Abbas Kadhim
Senior Resident Scholar and Director, Iraq Program, AGSI
Abbas Kadhim is a senior resident scholar and the director of the Iraq Program at the Arab Gulf States Institute. Previously, he was a resident senior fellow and the director of the Atlantic Council’s Iraq Initiative. He is an Iraq expert and author of Reclaiming Iraq: The 1920 Revolutionand the Founding of the Modern State.
Previously, he was a senior foreign policy fellow at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. He was formerly an assistant professor of national security affairs and Middle East studies at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California and a visiting assistant professor at Stanford University. He also previously held a senior government affairs position at the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, DC.
His other books include Governance in the Middle East and North Africa and The Hawza Under Siege: A Study in the Ba’th Party Archive.
He earned a PhD in Near Eastern studies from the University of California, Berkeley.
Analysis
The New Trilateral Axis and the Iraqi Dilemma
As the September deadline for the U.S. troop drawdown approaches, Iraq’s period of comfortable neutrality is ending, but the country’s policymakers should not rush into unsustainable alignments.
The Geopolitical Imperative of Iraq-GCC Relations
A strong relationship with the GCC acts as a stabilizing force for an inherently fragile Iraqi state. But to maintain this, Iraq needs to pair sophisticated regional diplomacy with assertive control over the nonstate actors operating within its borders.
Iraq’s at the Epicenter of the Regional Fallout of Confrontation With Iran
The U.S.-Israeli attack on Iran has exposed Iraq’s structural fragilities: territorial permeability, economic monoculture, energy dependence, and politically mediated sovereignty.
Iraq’s Post-Election Impasse: Sovereignty, Power, and the Impact of External Vetoes
The government-formation crisis is a test of whether Iraq can assert genuine sovereignty in a system still shaped by foreign influence, factional vetoes, and constitutional loopholes.
Events
Jun 4, 2026
Screening of Iraqi Film “The President’s Cake”
On June 4, AGSI and the National Museum of Asian Art co-hosted a screening of “The President’s Cake.”
Speakers
May 12, 2026
Iraq in a New Middle East: Government Formation and Regional Challenges
On May 12, AGSI hosted a discussion on the new government in Iraq.
Speakers
Mar 5, 2026
Caught in the Crossfire: Iraq and the Expanding Regional War
On March 5, AGSI hosted a discussion on Iraq's internal and external challenges in navigating the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran.
Speakers
Jan 8, 2026
Outlook 2026: Prospects and Priorities for U.S.-Gulf Relations in the Year Ahead
On January 8, AGSI hosted a virtual roundtable with its leadership and scholars as they look ahead and assess trends likely to shape the Gulf region and U.S. foreign policy during the coming year.
Speakers
Mar 9, 2023
20 Years After the U.S. Invaded: What’s Next for Iraq?
On March 9, AGSIW hosted a discussion reflecting on the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq ahead of the 20th anniversary.
Speakers
Sep 8, 2022
As Failed Government Formation Escalates Into Violence, What’s Next for Iraq?
On Thursday September 8, AGSIW hosted a discussion on the current political crisis in Iraq.
Speakers
Engagement
Aug 26, 2026
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iraq: Abbas Kadhim met with the deputy minister of foreign affairs for bilateral relations and the deputy minister of foreign affairs for administrative and technical affairs. He also visited the Iraqi Institute of Foreign Service and met with its newly appointed dean, Amb. Mohammed al-Shummery.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Iraq
Aug 26, 2026
Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs: Abbas Kadhim delivered the lecture “U.S.-Iraq relations after PM al-Zaidi’s visit to Washington” at the Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Iraqi Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Aug 24, 2026
In Iraq, Abbas Kadhim met with Iraqi President Nizar Amidi in his office at Salaam Palace. They had a conversation about U.S.-Iraq relations and the current developments in Iraq and the region, particularly the question of state control of weapons in Iraq and the U.S.-Iran conflict. Kadhim also spent half a day at the Iraqi Council of Representatives and met with several Council of Representatives directorates, including the director of the Legislative Directorate, director of the Legislative Development Directorate, financial advisor to the Council of Representatives, and integrity and combating corruption advisor to the Council of Representatives. He also met with Shakhawan Abdullah, the leader of the Kurdistan Democratic Party, at the Council of Representatives.
Aug 21, 2026
Baghdad International Dialogue: Abbas Kadhim participated in a panel discussion on Iraqi diplomacy amid today’s complex geopolitical environment.
Baghdad International Dialogue
