IRAN -- NUCLEAR PROGRAM
Mark Wilson/Getty
May 21, 2012
"How To Avoid a War with Iran"
Op-Ed, Foreign Policy
By Matthew Bunn, Associate Professor of Public Policy; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom and Abbas Maleki, Associate, International Security Program
Observers would be forgiven for dismissing negotiations over Iran's nuclear program as Kabuki theater. Despite years of on-again, off-again efforts, after all, fears of war continue to simmer. Such frustrations are understandable -- but they may not be entirely justified.
May 2012
"Perceptions and Narratives of Security: The Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps and the Iran-Iraq War"
Discussion Paper
By Annie Tracy Samuel, Research Fellow, International Security Program
This paper explores the importance of the Iran-Iraq War for the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) by analyzing how the Guards have used the war to present their positions on Iran's national security.
Summer 2012
Insight and Analysis: Iran
Newsletter Article, Belfer Center Newsletter
A small sampling of Belfer Center perspectives on Iran and the country's nuclear program.
AP Photo
April 30, 2012
"Iran, Netanyahu and the Holocaust"
Op-Ed, Veterans Today
By Arshin Adib-Moghaddam and Abbas Maleki, Associate, International Security Program
"There are Stars of David publicly displayed in Tehran of course, for instance on the walls and signs of the Beheshtieh Jewish cemetery where dozens of holocaust victims are buried. In Tehran today there are 18 synagogues, several kosher butchers, Jewish schools and a Jewish hospital. Comparable conditions exist in other cities with a sizeable Jewish community. The situation for all minorities in Iran is far from perfect, but the Islamic Republic guarantees the political representation of the Jewish community in the Iranian parliament, a political right that is codified in the Iranian constitution."
AP Photo
April 29, 2012
"A Tale of Three Capitals"
Op-Ed, The Jerusalem Post
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"In Israel, although a range of views exists regarding the means of dealing with the nuclear threat, the approach is very narrowly focused; just prevent, or at least significantly delay, an Iranian bomb, even at the expense of other issues in which Israel has vital interests, such as Iran's massive arming of Hezbollah."
AP Photo
April 15, 2012
"The Bitter Truth about Iran"
Op-Ed, The Jerusalem Post
By Chuck Freilich, Senior Fellow, International Security Program
"Some argue that an attack will merely rally the Iranian people around the regime, which is indeed a likely short-term result. There is, however, no reason to presume that this will be the case once the initial fury passes and Iranians truly consider their interests, especially if the international community continues to impose heavy costs. It should be remembered that the regional uprisings began with the demonstrations in Iran in June 2009."
AP Photo
April 13, 2012
"Iran Talks: Why Time is Ripe for Compromise"
Op-Ed, Christian Science Monitor
By Mansour Salsabili, Research Fellow, International Security Program/Project on Managing the Atom
The opportunity for a compromise on nuclear and other regional issues between Iran and the United States has never been so ripe as now, when talks resume between Iran and international negotiators in Istanbul this weekend. The desire for progress on both sides of the table is observable. What can ensure a tangible result?
DOE Photo
April 12, 2012
"Is Suspension the Solution?"
Op-Ed, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
By David Nusbaum, Research Fellow, Project on Managing the Atom/International Security Program
When the United States and North Korea reached agreement on nuclear matters in February, the suspension of uranium enrichment was rightly hailed as one of the arrangement's great successes, but there are no international regulations that define what suspension of nuclear activities entails or how it should be monitored and enforced. The international community needs to be aware of diversion risks during suspension of enrichment and should require the dismantlement and sealing of equipment in sensitive areas as part of suspension agreements.
AP Photo
April 10, 2012
"Cyber War and Peace"
Op-Ed, Today's Zaman
By Joseph S. Nye, Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor
"Cyber war, though only incipient at this stage, is the most dramatic of the potential threats. Major states with elaborate technical and human resources could, in principle, create massive disruption and physical destruction through cyber attacks on military and civilian targets. Responses to cyber war include a form of interstate deterrence through denial and entanglement, offensive capabilities, and designs for rapid network and infrastructure recovery if deterrence fails. At some point, it may be possible to reinforce these steps with certain rudimentary norms and arms control, but the world is at an early stage in this process."
April 2012
"Nuclear Collisions: Discord, Reform & the Nuclear Nonproliferation Regime"
Paper
By Steven E. Miller, Director, International Security Program; Editor-in-Chief, International Security; Co-Principal Investigator, Project on Managing the Atom, Wael Al-Assad, Jayantha Dhanapala, C. Raja Mohan and Ta Minh Tuan
Nearly all of the 190 signatories to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT) agree that the forty-two-year-old treaty is fragile and in need of fundamental reform. But gaining consensus on how to fix the NPT will require reconciling the sharply differing views of nuclear weapon states and non-nuclear weapon states. Strengthening the international rules is increasingly important as dozens of countries, including some with unstable political environments, explore nuclear energy. The result is an ever-increasing distribution of this technology. In this paper, Steven E. Miller outlines the main points of contention within the NPT regime and identifies the issues that have made reform so difficult.
