Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Amb. David Smith (Ret.), is a foreign policy and security expert who runs the Georgian Security Analysis Center in Tbilisi.  In a column for the Georgian publication Tabula, he writes about the political upheavals taking place in the Middle East and the uncertainty about what comes next.  Writes Amb. Smith,"...some analysts fear that today’s euphoria in the city squares will tomorrow yield to reality: protestors united only by frustration with extant regimes, the tenacity of entrenched power structures and rising prices. With clever maneuvering, a few concessions and some repression, many of the old dogs might just survive...Or, radical Islam could be waiting in the wings." Click below to read the article in full.   

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Tawfik Hamid serves as the Institute's Chair for the Study of Islamic Radicalism. Dr. Hamid, who is originally from Egypt, is watching developments in that country and urging a peaceful resolution to the crisis. Dr. Hamid writes, "Egypt has been always considered the heart of the Arab and Muslim world. Currently the country is in a crisis that threatens to create a vacuum of power, and which may allow Islamic radicals to gain a stronger foothold." What's more, Dr. Hamid writes, a humanitarian crisis looms as the ongoing chaos plays havoc with food supplies. Click here to read Dr. Hamid's comments on the crisis to Voice of America. Click here to read National Journal coverage including comments from Dr. Hamid.  Click here to read Dr. Hamid's op-ed in the Jerusalem Post.

Dr. Tawfik Hamid, Chair for the Study of Islamic Radicalism at the Potomac Institute for Policy Studies, was born and raised in Egypt and is analyzing the rapid political developments in that country. Dr. Hamid was interviewed on the nationally-syndicated Jim Bohannon Show about the future of Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak's regime, the role of the US, and the possible outcomes for Egypt and the region. Click here to listen to the interview in full.  

Potomac Institute for Policy Studies Senior Fellow Amb. David Smith (Ret.) is the Director of the Georgian Security Analysis Center in Tbilisi. In the Georgian publication Tabula, he writes about Georgia's struggles to escape Russian dominance, arguing that the West's failure to hold the line against Russian and Soviet aggression in the 20th century set the stage for the Russian invasion of Georgia in 2008. Click below to read the article in full.