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Iran

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More than 30 years after Iran's revolution, its political, military, and international activities continue to challenge and perplex its neighbors and many Western democracies. RAND research has informed and influenced U.S. policymakers on a range of topics, from engagement and containment and Tehran's ability to exploit pan-Islamic causes to Iran's ongoing development of nuclear capabilities.

Commentary
Iran: Challenges and Successes in COVID-19 Pandemic Response
Iran has faced an uphill battle since the first cases of COVID-19 were found in the country. Despite limited resources, Iran has also had its share of successes and innovations in combating the virus.
Apr 20, 2022
Report
What Drives Iran's Military Interventions?
Iran has risen as one of the most significant regional challenges faced by the United States. A RAND report identifies key signposts of Iranian military interventions that can be used as early warning indicators for U.S. military planners.
Sep 27, 2021

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Commentary
Before Obama Leaves Office, Here's What He Should Do About Iran
The United States needs to pursue policies designed to preclude regional hegemony and create a balance of power in the Middle East, while also expressing support for human rights and engaging Iran diplomatically.
Jun 17, 2016
Report
Russia, China, and Iran Use Measures Short of War to Further Strategic Ends Against the U.S.
The United States will have to address the problems of foreign intervention and threats short of war if it is to prevent further erosion of its global influence by its competitors. Policymakers and the military services should consider ways to better identify, forestall, and counteract the use of measures short of war against U.S. and allied interests.
May 31, 2016
News Release
Russia, China and Iran Use Measures Short of War to Further Strategic Ends Against the U.S.
The United States will have to address the problems of foreign intervention and threats short of war if it is to prevent further erosion of its global influence by its competitors.
May 31, 2016
News Release
Countering Islamic State Requires a Stronger U.S.-Coalition Strategy
While the campaign against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has degraded the group by targeting its leadership and retaking a portion of territory, achieving lasting defeat of ISIL in Iraq and Syria will be elusive without local forces capable of holding territory.
Apr 20, 2016
Report
Countering ISIL Requires a Stronger U.S.-Coalition Strategy
While the campaign against ISIL has degraded the group by targeting its leadership and retaking a portion of territory, achieving lasting defeat of ISIL in Iraq and Syria will require increased effort by the U.S. to help train local forces to hold territory. Also, political agreements must be forged to resolve key drivers of conflict among Iraqis and Syrians.
Apr 19, 2016
Blog
Impact of Iran Nuclear Deal Discussed at RAND Event
The Iran nuclear deal has been the subject of strong criticism from U.S. presidential candidates, including promises to scrap the agreement in favor of taking a much tougher stance with Iran. But should a president “tear up” the deal on his or her first day in office? What would be the outcome for the United States?
Apr 1, 2016
Multimedia
Where Is Iran Headed?
Ali Nader, author of The Days After a Deal with Iran: Continuity and Change in Iranian Foreign Policy, offers insights into Iranian politics, the effect of sanctions relief on the Iranian economy, and Iran's role in regional conflicts.
Mar 30, 2016
Report
Will the Iran Deal Survive? Iran, Regional Crises, and U.S. Policy
At this daylong conference hosted by the RAND Center for Middle East Public Policy, experts discussed current and future challenges facing the Iran nuclear deal and implications for Iran, the region, and U.S. policy. The panels also addressed a variety of non-nuclear issues.
Mar 24, 2016
Commentary
Time for Washington to Amp Up the Power to Coerce
The U.S. government should start preparing systematically for the use of coercion as it does for military warfare, including analyzing options, assessing requirements and capabilities, conducting war games to refine these capabilities, and planning with allies.
Mar 22, 2016
Commentary
The Iran Deal Is Working: What Now?
U.S. policy will likely continue to balance the tensions between containing and deterring Iran with regional allies, while testing areas where engagement with Iran might either be unavoidable (as in Syria) or desirable (such as in counternarcotics cooperation or efforts to stabilize Afghanistan).
Mar 9, 2016
Report
Countering Adversaries Without Going to War
How can the United States coerce unfriendly states without going to war? The three potentially most cost-effective options are financial sanctions, support for nonviolent political opposition, and offensive cyber operations.
Mar 3, 2016
Blog
After the Iran Nuclear Deal: Challenges and Opportunities
A series of panel discussions at RAND today drew a range of opinions on the Iran nuclear deal and its aftermath, but also general agreement that despite some improvement, the agreement has not halted Iran's provocative behavior in the region.
Mar 3, 2016
Commentary
Rouhani and Khamenei Are Both Winners in Iran's Elections
Iran's recent elections are being heralded as major wins for Iran's long-struggling “moderates.” But the conservative political establishment is also a winner, despite its reported losses in parliament and the Assembly of Experts.
Mar 2, 2016
Commentary
New Era with Iran? Not So Fast
On the whole, ties between the United States and Iran are improving, but to think that a new era in Iran or in U.S.-Iran relations has arrived is a stretch. The U.S. has achieved an important diplomatic breakthrough with Iran, but it still faces the same regime it has since 1979.
Feb 23, 2016
Announcement
Australian Foreign Minister and International Policy Experts Discuss Middle East Challenges During Meeting at RAND
The RAND Corporation and the United States Studies Centre at the University of Sydney convened a distinguished group of Australian and American experts to discuss the challenges ahead in Middle East policy for both countries.
Jan 29, 2016
Commentary
Iran, Terrorism, and Nonproliferation After the Nuclear Deal
As Iran re-enters global markets, the Obama administration needs a strategy that accounts for the nuclear deal's potentially adverse implications for U.S. counterterrorism policy as well as its advantages for nonproliferation policy.
Jan 28, 2016
Commentary
Saudi-Iranian Tensions
The U.S.-Iran nuclear accord has induced a sense of abandonment in Riyadh. The Saudis may fear that Washington might one day replace its alliance with Saudi Arabia with a new partnership with Iran; or perhaps more realistically, that it might come to depend less on Riyadh given improving ties with Iran.
Jan 22, 2016
Commentary
Iran Nuclear Deal Is Working, but Challenges Persist
The nuclear agreement with Iran made sanctions relief contingent on Iran's first having verifiably undertaken steps to dismantle its nuclear program. It has completed these tasks, and it is now the United States' turn to implement its obligations under the deal.
Jan 19, 2016
Commentary
Iran: A Rising Cyber Power?
Iran is a country with revisionist tendencies that has accumulated enemies. This has impelled it to develop techniques to keep them at bay. Cyber, in some circumstances, is a particularly cost-effective way of doing so.
Dec 16, 2015
Testimony
The Impact of Sanctions Relief on Iran
The Iran nuclear deal will provide Iran with significant sanctions relief and ease some of its economic stresses. But several factors will limit the regime's ability to grow the economy and use the new resources to achieve its foreign policy objectives.
Nov 5, 2015

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RAND Topic:
Iran

Topic Synonyms:
Islamic Republic of Iran

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Dalia Dassa Kaye

Adjunct Political Scientist

Dalia Dassa Kaye is an adjunct political scientist at the RAND Corporation. She is also a senior fellow at UCLA's Burkle Center for International Relations. In 2020–2021 she was a visiting scholar at the Wilson Center. She served as the director of RAND’s Center for Middle East Public Policy…
Sunny D. Bhatt

Policy Analyst

Sunny D. Bhatt is a policy analyst based in the Washington, DC office of the RAND Corporation. His research experience includes qualitative analysis and policy research for the National Security Research Division, through the Cyber and Intelligence Policy Center and the International Security…

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