logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2025
41m 24s

Trump 2.0 and the Middle East: Taking St...

Middle East Institute
About this episode
In this episode of Middle East Focus, hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj speak with MEI Senior Fellow Brian Katulis about US policy in the Middle East under Donald Trump's second administration. Nine months into Trump 2.0, how much has really changed? Katulis breaks down the administration's approach to ​major issues, including the cease-fire in Gaza and broader prospects for peace, the aftermath of the 12-Day War with Iran, and how Washington is managing ties with regional partners. He also previews his upcoming quarterly report card, which grades the administration on key policy areas.
 
Recorded on October 22, 2025.
 
Listen to Brian Katulis's podcast:
Taking the Edge off the Middle East
Up next
Yesterday
Can Turkey Stay Out of the Iran War?
Nearly two weeks into the US and Israel's war with Iran, MEI Senior Fellow Gönül Tol joins hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj to explore the impact of the widening regional conflict on Turkey. On March 9, Ankara announced that NATO air defenses shot down a second Iranian ba ... Show More
47m 46s
Mar 5
Lebanon on the Brink: Hizballah, Iran, and the War's Spillover
Hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj are joined by MEI Senior Fellow Fadi Nicholas Nassar to discuss Hizballah's role in the escalating conflict in the Middle East and the implications for Lebanon. A day after the United States and Israel launched a joint military campaign ag ... Show More
43m 25s
Feb 26
Is the Regime Doomed? Iran on the Eve of War
Against the backdrop of one of the largest US military deployments to the Middle East since 2003, MEI Senior Fellow Alex Vatanka joins hosts Alistair Taylor and Matthew Czekaj to assess the situation inside Iran on the eve of potential war. Weeks after the Islamic Republic's brut ... Show More
40m 43s
Recommended Episodes
May 2025
Can Trump Remake the Middle East?
<p>Donald Trump just finished his first tour of the Middle East since returning to the White House. The region has changed a lot since he was last there as president. There’s been Hamas’s attack on Israel, the ensuing Israeli retaliation, the weakening of Iran and its proxies, an ... Show More
54m 13s
Jan 2025
How Trump 2.0 could reshape the Middle East
It's a moment of change in the Middle East. A ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, and Hezbollah in retreat in Lebanon. Iran and its proxies are weakened and Syria has slipped from its grasp. Now, with President Trump officially installed in the White House, what impact mi ... Show More
26m 22s
Oct 2025
What's the US planning for the Middle East?
What's the US planning for the Middle East? President Donald Trump came to the region on Monday to cement his plan for peace in Gaza. He says the end of the war ushers in a historic new dawn. But can he succeed where his predecessors have failed? In this episode: Sarah Eltantawi, ... Show More
24m 40s
Mar 2025
Frankly Speaking | S12 E6 | Norman T. Roule, Former senior U.S. intelligence official
<p>Two months after returning to the White House, President Trump has shocked the world with a series of major announcements, from aggressive DOGE initiatives to high tariffs, plans to relocate thousands of Palestinians from Gaza, and secret talks with Hamas. Today we hear from ... Show More
35m 54s
Mar 2025
Trump Orders Airstrikes on Iran-Backed Houthis in Yemen
Today on the show, Fareed speaks with Eurasia Group President Ian Bremmer and Economist Editor-in-Chief Zanny Minton Beddoes about the latest developments in negotiations for a ceasefire in Ukraine. They also discuss the Trump administration’s strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen an ... Show More
40m 25s
Nov 2024
US foreign policy in a second Trump term
Today on the show, guest host Bianna Golodryga speaks with Elbridge Colby, a former high-level Pentagon official during Donald Trump’s first term in office, about what he expects from Trump’s foreign policy this time around, and why he believes the focus needs to be on countering ... Show More
40m 24s
Oct 2024
Richard Haass and Randa Slim on escalation in the Middle East
Today on the show, Fareed is joined live by an expert panel to discuss the events unfolding in the Middle East. Randa Slim, conflict resolution director at the Middle East Institute, and Richard Haass, president emeritus at the Council on Foreign Relations, speak about the escala ... Show More
40m 30s
Oct 2024
Swamp Notes: How the Middle East conflict is shaping the election
<p>The Biden administration has tried and failed to contain fighting in the Middle East over the past year - and now, the conflict is close to spiralling into all-out war. The FT’s US foreign affairs and defence correspondent Felicia Schwartz and US political news editor Derek Br ... Show More
13m 40s
Jun 2025
All-Star Panel: U.S. Strike on Iran Reshapes Geopolitical Landscape
On Saturday, the U.S. launched a successful strike on Iran’s nuclear facilities, dealing a major blow to its nuclear program and hampering its ability to escalate regional conflict. Meanwhile, President Trump arrived at the NATO summit in the Netherlands today amid uncertainty ov ... Show More
19m 16s