This Week in Iran News — September 13-20

by Shawn Amoei Foreign Affairs Addressing an annual gathering of IRGC officials, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei spoke of the necessity for “heroic flexibility” in diplomacy. President Hassan Rouhani welcomed a Russian proposal aimed at eliminating Syria’s nuclear weapons. Rouhani spoke… Continue Reading

Syria: With Russia in the Lead, Vigilance Required

by Wayne White The main objective of the Russian chemical weapons (CW) initiative this week was to steer the US away from military action in Syria that might weaken the regime of Bashar al-Assad. Although Moscow also is concerned about… Continue Reading

Syria Debate Throws Pro-Israel Groups For A Loss

by Mitchell Plitnick Syria’s declaration that it would accept a Russian proposal to hand over its chemical weapons to an international body was the latest in a string of surprises around international concern over the ongoing, horrific civil war in… Continue Reading

The Kerry Syria Gaffe that Wasn’t?

by Jasmin Ramsey *This post has been updated Yesterday we charted the way Secretary of State John Kerry’s seemingly off-handed answer to a question about how Syria could deter a US strike morphed into what’s now being referred to as… Continue Reading

The Lavrov Proposal: What Are Moscow’s Motives?

by Mark N. Katz Why has Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov made his dramatic proposal for the Syrian government to not only put its chemical weapons under international control, but also destroy them? There are two possibilities. This could be… Continue Reading