CIA’s Mike Pompeo on Iran

On July 20, Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo said that Iran’s implementation of the nuclear deal has been “grudging” and “minimalist.” At the Aspen Security Forum (an annual gathering of government officials, industry experts and journalists), he argued that the nuclear deal has not fostered stability in the region or led Iran to “become a reentrant to the Western world.” Pompeo said that Iran has been using proxy forces to expand its influence in the region and become the kingpin. The following are excerpted remarks on Iran.

Poll: Iranians on Rouhani, Domestic Issues

Majorities of Iranians think President Hassan Rouhani has been successful in improving foreign relations and getting sanctions removed. But the president, reelected in May, has a mixed record on domestic issues, according to a new study by the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM) and IranPoll. Half of respondents said they thought economic conditions were getting worse as of June. Only 35 percent of Iranians said Rouhani was successful in reducing unemployment.

Poll: Iranians on Nuclear Deal, Foreign Policy

Iranian approval of the nuclear deal increased during the May 2017 presidential election. “Two in three Iranians approve of the agreement, while about a third oppose it,” according to a new study by the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland (CISSM) and IranPoll. But most Iranians do not believe the United States will live up to its obligations under the agreement.

Iranians Charged in Hacking of US Company

On July 17, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that two Iranian nationals were charged in the hacking of a Vermont company best known for software for aerodynamics analysis and projectile design. Mohammed Reza Rezakhah, 39, stole or unlawfully cracked pieces of valuable software and then Mohammed Saeed Ajily, 35, sold the software to Iranian entities, including universities and military and government entities. The following is the Department of Justice press release with a link to the superseding indictment.