

Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Michael Doran is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at Hudson Institute. He specializes in Middle East security issues.
Michael Doran is a senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East at Hudson Institute. He specializes in Middle East security issues and co-hosts the Counterbalance podcast.
In the administration of President George W. Bush, Doran served in the White House as a senior director in the National Security Council, where he was responsible for helping to devise and coordinate United States strategies on a variety of Middle East issues, including Arab-Israeli relations and US efforts to contain Iran and Syria. He also served in the Bush administration as a senior advisor in the State Department and a deputy assistant secretary of defense in the Pentagon.
Born in Kokomo, Indiana, Doran went to elementary school in Carmel, outside of Indianapolis, before his family moved to Fullerton, California, where he graduated from Sunny Hills High School. He received a BA from Stanford University and an MA and PhD in Near Eastern studies from Princeton University.
Before coming to Hudson, Doran was a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. He has also held teaching positions at New York University, Princeton University, and the University of Central Florida. His latest book, Ike's Gamble, was published by Free Press in 2016. He appears frequently on television, and has published extensively in Foreign Affairs, the American Interest, Commentary, Mosaic, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, and the New York Times.
Please join Hudson Senior Fellow Michael Doran as he moderates a discussion with a panel of experts on Turkish politics to unpack what this decisive victory means for US-Turkey relations, the war in Ukraine, and the balance of power in the Middle East.
Please join Michael Doran, Hudson senior fellow and director of the Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East, for a conversation with Senator Cruz about Cruz’s perspective on these issues and on global strategy more broadly.
Join Hudson Senior Fellows Michael Doran and Jonathan Schachter as they discuss the rise of Iran’s power and its implications for the US, Europe, and Israel with David Albright and Henrik Rasmussen of ISIS.
Join Hudson Institute for a discussion with the twentieth United States National Security Advisor, Stephen Hadley, on his new book,Hand-Off: The Foreign Policy George W. Bush Passed to Barack Obama.
When Chinese leader Xi Jinping brokered a rapprochement between Saudi Arabia and Iran, the White House welcomed the news. According to the administration, reduced tensions between the Middle Eastern countries further the president’s long-stated goals and does not represent a significant change in China’s role in the region.
Please join Hudson Institute for a discussion with Israel's Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology Ofir Akunis and Executive Director of the Abraham Accords Peace Institute Robert Greenway, moderated by Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East Director Michael Doran.
Michael Doran hosts a discussion on peace talks between Armenia and Azerbaijan with Ambassador Elchin Amirbayov, the assistant to the first vice president of Azerbaijan, and Hudson Senior Fellow Luke Coffey.
Join Hudson for a discussion on the extent of the threat and how the United States should respond.
Israeli historian and author Gadi Taub joins Michael Doran for a conversation on Israel's recent judicial reforms.
Please join Hudson Institute for a conversation on the question of whether the JCPOA is worth saving with David Albright, the foremost expert in the United States on nuclear non-proliferation.
Iran’s disruptive military capabilities pose a significant threat to the strategic interests of the US and its allies. How great is the threat? How should the Biden administration react to it? Please join us to discuss these timely issues.
Is the Israel-Lebanon deal just another step to appease Iran?
Is this the beginning of a revolution in Iran, or just another storm of unrest that the regime will weather?
The Biden administration’s efforts to revive the Iran nuclear deal have failed. Even as the Islamic Republic refuses to accept terms acceptable to t
On September 13, fighting flared up between Azerbaijan and Armenia that killed dozens of soldiers on both sides. Tensions between these South Caucasus
Please join Hudson Institute for a discussion on how far Chinese-Saudi cooperation can go. Panelists will consider whether Saudi Arabia truly has a Ch
Please join Hudson Institute for a discussion that will look at what has changed and what has stayed the same in the Middle East since Biden's visit
Please join Hudson Institute Distinguished Fellow Walter Russell Mead and Senior Fellow Michael Doran for a discussion centered on Mead’s recently rel
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Join Hudson Institute Senior Fellow Michael Doran and former Ambassador of Israel to the United States, Ron Dermer, to discuss the current conflict be
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Join Hudson Institute Senior Fellows Peter Rough and Michael Doran and experts Xiyue Wang and Bernard Haykel for a discussion on China’s Middle East
Azerbaijan’s victory in the recent war with Armenia has created a new balance of power in the Caspian region. The military capabilities Azerbaijan
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In addition to all the atrocities committed during the c
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The Islamic Republic of Iran is in the midst of a severe
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**__If you have questions for our panelis
Hudson experts discuss how the novel coronavirus pandemic is shaping strategic competition.
On Tuesday, February 11, join Hudson Institute for a panel discussion on President Trump’s plan for peace between the Israelis and the Palestinians.
**NOTE: This event is by invitation only and non-transferable. Please email pthomas@hudson.org with any questions.**
The demise of Qassem Soleimani i
Join Hudson Institute for a panel discussion on the situation in Iran and its implications for U.S. foreign policy.
