Iran

Most speculation about the candidates and outcome of Iran’s upcoming presidential election appears premature, and assessments about potential impact on U.S.-Iranian relations seem exaggerated.

This is the first piece in a series by researchers from the Institute for Policy and Strategy at IDC Herzliya.

Friend and foe have been informed that Biden won’t accept what Obama and Trump might have.

As tensions with Iran are expected to ease under the Biden administration, the UAE’s economic ties and legacy relations position it to potentially play a pivotal role in Gulf outreach to Tehran.

The new direction taken by the Biden administration might reopen the doors for the United States and European allies to cooperate to bring more security and stability to the Gulf region.

The economic mismanagement and resistance to change over the past four decades by a succession of regimes has demoralized supporters of conservatives, reformists, and pragmatists alike.

The rise of economic hardships, widespread poverty, and increasing use of violence by the Islamic Republic are major grievances dominating state-citizen relations.

Iran will do as it always has – seek to quietly develop asymmetric capabilities, ideally built domestically, and only purchase the few items that it cannot make hoping to counter key U.S. military capabilities.