The United States and China seem to have reached an agreement with regard to the exchange rate between their two currencies. The agreement is that the U.S. government will stop yelling about it, and China will do whatever it wants to do, which will probably include some modest rise in the renminbi some time in […]
Geography Archives: Iran
Iran: Sanctions Will Fail — Then What?
Listen to the Interview: Flynt Leverett: I think that the Nuclear Posture Review that came out earlier this week needs to be seen as a very imperfect and, in some important respects, very badly flawed product of an effort which originally had, I think, a very positive intention, namely, an intention on the part […]
China Is Not on Board for Serious Sanctions against Iran
In the midst of its Nuclear Security Summit and in the wake of President Obama’s bilateral meeting with China’s President Hu yesterday, the Obama Administration is vigorously spinning the U.S. and Western media that it has won Chinese support for new sanctions against the Islamic Republic over its nuclear activities. To say the least, this […]
The Islamic Republic and the World: Two Reviews
Maryam Panah. The Islamic Republic and the World: Global Dimensions of the Iranian Revolution. Pluto Press, 2007. 232 pp. ISBN: 978-0-7453-2622-1, ISBN10: 0-7453-2622-6. Review of The Islamic Republic and the World Maryam Panah offers a refreshingly different and powerful account of the causes and consequences of the Iranian Revolution. Drawing on recent developments within […]
Iran Reacts to Becoming a U.S. Nuclear Target
As we noted last week, the Obama Administration’s Nuclear Posture Review, issued last Monday, included a provision asserting a U.S. prerogative to use nuclear weapons against non-nuclear-weapons states that Washington deems not be in compliance with the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT). Following the release of the Nuclear Posture Review last week, both President Obama and […]
Russia’s Limits on Iran Sanctions
Obama Administration officials have been touting for some time that they have Russia “on board” for a new United Nations Security Council resolution imposing sanctions against Iran over the nuclear issue. We, of course, have been arguing for months that, while Russia would probably end up supporting a new sanctions resolution, Moscow would not support […]
In Paris, the Turkish Prime Minister Holds Fast to His Positions on Iran and Israel
Turkey has its own vision on the issues of international security. On Iran, the Middle East, and nuclear proliferation, it has made itself the voice of the Muslim opinion which sees Israel as the chief troublemaker. A member of the NATO and candidate for the European Union, led since 2002 by the “moderate Islamists” […]
Kyrgyzstan: End of the “Tulip Revolution”
The “Cedar Revolution” of Lebanon and the “Orange Revolution” of Ukraine were democratically brought to an end. A “Green Revolution” in Iran that Washington hoped for has turned out to be just a figment of its geopolitical fantasy. And now there goes another color revolution. It is clear that the political revolution in Kyrgyzstan caught […]
Our Summer in Tehran
(Phone Message) “Hey, Justine, I just wanted to say, ‘Come back safely.’” May 16, 2007. Tomorrow morning, my son and I leave for Iran. (Phone Message) “Hi, Justine, I want you to be careful and maybe not mention to people that you’re Jewish.” (In-flight Announcement) “. . . We do ask you to respect […]
Getting the Iran-Palestine Connection Wrong
In his column, the Washington Post‘s David Ignatius presents an important piece of reporting about the Obama Administration’s approach to Iran and the Palestinian issue. David opens his column by citing “two top administration officials” as telling him that President Obama is seriously considering putting forward an American plan for a two-state solution to the […]
On Nuclear Weapons: A Feminist Perspective
EXCERPT: Introduction This document was created by the community of Isha L’Isha—Haifa Feminist Center. It began as a process of examination and re-conceptualization of the term “security” as we, feminist women in Israel, experience it. Over the past five years, Isha L’Isha has been discussing and dealing with issues related to women, peace and […]
Is Iran Now a Nuclear Target for the United States?
Today — Tuesday, April 6, 2010 — the Obama Administration will proclaim, as a matter of declaratory policy, that the United States claims the prerogative to use nuclear weapons against the Islamic Republic of Iran, even as Iran remains a non-nuclear-weapons state. The Administration will make this declaration as part of its much anticipated Nuclear […]
“Israeli Nation” vs. “Jewish State”
A group of Jews and Arabs are fighting in the Israeli courts to be recognized as “Israelis,” a nationality currently denied them, in a case that officials fear may threaten the country’s self-declared status as a Jewish state. Israel refused to recognize an Israeli nationality at the country’s establishment in 1948, making an unusual distinction […]
Lies, Damn Lies, and Forbes: What the Turkish President Didn’t Say about Iran
Author’s note: This is a response to Claudia Rosett’s “Turkey Tilts toward Iran,” published on 26 March 2010 by Forbes.com. Forbes columnist Claudia Rosett — who just so happens to be “a journalist-in-residence” with the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a neo-conservative think tank — feigns her regret for having to report a “disturbing talk” […]
Greater Equity through Redistribution: What Can the Targeting of Subsidies Do in Iran?
The Fifth Five-Year Plan of the Islamic Republic of Iran (1389-93, 2010-14), still under review by the parliament, has a clear goal for reducing inequality in five years — a Gini index of 0.35 for income. This is a substantial reduction from the high level of inequality that has plagued Iran in recent years. The […]
The United States, Iran, and the Middle East’s New “Cold War”
The absence of US-Iranian rapprochement will perpetuate the new Middle Eastern Cold War, imposing costs on the United States, Iran and other regional and international players. However, in strategic terms, the heaviest costs of continued US-Iranian estrangement are likely to be borne by the United States. In particular, lack of productive relations with Tehran will […]
The Afghanistan Paradox: Evaluating Prospects for a New Antiwar Movement
The antiwar movement is all but dead and buried. Turnout at the March 20th, 7th year anniversary of the Iraq invasion in Washington D.C. was pitiful, estimated at approximately ten thousand. To make matters worse, approval of the war in Afghanistan has not fallen, but slightly increased in the last few months as U.S. marines […]
Israel: The Global Pacification Industry
Jeff Halper: We’re one of the leading — I would say, modestly — peace and human rights organizations in Israel. We started about thirteen years ago. I’ve been involved for forty years in the Israeli peace movement. During the Oslo peace process, during the 90s, the Israeli peace movement also, like other Israelis, invested […]
Estimating the Value of Iran’s Subsidies
Estimates of Iran’s subsidies vary widely. The figure that I see most often quoted is $100 billion per year, which is a huge sum considering the fact that Iran’s GDP is less than $400 billion. I have used a figure of $50 billion in a previous post, which maybe an underestimate. My back-of-the-envelope calculations below […]
Iran-US Standoff
“What is it that they have against Iran? If you look at it, it’s only that Iran is rising as a competitor of Israel. There is no other basis for this animosity.” — Aijaz Ahmad Aijaz Ahmad: The US is running out of all options. You mentioned this possible agreement. Iran has actually agreed […]
