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Source: Getty

In The Media

Iran Nuclear Deal: A Moment for Cautious Optimism

While the Iran nuclear deal offers a potential nuclear détente, the United States and Iran are not on the verge of a rapprochement just yet.

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By Karim Sadjadpour
Published on Nov 25, 2013
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The Middle East Program in Washington combines in-depth regional knowledge with incisive comparative analysis to provide deeply informed recommendations. With expertise in the Gulf, North Africa, Iran, and Israel/Palestine, we examine crosscutting themes of political, economic, and social change in both English and Arabic.

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Source: CNN

The Iran nuclear deal is not a moment for euphoria but a moment for cautious optimism, said Carnegie’s Karim Sadjapour on CNN. While the deal provides minor sanctions relief and unfreezes about 10 billion dollars’ worth of Iranian assets, the reality is that if six months from now Iran decides to renege on some of the agreements, the sanctions will remain intact. “If it took marathon diplomacy to reach only an interim deal, to reach a final resolution to this conflict, it’s going to resemble an ultra-marathon through mine fields,” Sadjapour explained. “It’s going to be very difficult to reach a final resolution.”

“We have to have realistic expectations about what this deal is. The United States and Iran are not going to be allies tomorrow. The United States, Saudi Arabia, and Israel are going to remain allies,” Sadjapour noted. “This is very much potential nuclear détente. We are not on the verge of a U.S.-Iran rapprochement.”

This interview originally aired on CNN in two parts.

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.

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Karim Sadjadpour
Senior Fellow, Middle East Program
Karim Sadjadpour
Nuclear PolicyForeign PolicyUnited 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.

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