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Iran Matters

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For Academic Citation:Iran Matters,” https://www.belfercenter.org/publication/iran-matters.

199 posts

Rouhani election rally 2017

Anadolu Agency

Rouhani election rally 2017

Anadolu Agency

Djavad Salehi-Isfahani, visiting scholar at the Belfer Center's Iran Project, sheds light on some of the most important economic topics relevant to the 2017 Iranian presidential election. 

Ebrahim Raisi, the leading conservative presidential candidate, delivers a speech to his supporters at Tehran's Hory Mosque (April 10, 2017)

Tasnim News

Ebrahim Raisi, the leading conservative presidential candidate, delivers a speech to his supporters at Tehran's Hory Mosque (April 10, 2017)

Tasnim News

With the Iranian presidential elections on the horizon, indicators are pointing towards another shift in Iran’s factional alignments. In this blog post for Iran Matters, Iran Project Director Payam Mohseni argues that Iran’s conservative and theocratic forces are overcoming the stark divisions within their power base and gaining significantly more unity and cohesion in their support of Raisi and opposition to Rouhani.

khamenei and rouhani

Khamenei.ir

Rouhani's War

    Author:
  • Arash Pourebrahimi
| May 09, 2017

khamenei and rouhani

Khamenei.ir

Arash Pourebrahimi, former visiting fellow in political economy at Harvard University, writes to Iran Matters on the true war that awaits President Rouhani after the May 19th presidential election: the successorship of the Supreme Leader. Pourebrahimi argues that while Rouhani has a good chance of reelection, he faces a tough battle in gaining the wider institutional support he needs to be influential in deliberations over the Supreme Leader's successor.

Iran Matters

Cracking Down on Iran through Turkey

    Author:
  • Engin Sune
| Apr. 20, 2017

Iran Matters

The case of Halkbank reveals a short-term disjointed relationship between Turkey and Iran. The Turkish government cites Halkbank’s economic success as evidence of a rising Turkey. Regarding the transfer of 51% of the bank’s share to the newly established Turkish Sovereign Wealth Fund in February 2017, the bank occupies a central role in the domestic and international policies of the Turkish state. For Iran, on the other hand, this relationship was a part of the ongoing strategy of creating alternative mechanisms to bypass the impact of sanctions. Therefore, there was a mutual economic interest for both countries, with Halkbank acting as a facilitator of this exchange. And while economic interest was at the core of the relationship, this cooperation established between Iran and Turkey spilled over into the political sphere in a limited manner. The political relations between Turkey and Iran have continued to fluctuate, stifling any possibility of a meaningful long-term political alliance. A number of recent regional and domestic developments have set further constrains on the emergence of a Turkey-Iran partnership.

Rouhani

Russia President

Rouhani

Russia President

A key foreign affairs issue for the Trump administration will be its policy on Iran, as was the case also for the Obama administration. But we have no idea what approach it will take, an uncertainty amplified by the fact that Trump has no experience whatsoever in foreign policy, and no idea whose input he will accept in shaping it. It’s not as if we have no information about his attitude – during the election campaign, Trump made his intention on Iran very clear – but, as with other topics, it is unclear how he will act when once he is forced to translate his intentions into action and realizes that reality is far more complicated than he imagined.

Ali Khamenei Military Parade

Khamenei.ir

Ali Khamenei Military Parade

Khamenei.ir

Aaron Arnold, Associate with the Project on Managing the Atom, analyzes whether or not Iran has made sufficient progress with regards to financial reform in order to see restrictions on banking lifted. He notes that while the Financial Action Task Force did not call for members to exercise countermeasures when dealing with Iranian financial institutions, he questions whether or not Iran has made moves towards to financial reform, and notes that it has not undertaken the mutual analysis efforts that other nations with financial concerns, such as Pakistan, have undertaken for more positive assessments from the FATF.

iran central bank

Flickr

iran central bank

Flickr

Aaron Arnold, Associate of the Project on Managing the Atom at the Belfer Center, writes in The Diplomat that a key threat to the ongoing implementation of the Iran nuclear deal is the risky nature of the Iranian financial sector. While Iran is banking on receiving greater foreign investment, continued problems with the Iranian financial sector, including lack of sufficient regulatory controls and the potential ties to terrorist financing, have made companies cautious about investing in Iran. He suggests that the United States work with Iran to bring its banking system up to the same standard as the global economy, and to consider closer integration of Iran into the world economy in order to preserve the effects of the nuclear agreement.

Iran Matters

Iran Matters

The heightening of tensions between Riyadh and Tehran has become a significant factor in the regional politics of the Middle East.  While the cold war between Iran and Saudi Arabia is certainly not a new phenomenon, the recent execution of Sheikh Nimr by the Kingdom, the storming of the Saudi Embassy in Iran, and the end to formal diplomatic ties between the two countries signals a more dangerous chapter in the regional conflict. What are the perspectives from Iran and Saudi Arabia on the rising tensions? How do they view each other’s regional intentions and foreign policies? And, what steps can be taken to mitigate the conflict? To answer these questions, the Iran Project, led by Payam Mohseni, has solicited two pieces to provide us with vantage points representing how Iran and Saudi Arabia respectively view each other. Below, we are delighted to highlight HRH Abdulmajeed AlSaud’s article on behalf of the Saudi perspective.