Q&A
Suzanne Maloney, Aaron David Miller, Karim Sadjadpour
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Source: Getty
In The Media
Navigating Through Iran’s Charm Offensive
Though the diplomatic thaw between Iran and the West is a significant step forward, it remains to be seen whether Iran wants a rapprochement with the United States and will fundamentally change its foreign and domestic policy.
Published on Nov 4, 2013
Source: Agenda with Steve Paikin
The diplomatic thaw between Iran and the West is a significant step forward after years of tensions. As Carnegie’s Karim Sadjadpour explains, the question, however, is whether Iran wants a rapprochement with the United States and if Tehran will fundamentally change its foreign and domestic policy. Speaking to the Agenda with Steve Paikin, Sadjadpour argued that Iranian president Hassan Rouhani is a pragmatic politician and the team around him has a much more sophisticated world view than Ahmadinejad’s. They recognize that in order for Iran to fulfill its true potential and improve the state of the domestic economy, it can’t have an adversarial policy towards the outside world.
Sadjadpour explained that one of the fundamental challenges facing the Iranian regime is reconciling their state ideology, which has been based on resistance against America and a rejection of Israel’s existence. He contended that it will be very difficult for the regime to dilute those pillars which have been fundamental sources of identity for the system. Sadjadpour described the likelihood of Iran entirely giving up its nuclear program as slim to none and underlined that the big question is whether there is a middle ground between the U.S. Congress and the Supreme Leader, where Iran would make significant nuclear compromises in exchange for sanctions relief.
About the Author
Karim Sadjadpour
Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Karim Sadjadpour is a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, where he focuses on Iran and U.S. foreign policy toward the Middle East.
- Iran Wanted to Survive the War. Now What?
- What’s Keeping the Iranian Regime in Power—for NowQ&A
Aaron David Miller, Karim Sadjadpour, Robin Wright
Recent Work
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.
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