The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) establishes what it calls a “procurement channel”: a series of procedures and regulations for monitoring and restricting Iran’s purchase of goods that could be used for the illicit development of nuclear technology. In theory, write David Albright and Andrea Stricker, these procedures allow the U.S. and other concerned parties to stop suspicious purchases before they are completed. In practice, however, the procedures are riddled with complexities and obstructions. What’s more, Albright and Stricker argue, Russia and China have already begun to exploit the deal’s weaknesses:

According to a recent survey, three fourths of the Palestinian residents of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip would like to see national elections, which have not occurred in over a decade. Presumably, then, a majority were pleased to hear that the Palestinian Authority’s president, Mahmoud Abbas, announced on January 15 that elections for the legislature and presidency will take place this summer. But Ghaith al-Omari is skeptical that—given the ongoing rift between Hamas and Fatah—elections will take place, and worries that if they do, they will not have salutary effects.