Newsletters

Follow CSIS
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • Instagram

All content © 2021. All rights reserved.

Legal menu
  • Credits
  • Privacy Policy
  • Reprint Permissions