By Barbara Slavin Two milestones occurred in U.S. foreign policy Monday that will cement President Barack Obama’s legacy and put the United States back in step with the vast majority of international opinion. At the State Department, the flag of Cuba was quietly inserted between Croatia and the Czech Republic as the U.S. and the […]
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Obama Marks Diplomatic Milestones with Iran, Cuba
Posted July 21st, 2015 at 12:25 pm (UTC-4)
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Jeb Bush Versus Scott Walker: Should the Next President Be Ready to Attack Iran On Day One?
Posted July 20th, 2015 at 4:18 pm (UTC-4)
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Should a new Republican president be prepared to tear up the Iran agreement and maybe act militarily on Inauguration Day 2017, or should he wait a few months until his cabinet’s in place before making any heady decisions? Before you answer, remember that Iran is getting its sanctions relief up front.
CPJ to Iran Judiciary: Intervene in case of Jason Rezaian
Posted July 20th, 2015 at 11:33 am (UTC-4)
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The Committee to Protect Journalists is dedicated to ensuring freedom of the press around the world. Today, our board of directors is writing you to urge immediate intervention in the case of our colleague, Jason Rezaian …
‘Imperfect’ Iran Accord Could Exacerbate Mideast Situation
Posted July 17th, 2015 at 3:01 pm (UTC-4)
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It is essential that people focus just as much on the challenges of the scenario in which Iran complies with the agreement as the scenario in which Iran fails to comply. And I am much more worried about the former. That will pose the greatest strategic challenge.
Iran Deal: Victory for Diplomacy or Sign of Shrinking Influence?
Posted July 16th, 2015 at 11:41 am (UTC-4)
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A day after announcing a historic nuclear deal with Iran, President Obama held an hour-long press conference, primarily to lobby for controversial pact, which Congress must approve. While some are hailing the deal as Obama’s crowning diplomatic achievement, his remarks left others with the impression that US global influence is waning.
Iran Deal an Inflection Point for the Middle East
Posted July 14th, 2015 at 4:08 pm (UTC-4)
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By Barbara Slavin Combing through the fine print of 159 pages, it is easy to see the landmark nuclear agreement reached early Tuesday between Iran and the international community as transactional, not transformational. In return for relief from crushing economic sanctions, Iran has pledged to restrict the most worrisome aspects of its nuclear program for […]
For the U.S., the Choice Between Saudi Arabia and Iran Should be an Easy One
Posted July 14th, 2015 at 2:59 pm (UTC-4)
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The turmoil in the Middle East in recent years has forced many nations to reevaluate their relations with the countries of the region. It is only natural that the U.S. would do so as well. However, and despite their ideological and sometimes political differences, the U.S. and Saudi Arabia have managed to sustain what has been a mutually beneficial relationship.
Deal With Iran: The Reaction
Posted July 14th, 2015 at 12:45 pm (UTC-4)
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The ink was hardly dry on the deal negotiated by the P5+1 and Iran to limit Iran’s nuclear program before critics and supporters weighed in on its merits. Once the agreement makes its way to Congress, it has 60 days to vote up or down on it. If Congress rejects it, President Obama says he will veto that rejection, forcing Congress to come up with a two-thirds majority to override.
Overtime in Vienna
Posted July 10th, 2015 at 1:31 pm (UTC-4)
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Talks between the P5+1 and Iran are now in quadruple overtime. The original deadline of June 30 to reach a comprehensive nuclear weapons deal has been extended for the third time on Friday. The British Foreign Secretary says progress is being made, but “it’s painfully slow.” US Secretary of State John Kerry said “we will not rush and we will not be rushed” into an agreement. With the world hanging on every drop of information, many have taken to reading the tea leaves from Vienna.
Nietzsche and the Nuclear Era
Posted July 8th, 2015 at 3:36 pm (UTC-4)
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The question members of Congress must answer is whether the deal the U.S. and its P5+1 partners have negotiated is more likely to prevent Iran’s acquiring a bomb for the lifetime of the agreement than any feasible alternative.
The Other Reason the Iranians are Edging Toward a Nuclear Deal
Posted July 6th, 2015 at 10:26 am (UTC-4)
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Iran’s fear of ISIS is itself a paradox insofar as Iran helped create the conditions for the group’s rise through its support of both the regimes of Bashar al-Assad in Syria and Nouri al-Maliki in Iraq.
Hold Iran Nuclear Negotiators to Their Word
Posted July 1st, 2015 at 9:35 am (UTC-4)
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Two years ago, the Obama administration set out to achieve a deal that would dismantle key elements of Iran’s nuclear program, freeze uranium enrichment for at least a decade, and beef up international inspections to ensure that Iran is not building a nuclear weapon. That was a deal worth pursuing — and it still is.
Can the U.S. Get a Good Iran Deal?
Posted July 1st, 2015 at 8:25 am (UTC-4)
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The deal is coming, veritably doomed to succeed. And that’s because at day’s end, the real threat Iran poses may flow now more from the country’s behavior in the region than from a nuclear weapon it may or may not ever choose to develop.
End Game for Iran Nuclear Negotiations
Posted June 26th, 2015 at 3:35 pm (UTC-4)
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By Barbara Slavin With the arrival of Secretary of State John Kerry and his Iranian counterpart, Javad Zarif, in Vienna Friday, the climax to nearly two years of intensive negotiations is at hand. Opponents and advocates of a long-term nuclear agreement with Iran are marshaling their best arguments in an effort to influence the talks […]
The Next Iranian Revolution
Posted June 26th, 2015 at 9:23 am (UTC-4)
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While American and Saudi oilmen look warily at the prospect of an Iranian renaissance, plenty of others are all but banking on it. Europe, for example, has spent years trying to wean itself off reliance on Russian natural gas.