The Politics of Participation in Iran

by Shervin Malekzadeh Millions of Iranians will gather in the coming days to watch their country take on the world in something other than politics. Against the odds, against Argentina, and after a long, eight-year absence, Iran’s participation in the World Cup… Continue Reading

Why Iran’s June Election Will be Different

Traditionally, a few months before a presidential election in Iran, the government opens the public sphere, giving more freedom to the press, more space for activists to speak out and even loosening social restrictions like the one on women’s clothing… Continue Reading

Is Time on Iran’s Side?

by Djavad Salehi-Isfahani The latest round of talks between the P5+1 (the US, Russia, China, Britain, France, and Germany) and Iran in Kazakhstan concluded on Saturday without any tangible progress. While details of the reciprocal offers remain unclear, what we… Continue Reading

On Our “Now What?” Moment

by Farideh Farhi From the looks of it, the second round of talks with Iran in Almaty, Kazakhstan was a complete failure, with both sides unable to even find a common language to begin a process of give and take.… Continue Reading

Tehran Mulls Almaty II Amid Hopes for More Give and Take

by Farideh Farhi via IPS News The meeting between Iran and the so-called P5+1 (five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council plus Germany) that took place in late February in Almaty, Kazakhstan was described as positive and even a… Continue Reading