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Middle East

Biden’s problem now

Roger McShane: Middle East editor, The Economist

Will the new president jump back into the nuclear deal with Iran?

2021 in brief

The Syrian civil war enters its tenth year. Conflict between rebel forces and the
government of Bashar al-Assad began on March 15th 2011. The UN estimates that more
than 400,000 people have been killed in the fighting. Nearly 13m Syrians have become
refugees or displaced people as a result

IT MAY HAVE looked as though John Kerry had the most difficult task in the
negotiations that led to the nuclear deal with Iran in 2015. As he tried to nail down the
terms of the agreement, America’s secretary of state at the time grew so frustrated with
his Iranian counterpart that he threatened to walk away from the talks. Their shouting
matches became the stuff of legend.