In the crossfire of regional elections

The US elections of November 2020 will cast a long shadow in the Middle East.  But elections in Israel in March, Iran in June, and Turkey in a couple of years from now will also have significant geopolitical impacts in the region in 2021. The Biden administration will be overwhelmed by domestic concerns related to the pandemic, the socio-economic crisis, and political extremism. Foreign affairs will focus on global issues such as climate change, rebuilding traditional alliances in Europe and Asia, and confronting the rise of China.  Biden wants to restore the nuclear deal with Iran that he and President Obama negotiated in 2015; his administration says they also want to discuss Iran’s missile systems and its regional interventions. But once they get their restored—and maybe slightly reinforced—nuclear deal, other matters are much lower down in the priority list.  Washington is moving to restore relations with the Palestinians, and will