Iran

Economics

Military & Security

Iran voided a Sept. 9 nuclear cooperation agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency, or IAEA, that permitted nuclear inspectors to access Iran's nuclear sites, Reuters reported on Oct. 20.

Iran: Tehran Voids Nuclear Cooperation Agreement With IAEA

Azerbaijan

Russia

Politics

Azerbaijan's Deputy Prime Minister Shahin Mustafayev announced that construction of the Horadiz-Agbend railway and highway, key links in the North-South and Araz transport corridors, will be completed by 2026, Azerbaijan State News Agency reported on Oct. 13.

Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran: Azerbaijan Positions Itself as Core of Russia-Iran Logistics Network

United States

Israel

Qatar

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order reaffirming the United States' commitment to Qatar's security on Sept. 29, publishing it on Oct. 1.

U.S., Qatar: U.S. Issues Executive Order To Re-Guarantee Qatari Security

Equatorial Guinea

Gabon

Nigeria

Republic of the Congo

Venezuela

Algeria

Iraq

Kuwait

Libya

Saudi Arabia

United Arab Emirates

Energy

OPEC+ will likely decide to increase its oil production in November by at least 137,000 barrels per day when the group meets on Oct. 5, Bloomberg reported on Sept. 28.

Global: OPEC+ Likely To Approve Another Production Hike at Next Meeting

The United Nations formally reimposed economic and military sanctions on Iran following a failed last-ditch effort by Russia and China on Sept. 26 to delay sanctions, Reuters reported on Sept. 28.

Iran: U.N. Reimposes Sanctions on Iran

The U.N. Security Council failed to pass a resolution that would permanently lift sanctions on Iran, AP reported on Sept. 19.

Iran: U.N. Security Council Fails To Lift Sanctions on Iran

The U.S. Department of State designated four Iranian-backed Iraqi militias -- Harakat al-Nujaba, Kataib Sayyid al-Shuhada, Harakat Ansar Allah al-Awfiya and Kataib al-Imam Ali -- as Foreign Terrorist Organizations, or FTOs, to counter Iran and prevent terrorist attacks against U.S. military personnel and assets in the region, according to a Sept. 17 State Department press release.

Iraq, U.S.: State Department Designates Four Iranian-Backed Iraqi Militias as FTOs

Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency reached an agreement on Sept. 9 that will eventually allow IAEA inspectors to resume visits to Iranian nuclear sites, Reuters reported the same day.

Iran: Tehran, IAEA Reach Agreement on Process To Resume Nuclear Inspections

Assessments

Syria

Turkey

Russian President Vladimir Putin and Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, hold a meeting at the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow on Oct.15, 2025. 

Syria's outreach to Russia could lead to diversified economic and security ties, help de-escalate tensions between Russia and Turkey, and eventually facilitate small steps toward Syria's rapprochement with Iran.

Syria-Russia Reapproachment Reinforces Damascus's Non-Confrontationalism

Egypt

Lebanon

Palestinian Territories

Yemen

An Israeli military truck carries a tank in southern Israel on the border with the Gaza Strip, on Oct. 14, 2025.

Israel-Hamas Conflict

The ceasefire will allow Israel to redirect resources away from Gaza toward other regional threats, particularly Iran, while temporarily easing diplomatic tensions with Egypt and the UAE.

The Regional Implications of the Oct. 8 Gaza Ceasefire

Bahrain

U.S. President Donald Trump delivers remarks to U.S. and Qatari military personnel at the Al Udeid Air Base in Doha, Qatar, on May 15, 2025.

The U.S. president's pledge to defend Qatar may deter future Israeli attacks, but it is unlikely to deter Iranian aggression or allay Gulf states' greater concerns about Washington's commitment to their security.

Trump's Security Guarantees for Qatar Unlikely To Offer Enough Reassurance

China

The U.N. Security Council holds a meeting on Iran at the U.N. headquarters in New York City, New York, on Sept. 19, 2025. 

U.S.-Iran Relations

The increased isolation will make Iran more reliant on China and Russia, while the added economic strain could fuel domestic protests and empower Iranian hard-liners calling for more aggressive action against the West.

U.N. Sanctions Snapback: What's Next for Iran?

Oman

Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman al-Thani chairing a preparatory meeting in Doha on Sept. 14, 2025, ahead of an Arab Islamic summit.

The Sept. 9 strike on Qatar has amplified doubts among Gulf states about the reliability of U.S. security guarantees and Washington's ability to restrain its regional allies.

Israeli Strike on Qatar Prompts GCC States To Question Future of Regional Security

A picture taken from a distance shows the damaged building (L) in the Qatari compound housing members of Hamas' political bureau on Sept. 10, 2025. Israel targeted the building the previous day in a strike in Qatar's capital, Doha. 

