by Jasmin Ramsey
Columbia University Professor Gary Sick, who served as an Iran specialist on the National Security Council staffs of Presidents Ford, Carter and Reagan, examines US Persian Gulf Policy in Obama’s Second Term in the next issue of Aspenia, the Aspen Istitute Italia’s highly regarded journal on international affairs. Dr. Sick’s entire article is available on his
via Lobe Log
by Peter Jenkins
I was in Berlin on Monday when Iran’s Foreign Minister, MIT-educated Ali Akbar Salehi, spoke to a large audience at the premises of the German Association for Foreign Policy (DGAP). I heard Minister Salehi repeat what he had said the previous day in Munich — that Iran is [...]
The end of the Nonaligned Movement (NAM) summit in Tehran has been an occasion for pundits on all sides to engage in post-game spin. In Iran, the spin began right in the middle of the summit when Iranian television mistranslated — read lied about — Egyptian President Mohamed Morsi’s words to present his position on [...]
via Lobe Log
Najmedin Meshkati and Guive Mirfendereski argue in the Los Angeles Times that sanctions against Iran have been ineffective at substantially curbing its alleged nuclear ambitions:
Policies of restriction or containment through sanctions and economic mechanisms do not work. In a porous world, sanctions are largely ineffective. Sanctions didn’t change [...]
via Lobe Log
To anyone trying to guess where this year’s re-engagement of Iran by the Obama administration is likely to lead, two things look clearer in the aftermath of the 18-19 June talks in Moscow.
First, the administration appears to have thought better of the idea of tolerating uranium enrichment, even at [...]
Thomas R. Pickering, with his long and distinguished career in the U.S. diplomatic service, has emerged as a brave and reputable advocate for real diplomacy with Iran. While the idea of a U.S.-waged military conflict is generally considered a high-cost and low-benefit scenario (though war drums can still be heard), the notion [...]
As noted by Ali on the ThinkProgress blog today, the outgoing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Michael Mullen, appealed yet again for Washington to engage Iran through any channel available in hopes that the two countries will avoid dangerous miscalculations in their relationship. Speaking at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace [...]
I was struck by an article by Nathan Guttman in the legendary Jewish Daily Forward about Dennis Ross and George Mitchell jockeying for the position of Obama Administration’s point-person in the Middle East peace process. The whole thing is a fascinating read, but this line really jumped out at me:
Others have [...]
We’ve already covered the announcement of new sanctions against Iran ahead of upcoming talks in Istanbul, but recent reports have provided a troubling broad and detailed picture that suggests the U.S. dual-track approach — pressure and engagement — might be going off the rails.
Here’s the Wall Street Journal’s Jay Solomon on Tuesday, [...]
For the moment, set aside the actual prospects for a negotiated deal that would end the West’s standoff with Iran over its nuclear program. Such a deal, no matter its contours, will almost certainly face opposition from Capitol Hill. Look no further than the bipartisan (tri-partisan?) letter signed by six Senators demanding a negotiated [...]
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