Iran

Iran

The US-Iranian relationship has experienced significant challenges over the past forty years. The lack of diplomatic relations, changes in both the US and Iranian administrations, repeated US military interventions in the region as well as Iran’s support for militant groups and increasingly harsh rhetoric on both sides have further undermined chances for reconciliation. Through a balanced approach of engagement and containment, there is a need to push back against Iranian intervention while promoting US interests, regional conflict resolution, and the well-being of the Iranian people.

Featured commentary & analysis

اختلاف های ایران و افغانستان بر سر آب هیرمند، تهدیدی برای هر دو کشور

MENASource
May 14, 2026

Five ways the Iran war will forever alter the Middle East

By
Amir Asmar

Expect the war to weaken the Iranian regime, keep the US in the Middle East, harm Israel’s standing in the region, and more.

Conflict
Iran

اختلاف های ایران و افغانستان بر سر آب هیرمند، تهدیدی برای هر دو کشور

MENASource
Apr 1, 2026

The US should rethink Iran as a Southwest Asia challenge

By
Mike Schoengold Beatty

Conventional instinct to treat Iran as another Iraq or Yemen risks misallocating resources and missing the real challenges ahead.

Iran
Security & Defense

اختلاف های ایران و افغانستان بر سر آب هیرمند، تهدیدی برای هر دو کشور

MENASource
Mar 23, 2026

The Iran conflict exposes the new cost curve of war

By
Nic Adams

The Pentagon must rapidly field innovative, lower-cost technologies alongside its exquisite capabilities, ensuring each is used where it delivers the greatest advantage.

Conflict
Defense Industry

Programs

Iran Strategy Project

The Iran Strategy Project is designed to synchronize and bring together the Atlantic Council’s policy and analytical efforts on Iran under a single banner, reflecting the unprecedented level of discord and uncertainty in Iran.

Learn more about the Middle East programs

Middle East Programs

Working with our allies and partners in Europe and the wider Middle East to protect US interests, build peace and security, and unlock the human potential of the region.

EXPLORE THE ATLANTIC COUNCIL’S MIDDLE EAST PROGRAMS

Content

IranSource

Mar 17, 2016

اختلاف های ایران و افغانستان بر سر آب هیرمند، تهدیدی برای هر دو کشور

By Fatemeh Aman

نصیر احمد نور، سفیر افغانستان در ایران، اخیرا به خبرگزاری ایرنا گفت کشورش به قرارداد تقسیم آب هیرمند میان ایران و افغانستان متعهد است. اما با وجود اظهارات مشابه، اختلاف نظرها بر سر موضوعی که باعث ایجاد یک فاجعه زیست محیطی در جنوب غربی افغانستان و جنوب شرقی ایران شده، ادامه دارد.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Mar 15, 2016

Low Oil Prices: Good News at the Pump, Bad News for the Environment?

By Ashish Kumar Sen

Interview with Ken Koyama, Chief Economist and Managing Director at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan Low oil prices not only threaten stability in oil-producing states, they can also diminish efforts to develop and embrace clean energy, according to Ken Koyama, Chief Economist and Managing Director at the Institute of Energy Economics, Japan. “It may […]

Climate Change & Climate Action Energy & Environment

In the News

Mar 10, 2016

Cohen Joins Georgian TV Channel One to Discuss Georgian Plans to Purchase More Natural Gas From Gazprom and Iran

By Ariel Cohen

Iran Russia

In the News

Mar 10, 2016

Slavin in Al-Monitor: UN Report: Iran Executes Nearly 1,000 people in 2015

By Barbara Slavin

Read the full article here.

Iran

IranSource

Mar 9, 2016

Iran Will Keep Improving and Testing Ballistic Missiles

By Pierre Goldschmidt

Iran’s announcement March 8 that the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) test-fired several ballistic missiles should not come as a surprise to anyone. The Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) concluded last year does not bar such tests. UN Security Council Resolution 2231, adopted on July 20, 2015, codified the JCPOA and superseded previous resolutions on […]

Iran

In the News

Mar 9, 2016

Slavin in Al Monitor: What’s Behind IAEA’s Change in Reporting?

By Barbara Slavin

Read the full article here.

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

IranSource

Mar 7, 2016

آرایش نوین مجلس دهم با حضور پررنگ تر زنان

By مهرناز صمیمی

شمار نمایندگان زن مجلس دهم ایران، نزدیک به دو برابر شمار آنها در مجلس نهم خواهد بود. افزایش کرسی های متعلق به زنان، ناظران را به کاهش نابرابری جنسیتی در نظام مردسالار جمهوری اسلامی امیدوار کرده است. تاکنون، نتایج انتخابات مجلس حاکی از راه یافتن ۱۴ نماینده زن به مجلس است، و تحلیلگران تخمین زده […]

Iran

In the News

Mar 1, 2016

Shaffer Quoted by International Business Times on President Rouhani’s Ability to Change Iranian Foreign Policy

By Brenda Shaffer

Read the full article here.

Iran

In the News

Mar 1, 2016

Vakhshouri Quoted by The Washington Diplomat on the Role of Oil Prices in the Iran-Saudi Arabia Relationship

By Sara Vakhshouri

Read the full article here.

Iran Saudi Arabia

IranSource

Feb 29, 2016

Iranians Once Again Make Lemonade from Lemons

By Barbara Slavin

No one would ever mistake an Iranian election for an American one. The idiosyncrasies of this US campaign season aside, there are fundamental differences in the power of elected institutions in Iran, which are subservient to a clerical Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. A body that is largely appointed by Khamenei, the Guardian Council, vets […]

Iran
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Experts

Fellow

Bahar Ghandehari

Junior Policy Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Afghanistan English

Fellow

Michelle S. Giuda

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Freedom and Prosperity Center

Freedom and Prosperity Politics & Diplomacy

Staff

Britt Gronemeyer

Assistant Director, Research & Advocacy, Strategic Litigation Project

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Human Rights International Organizations

Fellow

Nicholas Hopton

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Europe & Eurasia Iran

Fellow

Khosro Sayeh Isfahani

Former Researcher

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Arms Control Civil Society

Fellow

Simin Kargar

Nonresident Fellow

Digital Forensic Research Lab

Cybersecurity Disinformation
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