Diplomacy
Iran’s hardliners have been mobilizing against a nuclear deal in the run-up to the mid-May negotiations between Iran and six major powers in Vienna. A conference entitled “We’re Worried” – advertised as “the great gathering of critics of a weak deal”—was held at the former U.S. Embassy…
Gary Sick A government negotiating with another government is almost inevitably required to conduct a second negotiation with its own domestic constituents whose own interests will be affected by the outcome. The classic image is the negotiator facing his foreign adversary over one table…
On April 3, the Rand Corporation convened a day-long conference on Iran in the days after a nuclear deal. Participants concluded that that an agreement could herald a new era for Iran and its relationship with the outside world. But experts warned that Tehran would still likely be…
On April 9, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei outlined six red lines on nuclear talks in an address to the Atomic Energy Organization of Iran. The semi-official government website NuclearEnergy.ir pulled out his six points and distributed the graphic below. The following are…
On April 15, President Hassan Rouhani told a crowd in Sistan and Baluchistan province that international sanctions on Iran are already “breaking down” and will shatter in the coming months. Negotiators from Iran and the world’s six major powers — Britain, China, France, Germany, Russia…
The following article was originally published as Viewpoints No. 54 by the Middle East Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.Michael Adler Despite a spiraling crisis in Ukraine and discontent in Israel and Saudi Arabia, the Iranian nuclear talks have…
Iran’s tenuous relationship with the West has been illustrated by the ups and downs in the relationship between Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and E.U. foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton. The two have been the lead negotiators in the new diplomacy to find a peaceful…
On March 20, President Hassan Rouhani expressed optimism for reaching a final nuclear agreement in a televised statement marking Nowruz, the Persian New Year. The following video is subtitled in English.
E.U. foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton arrived in Tehran on March 8 for a two-day visit—the first visit by an E.U. high representative since 2008. The primary aim of the trip was to discuss new opportunities for improving Iran’s relationship with the European Union. Ashton discussed…
A final nuclear deal that satisfies both Iran and the world’s six major powers will require hard compromises on five key issues, according to a brief from the Arms Control Association. “If either side pushes unrealistic requirements on the other side, the chances for a negotiated…