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.

Can the World Live Without Iranian Oil?

Dispatches
Mar 6, 2026

How would a Kurdish offensive change the war in Iran?

By
Atlantic Council experts

Our experts explain the goals of the various Kurdish groups the United States is reportedly backing for an attack against Iran and how their involvement could impact the wider war.

Conflict
Defense Policy

Can the World Live Without Iranian Oil?

Dispatches
Mar 6, 2026

Washington’s limited levers to shape a post-Khamenei Iran

By
Nate Swanson, Ingrid Small

The United States and its allies do have some options to coax change that might result in a more Western-leaning Tehran.

Conflict
Iran

Can the World Live Without Iranian Oil?

MENASource
Mar 3, 2026

Trump wants Iranians to ‘take back their country’ from the regime. Can they?

By
Alan Pino

To succeed in overthrowing the Iranian regime, an uprising would likely require a unifying leader, an effective organization, and the support of whatever remains of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.

Conflict
Democratic Transitions

Programs

Middle East Programs

Working with 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

Event Recap

Dec 5, 2012

Can the World Live Without Iranian Oil?

By Jason Harmala

On December 5, the Atlantic Council’s South Asia Center held a discussion entitled “Can the World Live Without Iranian Oil,” with Sara Vakhshouri, president of SVB Energy International; and Denise Natali, Minerva Chair, Institute of National Strategic Studies, National Defense University.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Nov 26, 2012

VIDEO: Secretary Kerry Addresses the Key Points of the Iran Deal

By US Dept of State

Iran

New Atlanticist

Nov 6, 2012

Israel and US – Divergent Views Over Iran’s Nuclear Threat

By Jonathan Paris

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told the United Nations in September 2012 that Iran is between six and eight months away from having sufficient enriched uranium to make a bomb.

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

New Atlanticist

Nov 5, 2012

Anatomy of a Deal with Iran

By Rajan Menon

The on-again, off-again musings about a deal between Washington and Tehran are on again. A deal might reconcile the most important demands of each side: Iran’s insistence that it has a legal right to an independent fuel cycle for what it insists is a nonmilitary nuclear program and the declaration of the United States that […]

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

New Atlanticist

Oct 29, 2012

What the Cuban Missile Crisis Teaches Us About Iran

By Frederick Kempe

Bob Schieffer of CBS News struck the right note when he opened this week’s presidential debate on foreign policy by reminding viewers it was “the 50th anniversary of the night that President Kennedy told the world that the Soviet Union had installed nuclear missiles in Cuba, perhaps the closest we’ve ever come to nuclear war.” […]

Cuba Iran

Event Recap

Oct 12, 2012

The Human Cost of Military Strikes Against Iran’s Nuclear Facilities

By Jason Harmala

On October 12, the Atlantic Council’s Iran Task Force and the Middle East Program of the Woodrow Wilson Center hosted a discussion about the consequences for the Iranian people of threatened attacks on Iran’s nuclear installations.

Iran

New Atlanticist

Oct 4, 2012

Iran Sanctions Unprecedented and Crippling; But Are They Effective?

By Ronak Desai

In a move that will further tighten the web of sanctions currently in place against Iran, the Obama administration has designated the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) “an agent or affiliate” of Iran’s notorious Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Treasury Department’s designation potentially exposes foreign institutions conducting business with the NIOC and its subsidiaries to […]

Iran

New Atlanticist

Oct 1, 2012

The US Needs to Discuss Implications of Iran War

By Fallon Hagel Hamilton Pickering and Zinni

War with Iran is not inevitable, but U.S. national security would be seriously threatened by a nuclear-armed Iran. Particularly given the recent speeches at the U.N. General Assembly, military action is being discussed intensely. Public discussion of military action, however, is often reduced to rhetoric and partisan politics. We propose a nonpartisan, reasoned debate about […]

Iran National Security

New Atlanticist

Sep 25, 2012

Bipartisan Insanity on the Iran Question

By James Joyner

In the midst of a boilerplate speech to the UN General Assembly on the virtues of democracy and freedom, President Obama tossed in some rhetoric on Iran that’s either empty or dangerous. Neither option is a good one.

Iran Nuclear Nonproliferation

New Atlanticist

Sep 18, 2012

United States on a Path to Nowhere

By Arnaud de Borchgrave

The round-the-clock killing of U.S. military advisers by Afghan soldiers they are training coupled with some $200 million worth of jet fighters and attack helicopters destroyed in a heavily fortified allied base in Afghanistan by Taliban guerrillas disguised in U.S. military uniforms are the latest reminders that 11 years of fighting have strengthened rather than […]

Iran
Load More

Experts

Fellow

Yesar Al-Maleki

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Iraq Initiative Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Arabic Geopolitics & Energy Security

Fellow

Carmiel Arbit

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Civil Society Extremism

Fellow

Colin Brooks

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs Scowcroft Middle East Security Initiative

Iran Middle East

Fellow

Hagar Hajjar Chemali

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Economic Statecraft Initiative GeoEconomics Center

Economy & Business Financial Sanctions and Economic Coercion

Fellow

Danny Citrinowicz  

Nonresident Fellow

Rafik Hariri Center & Middle East programs

Arabic Cybersecurity

Fellow

Ariel Cohen

Nonresident Senior Fellow

Eurasia Center

Central Asia Politics & Diplomacy
Load More

Events

Public Event Mon, April 13, 2026 • 12:30 pm ET

The IEA’s Fatih Birol on global energy market resilience in a moment of crisis

AN AC FRONT PAGE EVENT—Fatih Birol discusses how the International Energy Agency is guiding governments and markets through a complex energy landscape.

Energy & Environment Geopolitics & Energy Security Iran