• Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
Carnegie Global logoCarnegie lettermark logo
DemocracyIran
  • Donate
{
  "authors": [
    "Jarrett Blanc"
  ],
  "type": "legacyinthemedia",
  "centerAffiliationAll": "dc",
  "centers": [
    "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
    "Malcolm H. Kerr Carnegie Middle East Center"
  ],
  "collections": [
    "Iranian Proliferation"
  ],
  "englishNewsletterAll": "americanStatecraft",
  "nonEnglishNewsletterAll": "",
  "primaryCenter": "Carnegie Endowment for International Peace",
  "programAffiliation": "ASP",
  "programs": [
    "American Statecraft"
  ],
  "projects": [],
  "regions": [
    "North America",
    "United States",
    "Middle East",
    "Iran"
  ],
  "topics": [
    "Political Reform",
    "Security",
    "Foreign Policy",
    "Nuclear Policy"
  ]
}

Source: Getty

In The Media

What Trump Really Just Told the Iranians: He’s Out of Ideas.

The messages Trump is sending make negotiations with Tehran less and less likely and increase the chance of another ruinous war of choice in the Middle East.

Link Copied
By Jarrett Blanc
Published on Jun 27, 2019
Program mobile hero image

Program

American Statecraft

The American Statecraft Program develops and advances ideas for a more disciplined U.S. foreign policy aligned with American values and cognizant of the limits of American power in a more competitive world.

Learn More

Source: Politico

The Trump administration’s announcement this week of plans to impose new sanctions targeting Iranian leaders and organizations—including the Supreme Leader and his office, military commanders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and Foreign Minister Javad Zarif—will have little practical effect, according to sanctions experts. Senior Iranian officials and their organizations are very unlikely to use international financial institutions or hold substantial assets abroad, and those are the major pathways through which the United States exerts coercive economic pressure. In other words, the new sanctions are more symbolic than effective.

This is not a bad thing. Symbolism is useful in international affairs, especially between adversarial countries like Iran and the United States, which lack formal diplomatic relations and need to find other ways to communicate. Intermediaries can be one option, symbolic measures another.

The problem with these new sanctions is not that they are symbolic, but that the messages they convey to Iran and the rest of the world are foolish and dangerous, and will fail to advance U.S. interests.

Here are three messages the Trump administration sent to Iran this week...

Read Full Text

This piece was originally published in Politico.

About the Author

Jarrett Blanc

Former Senior Fellow, Geoeconomics and Strategy Program

Jarrett Blanc was a senior fellow in the Geoeconomics and Strategy Program at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

    Recent Work

  • Research
    Conflict Zones in the Time of Coronavirus: War and War by Other Means
      • +10

      Jarrett Blanc, Thomas de Waal, Karim Sadjadpour, …

  • Commentary
    The Best Books of 2020, as Chosen by Carnegie Scholars
      • +3

      Dan Baer, Rosa Balfour, Jarrett Blanc, …

Jarrett Blanc
Former Senior Fellow, Geoeconomics and Strategy Program
Jarrett Blanc
Political ReformSecurityForeign PolicyNuclear PolicyNorth AmericaUnited StatesMiddle EastIran

Carnegie does not take institutional positions on public policy issues; the views represented herein are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of Carnegie, its staff, or its trustees.

More Work from Carnegie Endowment for International Peace

  • Photo of refugee tents in Gaza housing displaced Palestinians.
    Article
    The Board of Peace Plan for Gaza

    The Trump-led board has laid out blueprints for “voluntary emigration” and land confiscation.

      • Zaha Hassan

      Zaha Hassan

  • Article
    Imagining Ukraine’s Political System After the War

    Even if the terms of a ceasefire or peace settlement are satisfactory to most Ukrainians, the country’s democracy will face its fair share of challenges.

      Petro Burkovskyi, Olexiy Haran

  • Paper
    Assessing Information Ecosystems: How Governments Can Get Ahead of Hybrid Threats

    The hybrid warfare landscape is evolving rapidly, leaving policymakers without clear strategies. To better inform their work in addressing emerging challenges, governments must dig deeper into the underlying dynamics at play.

      Raluca Csernatoni, Alicia Wanless

  • Two women walking in front of thick black smoke
    Commentary
    In the War with Iran, Targeting Energy Infrastructure Has Outsized Impact on Civilians

    Acknowledging these harms strengthens the case for ethical limits on the weaponization of critical infrastructure.

      • Andrew Leber

      Alia Sajjadian, Andrew Leber

  • Photo of Donald Trump and Felix Tshisekedi shaking hands in front of a blue banner.
    Article
    Will the U.S.-DRC Strategic Partnership Agreement Endanger U.S. Interests in the DRC?

    President Tshisekedi is implicating Washington in his pursuit of a third term. Staying silent may prove detrimental to the United States in the long run.

      Christian-Géraud Neema

Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
Carnegie global logo, stacked
1779 Massachusetts Avenue NWWashington, DC, 20036-2103Phone: 202 483 7600
  • Research
  • Emissary
  • About
  • Experts
  • Donate
  • Programs
  • Events
  • Blogs
  • Podcasts
  • Contact
  • Annual Reports
  • Careers
  • Privacy
  • For Media
  • Government Resources
Get more news and analysis from
Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
© 2026 Carnegie Endowment for International Peace. All rights reserved.