India and Pakistan will be among the most important countries in the twenty-first century. In Avoiding Armageddon, Bruce Riedel clearly explains the challenge and the importance of successfully managing America's affairs with these two emerging powers and their toxic relationship.Born from the British Raj, the two nations share a common heritage, but they are different in many important ways. India is already the world's largest democracy and will soon become the planet's m...

Pakistan and the United States have been locked in a deadly embrace for decades. Successive American presidents from both parties have pursued narrow short-term interests in the South Asian nation, and many of the resulting policies proved counterproductive in the long term, contributing to political instability and a radicalized public. This background has helped set the stage for the global jihad confronting much of the world today.In Deadly Embrace, Bruce Riedel explores...

After more than a decade of great effort and sacrifice by America and its allies, the Taliban still has not been defeated, and many Afghans believe that a civil war is coming. Aspiration and Ambivalence analyzes the U.S. and international efforts in Afghanistan and offers detailed recommendations for dealing with the precarious situation leading up to the 2014 transition to Afghan control and beyond. Vanda Felbab-Brown argues that allied efforts in Afghanistan have put far too lit...

In February 1989, the CIA's chief in Islamabad famously cabled headquarters a simple message: "We Won." It was an understated coda to the most successful covert intelligence operation in American history.In What We Won, CIA and National Security Council veteran Bruce Riedel tells the story of America's secret war in Afghanistan and the defeat of the Soviet 40th Red Army in the war that proved to be the final battle of the cold war. He seeks to answer one simple question-why...

An insider's account of the often-fraught U.S.-Saudi relationshipSaudi Arabia and the United States have been partners since 1943, when President Roosevelt met with two future Saudi monarchs. Subsequent U.S. presidents have had direct relationships with those kings and their successors-setting the tone for a special partnership between an absolute monarchy with a unique Islamic identity and the world's most powerful democracy.Although based in large part on...

Bruce Riedel provides new perspective and insights into Kennedy's forgotten crisis in the most dangerous days of the cold war.The Cuban Missile Crisis defined the presidency of John F. Kennedy. But during the same week that the world stood transfixed by the possibility of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union, Kennedy was also consumed by a war that has escaped history's attention, yet still significantly reverberates today: the Sino-Indian conflict.As we...

Al Qaeda is the most dangerous terrorist movement in history. Yet most people in the Americas and Europe know very little about it, or their view is clouded by misperceptions and half truths. If the first rule of war is to "know your enemy," then we have a long way to go. This important audiobook fills this gap with a comprehensive analysis of al Qaeda—the origins, leadership, ideology, and strategy of the terrorist network that brought down the Twin Towers and continues to threaten us tod...

Find out about the 1958 U.S. intervention that succeeded and apply those lessons to today's conflicts in the Middle EastIn July 1958, U.S. Marines stormed the beach in Beirut, Lebanon, ready for combat. They were greeted by vendors and sunbathers. Fortunately, the rest of their mission—helping to end Lebanon's first civil war—went nearly as smoothly and successfully, thanks in large part to the skillful work of American diplomats who helped arrange a compromise solution. Future Amer...

In The Prince of Counterterrorism, Brookings Senior Fellow Bruce Riedel tells the story of Saudi Arabia’s Deputy Crown Prince Muhammad bin Nayef (MBN) and his contributions to the security of the kingdom and the Arab world. In the spring of 2015, King Salman removed his brother from the line of succession, and chose instead his nephew, MBN, as his heir. Riedel explains why this decision is critical for the U.S. as MBN has been America’s closest Saudi ally in the fight against terrorism, ev...

In this book, Bruce Riedel, one of America’s leading experts on the Middle East, provides a history of US relations with the various entities of north and south Yemen, and the first in-depth review of America’s role in the deadly Saudi directed war in the Yemens. Three Presidents—Obama, Trump, and Biden-- have been deeply involved in this conflict. Riedel places this current war in the context of America’s history of engaging with the Yemens. From President Kennedy’s handling of a Soviet a...

A telling history of one of the most important relationships in the Middle EastThis is the first book to tell the remarkable story of the relationship between Jordan and the United States and how their leaders have navigated the dangerous waters of the most volatile region in the world.Jordan has been an important ally of the United States for more than seventy years, thanks largely to two members of the Hashemite family: King Hussein, who came to power at th...

In recent years, the geopolitical rivalry between Saudi Arabia and Iran has dominated the headlines. Many have charted the polarisation between a Saudi-led Sunni camp and an Iranian-led Shia one, assuming that a predominantly Shia state like Iraq would automatically ally with Iran. In this compelling account, Katherine Harvey tells a different story: Iraq’s alignment with Iran was not a foregone conclusion. Rather, Saudi efforts to undermine Iran have paradoxically empowered it.Har...