Michael Doran

Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East

michael_doran

At A Glance:

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.

Researcher
Zineb Riboua
Research Fellow and Program Manager, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East

Biography

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.

Events
07
May 2024
Past Event
The College Campus Tentifada: How It Started, Why It Matters, and How to Curb It
Featured Speakers:
Ran Kivetz
Liel Leibovitz
Asaf Romirowsky
Moderator:
Michael Doran
An American flag hangs from the roof of Lisner Hall of the George Washington University Law School as people walk around an encampment at University Yard on May 3, 2024 in Washington, DC. Pro-Palestinian encampments have sprung up at college campuses around the country with some demonstrators calling for schools to divest from Israeli interests amid the ongoing war in Gaza. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
07
May 2024
Past Event
The College Campus Tentifada: How It Started, Why It Matters, and How to Curb It

Michael Doran hosts Professor Ran Kivetz, Asaf Romirowsky, and Liel Leibovitz to discuss the causes of the recent slate of pro-Hamas encampments on American college campuses.

An American flag hangs from the roof of Lisner Hall of the George Washington University Law School as people walk around an encampment at University Yard on May 3, 2024 in Washington, DC. Pro-Palestinian encampments have sprung up at college campuses around the country with some demonstrators calling for schools to divest from Israeli interests amid the ongoing war in Gaza. (Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Ran Kivetz
Liel Leibovitz
Asaf Romirowsky
Moderator:
Michael Doran
15
April 2024
Past Event
Is China the Big Winner in the Red Sea?
Featured Speakers:
Salvatore Mercogliano
Michael Roberts
Moderator:
Michael Doran
 The cargo ship Rubymar sinking after it was targeted by Yemen's Houthi forces in international waters on March 7, 2024, in the Red Sea. (Photo by Al-Joumhouriah channel via Getty Images)
15
April 2024
Past Event
Is China the Big Winner in the Red Sea?

Shipping experts discuss the Houthi attacks’ consequences for the global economy and the balance of power between the US and its global rivals.

 The cargo ship Rubymar sinking after it was targeted by Yemen's Houthi forces in international waters on March 7, 2024, in the Red Sea. (Photo by Al-Joumhouriah channel via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Salvatore Mercogliano
Michael Roberts
Moderator:
Michael Doran
14
March 2024
Past Event
The Future of US-Israel Relations
Featured Speakers:
Elliott Abrams
Jonathan Silver
Michael Doran
Moderator:
Zineb Riboua
A unit of Israeli soldiers returns to the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip on January 28, 2024. (Photo by Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images)
14
March 2024
Past Event
The Future of US-Israel Relations

Michael Doran,  Jonathan Silver, and Elliott Abrams will discuss Israel’s foreign and domestic policies since the October 7 massacre, the Biden administration’s Middle East policy and its impacts, and the rise of anti-Zionism in the US.

A unit of Israeli soldiers returns to the Israeli side of the border with the Gaza Strip on January 28, 2024. (Photo by Menahem Kahana/AFP via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Elliott Abrams
Jonathan Silver
Michael Doran
Moderator:
Zineb Riboua
07
March 2024
Past Event
Aiding America’s Frontline Allies: The View from Israel and Ukraine with Secretary Mike Pompeo
Featured Speakers:
Michael R. Pompeo
Michael Doran
The Israeli flag flies in front of the Lviv Regional State Administration building as a sign of solidarity with the Israeli people on October 13, 2023, in Lviv, Ukraine. (Photo by Les Kasyanov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
07
March 2024
Past Event
Aiding America’s Frontline Allies: The View from Israel and Ukraine with Secretary Mike Pompeo

Mike Pompeo will sit down with Michael Doran to discuss how America return to a position of global strength.

The Israeli flag flies in front of the Lviv Regional State Administration building as a sign of solidarity with the Israeli people on October 13, 2023, in Lviv, Ukraine. (Photo by Les Kasyanov/Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images)
Featured Speakers:
Michael R. Pompeo
Michael Doran
Yemenis lift a Palestinian flag and placards depicting Houthi group leader Abdul-Malik Badreddin al-Houthi and Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of Hamas' armed wing, on January 24, 2024, in Sana'a, Yemen. (Photo by Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images)
Caption
Yemenis lift a Palestinian flag and placards depicting Houthi group leader Abdul-Malik Badreddin al-Houthi and Abu Obaida, the spokesperson of Hamas' armed wing, on January 24, 2024, in Sana'a, Yemen. (Photo by Mohammed Hamoud/Getty Images)
michael_doran
michael_doran
Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Senior Fellow (Nonresident)
jonathan_schachter
jonathan_schachter
Senior Fellow, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Commentary
6 Min Read
Armed rebels of the Iran-backed Houthi militia ride a pick-up truck during a demonstration against the USA and Israel amid growing tensions between the USA and the Houthis following the latter's several operations in the Red Sea on January 29, 2024, in Sanaa, Yemen. (Osamah Yahya via Getty Images)
Caption
Armed rebels of the Iran-backed Houthi militia ride a pick-up truck during a demonstration against the United States and Israel on January 29, 2024, in Sanaa, Yemen. (Osamah Yahya via Getty Images)
michael_doran
michael_doran
Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
jonathan_schachter
jonathan_schachter
Senior Fellow, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Senior Fellow (Nonresident)
zineb_riboua
zineb_riboua
Research Fellow and Program Manager, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Commentary
5 Min Read
An Israeli artillery unit moves along the border with the Gaza Strip on January 19, 2024, in southern Israel. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)
Caption
An Israeli artillery unit moves along the border with the Gaza Strip on January 19, 2024, in southern Israel. (Photo by Amir Levy/Getty Images)
michael_doran
michael_doran
Senior Fellow and Director, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Senior Fellow (Nonresident)
jonathan_schachter
jonathan_schachter
Senior Fellow, Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East
Commentary
6 Min Read