Israel's Sept. 9 airstrikes in Qatar will likely harden the stances of Iranian-backed groups, keep normalization with Saudi Arabia off the table and drive more assertive postures from other regional states.

The Regional Implications of Israel's Strikes in Qatar

A vehicle in a U.S. military convoy drives in Arbil, the capital of Iraqi Kurdistan.

The U.S. drawdown from Iraq will weaken Washington's direct influence while creating more space for Turkey to expand economically and Iran to gradually reassert itself through political and militia networks. 

Iraq's Shifting Power Dynamics After U.S. Withdrawal

South Korea

Taiwan

Thailand

Germany

France

United Kingdom

The Maanshan nuclear power plant is seen next to a beach in Pingtung, in southern Taiwan, on April 29, 2025.

A look at what the coming week will bring -- and a list of recommended RANE articles from the week that was.

The Weekly Rundown: Iran Meets With European Powers, Taiwan Holds a Nuclear Referendum

Armenia

U.S. President Donald Trump (center), Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev (left) and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan (right) hold up an agreement signed during a ceremony at the White House on Aug. 8, 2025.

The deal sidelines Russia and Iran while establishing a U.S. commercial presence in the South Caucasus, but it will remain fragile due to unresolved security guarantees and implementation challenges.

What To Make of the U.S.-Brokered Peace Deal Between Armenia and Azerbaijan

Iraq and Turkey's flags together on a textile cloth fabric 

Turkey is repositioning itself in Iraq by replacing its security-heavy posture with a push for economic and energy integration, signaling Ankara's long-term ambitions to become a regional power broker as U.S. and Iranian influence wanes.

Turkey Shifts Iraq Strategy Amid Waning U.S. and Iranian Influence

Media

Podcasts

How have Gulf Arab states' positions on the Israel-Iran conflict evolved?

Essential Geopolitics: The Future of Gulf-Iranian Relations

Columns

On Geopolitics

Vehicles drive along a main thoroughfare past a billboard that reads in Farsi and Hebrew: "A severe blow... The vile and villainous Zionist regime (Israel) has made a grave mistake,” in central Tehran on June 24, 2025. 

The war has weakened Iran, but has also shifted regional perceptions of Israel as a destabilizing force, prompting Gulf states to reassess alliances, Turkey to emerge as a rival, and raising the risk of nuclear proliferation in the Middle East.

Assessing the Regional Impact of the Israel-Iran War, Part 2

Iran sits at the crossroads of the Islamic world. Linking the Middle East, the Caucasus and Central and South Asia, Iran has struggled to balance the benefits and risks of its geographic position.    Iran's core is located in the western Zagros mountain range. From this secure geography, the beginnings of the Persian Empire spread throughout Iran's mountainous topography securing the Alborz, the southern Zagros and much of the Iranian plateau.    Iran's primary geographic challenge has been to secure itself from the many external threats on its borders. Arabs, Mongols and Turks all conquered ancient Persia at various times, prompting Persia to expand its territorial control whenever possible to establish a buffer to protect its core.    At its height, the Persian Empire stretched from the Eastern Mediterranean to the Hindu Kush mountains, bridging modern-day Europe and Asia. Echoes of this former empire can be seen even today, with Iran's support for Hezbollah in Lebanon, the al Assad regime in Damascus and the Shiite-led government in Iraq.    Iran has also struggled to unite and control the various language and ethnic groups located within its core territories, a process impeded by the country's difficult terrain. Modern-day Tehran is aided by its large hydrocarbon reserves; Iran boasts the fourth-largest oil reserves and largest natural gas reserves in the world. The 20th century saw British, Russian and American interests competing not only to control Iran's strategic geographic location, but its significant energy reserves as well.    This modern-day reliance on energy revenues has resulted in Iran's focus on securing the Strait of Hormuz and expanding control over the Persian Gulf to secure its core territories from the threat of outside invasion.

SITUATION REPORTS

Iran: Tehran Voids Nuclear Cooperation Agreement With IAEA

Azerbaijan, Russia, Iran: Azerbaijan Positions Itself as Core of Russia-Iran Logistics Network

U.S., Qatar: U.S. Issues Executive Order To Re-Guarantee Qatari Security

Global: OPEC+ Likely To Approve Another Production Hike at Next Meeting

Iran: U.N. Reimposes Sanctions on Iran

Iran: U.N. Security Council Fails To Lift Sanctions on Iran

Iraq, U.S.: State Department Designates Four Iranian-Backed Iraqi Militias as FTOs

Iran: Tehran, IAEA Reach Agreement on Process To Resume Nuclear Inspections

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