Author: Eric R. Mandel, opinion contributor

Diplomacy between Saudi Arabia and Iran could isolate and constrain Israel

Suppose the Israeli defense establishment, the prime minister, and the inner security cabinet decide that Iran’s uranium enrichment at 84 percent, close to what’s needed for a nuclear weapon, and its progress in weaponizing a warhead is making a nuclear breakout imminent. They share the information with their ally, the United States, which has promised…

Progressives and fiscal hawks may cut future funding for Israel

Every 10 years, Republican and Democratic administrations, with the support of Congress, sign a memorandum of understanding to assist Israel’s ability to defend itself and, at the same time, they financially strengthen the American defense industry by requiring that all money spent stays in the United States. Even President Obama’s animosity toward Prime Minister Benjamin…

The risk of failing to enforce sanctions on Iran

Since the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, America has been loath to carry out military actions in the Middle East. In its place, the State Department and Congress have chosen economic sanctions as a primary tool of American foreign policy to influence and punish rogue nations, organizations, corporations and individuals. Unfortunately, enacting sanctions and enforcing…

Remember ISIS? It’s why Biden must stop a Turkish invasion of Kurdish Syria

In 2019, against the advice of many foreign policy and defense officials, President Trump abandoned our Syrian Kurdish allies, who were front-line in helping us eradicate the ISIS caliphate. Trump acquiesced to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s invasion, which caused an estimated 300,000 Kurds to become refugees. The Kurdish forces lost 11,000 fighters in the…