Amin Saikal, AM, FSSA is Professor Emeritus at the Australian National University (ANU) and Founder and Former Director of the ANU’s Centre for Arab and Islamic Studies (CAIS). His recent books include How to Lose a War: The Story of America’s Intervention in Afghanistan (2024), Iran Rising (2021). Professor Saikal has previously held visiting positions at Princeton University, Cambridge University, the University of Sussex, Indiana University and the Rockefeller Foundation. He is a frequent commentator in international news media, including The Guardian, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and The International Herald Tribune.