Recent Entries

The track record for Middle East diplomacy is pretty dismal, yet this is where President Obama is playing all his important diplomatic cards.

With the interim deal on Iran's nuclear program, the president is now engaged in his fifth major diplomatic initiative in five contiguous countries stretching from Afghanistan in the east to Israel in the west.

Obama has spoken frequently about focusing more U.S. attention on Asia, but time and again, he is drawn back to the Middle East. Overall, these efforts are still playing out, and it's too early to judge success or failure. But after nearly five years in office, the president's legacy on foreign policy will likely be determined by what ultimately happens in this volatile swath of territory.

The Iranian deal announced in Geneva early Sunday effectively freezes Iran's nuclear program. Now comes the bigger challenge of negotiating a permanent agreement over the next six months that locks into place safeguards against an Iranian nuclear weapon.

This is just one of several diplomatic developments over the past few days that included news on the future of U.S. forces in Afghanistan, the Syrian civil war and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Here's a running scorecard on the president's diplomatic moves:

Iran: Depending on who's talking, the Iranian deal represents the most important breakthrough with the Islamic republic in the past decade, if not since the 1979 Iranian revolution — or it's a worthless piece of paper.

Many Iranians celebrated the announcement. Is that because they are desperate to forge better links with the international community, or because Iran feels it got such a good deal? Opinions vary.

For years, talks on Iran's nuclear program took place with little fanfare and rarely caused a ripple. Now they will face intense media scrutiny, which always makes life more difficult for diplomats.

The president is already taking heat from Republicans, while rivals of Iran, including Israel and Saudi Arabia, also oppose the deal. The debate will only intensify as the U.S. and other world powers try to work out a permanent deal.

Afghanistan: A huge gathering of Afghan elders and community leaders approved a plan Sunday that would allow the U.S. to keep a limited military force in Afghanistan after American combat forces are withdrawn next year.

The gathering, known as a Loya Jirga, also said that President Hamid Karzai should act now.

"President Karzai should promise us that he is going to sign the agreement soon," said Sibghatullah Mojaddedi, the man chairing the assembly. "It's for our good."

But the unpredictable Karzai, who will step down following a presidential election next spring, is continuing to waffle.

Afghanistan

Afghan Assembly Approves Security Plan, But Karzai Delays