Hudson Institute will host Senator Tom Cotton for a discussion on The Global Hostage Act, which he recently introduced with Senator Ted Cruz. The bill
U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz and Michael Doran discussed U.S. Foreign Policy
Experts discuss U.S.-Iran tensions
Experts discuss Yemen
Experts discuss the U.S. drawdown in Syria
Experts discuss Iran sanctions
Experts discuss U.S. Syria strategy
Thomas Joscelyn, Bill Roggio, Mike Pregent, Mike Doran, and Catherine Herridge discuss the ongoing war on terrorism.
On May 10th, Hudson Institute hosted Israel's ambassador to the U.S., Ron Dermer, for a discussion on the future of the Iran Deal
Michael Doran, Michael Pregent, Richard Goldberg, and Behnam Ben Taleblu discuss the Iran Deal.
Michael Doran, Jonas Parello-Plesner, Mariam Jalabi, and Mohammad Al Abdallah discuss the U.S.'s strategy in Syria.
Walter Russell Mead, Michael Doran, Craig Kennedy, Rebeccah Heinrich, and Tod Lindberg discuss Trump's first year in office.
Eric Brown, Michael Doran, and Peter Rough will discuss the Middle East.
Dr. Kamal al-Labwani, Reuel Marc Gerecht, and Michael Doran will discuss the state of play in Iran and its impact on the conflict in Syria.
Lee Smith, Michael Doran, Mohammed Alyahya, and Tony Badran discuss tensions between Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Iran.
Michael Doran, Peter Rough, Michael O’Hanlon, and Lee Smith debate President Trump's Middle East reset
Bret Baier, Michael Doran, Michael Pregent, David Tafuri, and Hannah Thoburn examine Russian interference in Western politics and elections
Nick Westcott and Michael Doran discuss European and US coordination on efforts to promote security in the Middle East and North Africa
Michael Doran, Hillel Fradkin, Liel Leibovitz, and Lee Smith on the impact of the June 1967 War in Israel and its importance today to the Middle East
Michael Doran, Nina Shea, Rebeccah Heinrichs and Marc LiVecche on U.S. interests, options and moral considerations for addressing the Syrian civil war
Michael Doran, Lee Smith, Mohammed Alyahya, and Ali Shihabi discuss Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the new direction of the Trump administration.
Michael Doran, Walter Russell Mead, Ray Takeyh, and Lee Smith on Eisenhower's experience and the Trump administration's options in the Middle East
Feisal Istrabadi, Nussaibah Younis, Michael Doran and Michael Pregent discuss U.S.-Iraq relations under the next president and the fight against ISIS.
Michael Doran, Shadi Hamid, Jessica Stern, and Gideon Rose discuss if ISIS and other organized terror groups be defeated in the Islamic Middle East.
Lee Smith, Michael Doran, Reuven Azar, and Tony Badran discuss the 2006 Israel-Hezbollah War and the prospect of resumed conflict.
Senator Marco Rubio joins Hudson Senior Fellow Michael Doran for a conversation on the Middle East.
Senator Lindsey Graham gave remarks at a panel on the Middle East featuring Robert Satloff, Amb. Eric Edelman, Michele Dunne, and Michael Doran.
Michael Doran, Joseph Bahout, Jomana Qaddour, and Lee Smith discuss the Syrian War.
Hudson Institute hosts a panel on the burgeoning conflict between Iran and Saudi Arabia with Ali Alfoneh, Michael Doran, Phillip Smyth, and Lee Smith
Lee Smith, Michael Doran, Tony Badran, & Hannah Thoburn discuss Putin's power play in Syria and the balance of international power in the Middle East.
David Albright, Omri Ceren, Michael Doran, and Lee Smith discuss separate arrangements between Iran and IAEA, the JCPOA, and nuclear nonproliferation.
Senator Tom Cotton, Michael Doran, Lee Smith, William Tobey, and Hillel Fradkin discuss the Iran nuclear deal.
The Transatlantic Think Tank Conference is a three-day event organized by Hudson Institute, IRI, and the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies.
Lee Smith joins Michael Doran, Matthew Kroenig, and David Samuels on the implications of the in-progress nuclear deal with Iran.
The sectarian clash that erupted four years ago in Syria has metastasized into a conflict that has engulfed much of the Middle East and spread beyond
The assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri a decade ago not only cut down one of the region’s moderate Muslim leaders but also
Shmuel Bar, Michael Doran, Hillel Fradkin, and Lee Smith explore U.S. policy in the Middle East with respect to future regional strategy.
Lee Smith lead a panel discussion with David Albright, Michael Doran, Hillel Fradkin and Ray Takeyh on the impact of a nuclear deal with Iran.
On August 14, Hudson Institute hosted a panel on whether al Qaeda or Iran constitutes the major strategic threat to US interests in the Middle East
A Hudson Institute panel discussion on the "Joint Plan of Action" nuclear agreement with Iran, and the future of American Middle East security policy.