On June 13th, the National Committee on American Foreign Policy (NCAFP) hosted a panel discussion on shifting geopolitics in the Middle East following the Chinese-brokered peace agreement between Saudi Arabia and Iran. The panel included Ms. Asha Castleberry-Hernandez, former Senior Advisor to Assistant Secretary of State of Near Eastern Affairs and Kuwait Desk Officer at U.S. Army Central, Ms. Holly Dagres, Nonresident Senior Fellow at the Atlantic Council and Editor of IranSource and The Iranist, as well as Ambassador (ret.) Martin Indyk, the Lowy Distinguished Fellow in U.S.-Middle East Diplomacy at the Council on Foreign Relations and former U.S. Ambassador to Israel. Ambassador (ret.) Susan Elliott, President & CEO of the NCAFP, moderated the panel.

Ambassador Elliott in conversation with Ambassador Indyk, Ms. Castleberry-Hernandez, and Ms. Dagres 

The panelists offered their thoughts on the state of relations between Iran and Saudi Arabia, and the role of U.S. diplomacy in the region following the peace agreement brokered by China. Their varied experiences, informed by time spent in many Gulf nations and at the center of American policy discussions, brought nuance and rich understanding to a challenging set of issues.

A Q&A session followed the panel discussion, in which attendees asked a series of questions related to China's role as a mediator in the Middle East, and how shifting relations change the political calculus for both the U.S. and its closest ally in the region, Israel

The National Committee on American Foreign Policy (NCAFP) was founded in 1974 by Professor Hans J. Morgenthau and others. It is a nonprofit policy organization dedicated to the resolution of conflicts that threaten U.S. interests. Toward that end, the NCAFP identifies, articulates, and helps advance American foreign policy interests from a nonpartisan perspective within the framework of political realism.

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