"For Trump, the purpose of exerting 'maximum pressure' on Iran through sanctions is 'the belief that he will bring them around and they’ll realize they need to do a deal and the terms will be better,' said Dennis Ross, a former diplomat who negotiated Middle East agreements for Republican and Democratic administrations. “'The point is, he still thinks there’s a deal he can do. . . . I think for him, the real measure, in his mind, is showing he improved over what [...]

"'For some sides of the administration, the purpose of the tariffs was to build leverage so as to pressure China to open its markets to American businesses, thereby deepening the U.S.-China relationship,' said Ely Ratner, director of studies at the Center for a New American Security, who was previously an adviser to former vice president Joe Biden. 'Others see economic interdependence as a huge vulnerability and a problem that needs to be solved. Is the goal a more reciprocal economic relationship [...]

"'What makes it very difficult to see the conference being successful is that the U.S. has canceled all donor assistance to the Palestinians, so it’s asking others to invest where it has chosen to divest,' said former U.S. ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro." Read the full article here: Full Article

"...While some observers have suggested the US is marching toward war with Iran, others have stressed that this is not the case. Michael Singh, managing director at the Washington Institute and a former member of the National Security Council, argues that the 'risk of inadvertent conflict and escalation is real.' "'This is [especially] the case given the likely poor understanding each side has of the other's intent and red lines, and the poor communications not just between the US and Iran, [...]

"'It will take patience and deft diplomacy by the Trump administration to resist Iranian and North Korean efforts to put pressure on the U.S.,' says Michael Singh, former senior director for Middle East affairs at the National Security Council." Watch the full interview here: Full Interview

"'I would bet on an American soldier, sailor, airmen, Marine with combat experience any day over a Russian or Chinese counterpart,' said Michèle Flournoy, a former senior Pentagon official under President Barack Obama. 'But this is going to be a different kind of warfare.' “'It’s been a long time since we fought without domain supremacy from the early moments of conflict,' she said at the think tank event. 'We have never fought with constant cyber harassment, losing comms, connectivity, the ability [...]

"The US has said it would it impose sanctions on Iran’s iron, steel, aluminum and copper sectors, which the White House said were Tehran’s 'largest non-petroleum-related source of export revenue'... "Mike Singh, a senior fellow at the Washington Institute in Washington, said the move represented a 'continuation of the "maximum pressure" campaign.' 'It targets a remaining source of export revenue for Iran, and a source of employment for Iranians, so this may add significantly to the economic pressure on Iran,' said [...]

Dan Shapiro is quoted by The Times of Israel's Jacob Magid discussing the role the U.S. administration has played in the past, and currently plays, in negotiating ceasefires between Israel and Hamas. Read the full article here: Full Article