Podcast
Highlighting the need to develop mutual respect between the U.S. and Iran, Barbara Slavin spoke about the two countries' often contentious relationship in a March 20 Dubai Initiative Seminar. Alluding to themes in her book, Bitter Friends, Bosom Enemies: Iran, the U.S. and the Twisted Path to Confrontation, Slavin spoke on the day after President Obama delivered a video message to the Iranian people and its leadership on the occasion of the Nowruz holiday. She explained how a more isolated Iran increasingly intolerant of poor leadership further highlights the need for a "softer line" of American engagement, which would "deprive the Iranian system of a bogeyman." While pessimistic about the likelihood of reform within Iranian society, Slavin maintained that taking steps towards developing mutual respect between the U.S. and Iran would ease tensions that have been building for decades.