Here’a a really informed op-ed in the NYT from Michael Singh, a former senior director for Middle East Affairs at the United Nations Security Council and now managing director of Washington Instute of Near Eastern Policy.

Whilst I accept many of the points raised, I fear that Mr. Singh’s intelligence on the politics is out of date. To talk of the US acting with the EU3, namely, the UK, France and Germany is naive and simplistic. Both Russia and China gained geopolitical leverage because of the UK’s reduced global influence triggered by Brexit. With Angela Merkel likely to be reelected leader in Germany, Mr. Singh needs to ponder that German/US relations since Donald Trump became US President are at an post WWII low.

Both Iran and North Korea should be top of the foreign policy agenda for diplomatic attention but for the moment the smarter intiatives look like they might come from Russia and China.

Thoughts?