logo
episode-header-image
Oct 2020
24m 51s

American entanglement in the Middle East

Financial Times
About this episode

Philip Gordon, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, is a long-time Washington insider who worked on Middle East policy for the Obama administration and is now an informal adviser to the Biden campaign. In this episode, Gideon Rachman talks to him about the US presidential election and American policy in the Middle East — the subject of his new book, Losing the Long Game. After decades of American engagement in the region, Gordon shares his thoughts on why no recent US president has been able to ignore it.


Review clips: C-SPAN


--

Read the FT's New Cold War series here: https://www.ft.com/content/4fda1b2c-48f5-42e0-9b87-58816adf2a78


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Up next
Sep 3
Will Bessent’s ‘economic D-Day’ break Iran?
US Treasury secretary Scott Bessent is calling for an “economic D-Day” for the Iranian regime while threatening secondary sanctions on countries that do business with the country. Will this be more effective than previous attempts at economic pressure? What impact will this have ... Show More
31m 59s
Aug 27
Making the UN great again
The UN is choosing a new secretary-general at a time when it’s struggling to remain relevant. Sidelined in the wars in Ukraine, Sudan and the Middle East, and facing a severe funding crisis, the organisation is under growing pressure. This week, guest host Alec Russell speaks to ... Show More
25m 15s
Aug 20
The making of the modern Middle East
Gideon Rachman speaks to historian and author Simon Sebag Montefiore about his new book, The Cauldron: The Making of the Modern Middle East. They discuss the forces that shaped the region, from the Ottoman Empire and Ataturk to the ongoing tensions between the US, Israel and Iran ... Show More
26m 41s
Recommended Episodes
Nov 2020
Turkey may no longer be model partner, but US has interest in finding common ground where it can
<p>Dr. Philip Gordon, Mary and David Boies Senior Fellow in US Foreign Policy at the Council on Foreign Relations, former White House Coordinator for the Middle East, and author of&nbsp;<em>Losing the Long Game: The False Promise of Regime Change in the Middle East,&nbsp;</em>dis ... Show More
42m 41s
Sep 2019
U.S. Diplomacy in the Middle East
In our first episode, Jon Alterman sits down with Ambassador Bill Burns about the role of the United States in the Middle East. Amb. Burns is the president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the former deputy secretary of state, and the author of The Back Channel: ... Show More
23m 39s
Nov 2020
How the Middle East Views the U.S. Election
This week on Babel, Jon is joined by Hassan Barari, a professor of international politics at the University of Jordan who is currently on leave teaching at Qatar University. Jon and Hassan talk about how the Middle East has viewed past U.S. administrations and the current one. Th ... Show More
26m 34s
Feb 2022
Is the U.S. Done With the Middle East?
<p>For the past two decades, American foreign policy has been entangled in major conflicts in the Middle East, but the Biden administration has signaled a shift toward Asia. Despite the pivot to other pressing global challenges, the region still plays a crucial role in America’s ... Show More
30m 35s
Nov 2024
Diplomacy is Not a Dirty Word
Negar Mortazavi in conversation with Steven Simon, Lara Friedman, Nader Hashemi, and Jon Hoffman, discussing US policy in the Middle East under Biden and Trump. This panel was hosted in person by the National Iranian American Council. 
1h 19m
Mar 2022
U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East: Part Three
In seven episodes, the Babel: U.S. Power and Influence in the Middle East podcast miniseries will take a closer look at two decades of heightened U.S. engagement in the region. Over seven weeks, Babel will cover how the United States has used its military, economic, diplomatic, a ... Show More
23m 55s
Jun 2025
An Insider's View of the Mideast Conflict
Israel's attacks on Iran and Iran's retaliation have brought the United States to the edge of entering another war in the Middle East. It is exposing divisions within President Trump's cabinet and the MAGA movement over American involvement abroad. As former Chair of the Joint Ch ... Show More
54m 20s
Oct 2024
Israel, Iran, and the Next US President
<p>Negar Mortazavi speaks to Harrison Mann, a former U.S. Army Officer and Middle East intelligence analyst who resigned over U.S. policy in Gaza. He is now a Senior Fellow at Win Without War in Washington.</p> 
39m 29s
Jan 2024
Long Reads: Biden's Vietnam w/ Akbar Shahid Ahmed
<p>This is another special episode of <em>Long Reads</em> looking at Israel’s war on Gaza. Our focus today is on the politics of the Biden administration and its backing for Israel. Joe Biden and his team are still giving their firm support to Benjamin Netanyahu as he talks about ... Show More
45m 51s