Decision Points

In this special episode of Decision Points, Washington Institute experts Dennis Ross, Dana Stroul, Robert Satloff, and Holly Dagres sit down with the Institute's managing director, Michael Singh, to assess the joint U.S.-Israeli air campaign against Iran and Tehran's intensifying retaliation. They explore President Trump's goals in the conflict, assess the responses from Gulf states targeted by Iran, and discuss the key factors they're watching as the war continues.
Dennis Ross is the former lead U.S. negotiator on Middle East peace and a former top Middle East advisor for both Democratic and Republican administrations.
Dana Stroul is the Washington Institute's research director and served as the Pentagon's top Middle East expert in the Biden administration.
Robert Satloff is the Washington Institute's executive director.
Holly Dagres is a senior fellow at the Washington Institute specializing in Iranian society and the curator of "The Iranist," a newsletter on Iran.
Moderator: Michael Singh is the Washington Institute's managing director and a former senior director for the Middle East at the National Security Council under President George W. Bush.
This episode is an edited version of the original March 2nd event.
Decision Points is produced by David McGuffin with Nava Goldstein and Zack Apt.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The United States and Iran stand on the brink of war. The Pentagon has deployed a huge amount of air power in the Middle East, and President Trump has set a 10-15 day deadline to decide whether to strike.
In the first episode of Season Six, Decision Points host David Makovsky is joined by former U.S. national security advisor Jake Sullivan and former Israeli national security advisor Eyal Hulata. They assess whether the United States and Iran are plunging toward conflict or whether a negotiated outcome is still possible—and explore the risks of both war and diplomacy. Drawing on their experience at the highest levels of government, Sullivan and Hulata examine the lessons that should guide policy makers through this crisis.
Decision Points is produced by David McGuffin with Nava Goldstein and Zack Apt.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Decision Points is the podcast that gets beyond the noise on tough choices in the Middle East. Hosted by David Makovsky of The Washington Institute, the show brings together top policymakers and experts from Washington and the region for candid conversations about the forces and factors driving Middle East policymaking.

Season Six tackles the toughest U.S. foreign-policy debates, from the brink of war in Iran to the painful aftermath in Gaza and the new government in Syria. In each episode, Makovsky sits down with top American, Israeli, and Arab policy experts and former officials to clarify the options and understand the stakes. This season asks: Is the Middle East headed for more war and uncertainty? Or could America help the region move toward greater security and progress?
David Makovsky directs the Washington Institute’s Koret Project on Arab-Israel Relations and is a leading expert on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and U.S.-Israel relations. He served as a senior advisor to the special envoy for Israeli-Palestinian negotiations at the U.S. Department of State in 2013-14 and is the author of four books on Arab-Israeli relations.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Israeli society has been through the gambit of emotions in 2024: from the national trauma of the aftermath of October 7th and repeated failed hostage negotiations, to major military achievements that have shifted the regional security landscape. As the nation looks ahead to 2025, healing internal divisions within Israel remains elusive despite the major moves to restore regional deterrence during the second half of 2024.

Profound internal divisions abound. Much of the Israeli public sees the government as maneuvering to avoid a national Commission of Inquiry to investigate the failures of October 7th. At the same time, the looming prospect of permanent exemption of the ultra-orthodox from the military draft is widely unpopular, and the government’s approach to hostage negotiations has sparked widespread dissent and mass protests. Taken together, it seems that if this government fails, it will not be due to external threats, but rather because of internal divisions on these key domestic issues.

How will tensions between the Trump administration’s desire to end the war and the Israeli right’s push to remain in Gaza indefinitely play out? How much the public react to a partial hostage deal that may be close at hand? How are domestic political controversies influencing Israel’s geopolitical strategy and do they impact the durability of the current coalition? And what role – if any – does Netanyahu’s ongoing trial play in this critical moment?

In this episode of Decision Points, David Makovsky is joined by Yossi Klein Halevi. Yossi is a veteran keen observer of Israeli society and is a Senior Fellow at the Shalom Hartman Institute in Jerusalem. He is the author of several acclaimed books on the conflict, including the New York Times bestseller Letters to My Palestinian Neighbor, and co-host of the Institute’s podcast, For Heaven’s Sake. Together, they discuss the challenges of restoring regional deterrence while striving for internal cohesion as Israel enters 2025.
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After just a few days of fighting, Bashar al-Assad's regime has fallen, and Assad has fled to Russia. However, the collapse of the Assad regime is far from a fairytale ending. The rebels responsible for toppling Assad, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), are designated as a terrorist organization by the United States, and history shows that power vacuums in the Middle East often lead to prolonged instability and conflict.

HTS currently holds a dominant position, but Syria’s balance of power remains precarious. Competing factions are poised to challenge HTS, creating a volatile security landscape. Meanwhile, the fall of the Assad regime has significant implications for Israel. Syria has been a critical component of Iran’s axis, serving as a conduit for weapons and illicit materials to reach the West Bank and Jordan.

At this critical juncture, the future of Syria hangs in the balance. How much influence will Russia, Turkey, and Iran exert in shaping Syria’s trajectory? Who will ultimately fill the power vacuum? And what role will the U.S. and Israel play in this tense and rapidly evolving environment?

In this episode of Decision Points, David Makovsky is joined by Andrew Tabler and Tamir Hayman. Andrew Tabler, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute, previously served as Senior Advisor to the Special Envoy for Syria Engagement at the State Department and as Director for Syria Affairs at the White House National Security Council. Tamir Hayman, the current Director of INSS—Israel’s leading national security think tank—served as Head of IDF Intelligence, focusing on Iranian entrenchment in Syria, and previously led efforts to provide humanitarian assistance in southern Syria.
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