Silencing Khatami?

by Tehran Correspondent The judicial order of a media blackout on Mohammad Khatami and the reaction of Iranian social media users have once again highlighted the former president’s political importance. As the potentially pivotal 2016 parliamentary elections draw near, the pressure… Continue Reading

Iran Debates Direct Talks with the US

As the Iranian leadership prepares to engage in negotiations with the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council plus Germany (P5+1), the conversation inside Iran has moved beyond the nuclear issue to include a debate about the utility… Continue Reading

Despite 2009 “Surge” Taliban Remains Force to be Reckoned with in Afghanistan

Foreign Policy’s Stephen Walt highlights a chart by Belfer Center fellow Matt Waldman showing that as the US-led 2009 “Surge” in Afghanistan proceeded, US casualties increased. The pace in 2012 is also roughly similar to the toll from the previous two years: Equally important,… Continue Reading

Will Disgraced Pres. Ahmadinejad Impede Diplomatic Window of Opportunity with Iran?

US-Iran relations expert Trita Parsi explains why diplomatic headway can be made with Iran in the time period after the US presidential election and before the Iranian election in the Daily Beast’s “Open Zion“: Between November 8, 2012, and mid-March… Continue Reading