If the Islamic Revolution still means anything, Tehran betrays it by supporting Syria’s Assad regime.
Supporting Assad Shreds Iran’s Credibility With Radical Islam
read more
Iran
My Day With a Real Thrill Kill Cult: the MEK
The Mujahideen-e Khalq’s Paris-based leadership is reluctantly cooperating with a U.N. plan to resettle its endangered members in an Iraq refugee camp.
Cyber War: Reality or Hype?
During his confirmation hearings this past June, U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta warned the Senate, “The next Pearl Harbor we confront could very well be a cyber attack that cripples our grid, our security systems, our financial systems, our governmental systems.” The use of Pearl Harbor provided powerful imagery: a mighty fleet reduced to smoking ruin, an expansionist Asian power at the nation’s doorstep.
The Apocalyptics
They’re like a heavy metal band. Dress them up in black, put some Goth makeup on them, give them a name like The Apocalyptics, and they’d fit right in with the head-banger crowd. After all, it’s mostly doom and gloom with the Republican candidates, particularly when they start in on foreign policy. The lead singer for a while, Michele Bachmann, loved to croon about the world entering its final days. Bass player Rick Perry has rapped about the threat of Islamic terrorists surging up from Mexico. Lead guitarists Mitt Romney and Newt Gingrich have done a duet about going to war with Iran. And in the rhythm section, Rick Santorum, who definitely prefers sticks to carrots, has kept up a steady drumbeat for war with all comers, including China.
When Diplomacy With Iran Was Not Only Legal, But Painless
The Iran Threat Reduction Act’s provision for outlawing diplomacy with Iran could explode in our faces in the event of incident in the Persian Gulf.
The Only “Existential Threat” to Israel Is Its Own Irrationality
The literal use of the term existential when applied to Iran does a disservice to the philosophy which it invokes.
Postcard from . . . DC: Myth of Iran Support for al-Qaeda Just Won’t Die
Iran war hawks are still trying to establish that Iran was complicit with al-Qaeda in the attacks of 9/11. Paul Mutter at the Foreign Policy in Focus blog Focal Points.
Cracks in the Argument That Iran Is Realist and Rational?
Is there any truth to the Iran war-hawk claim that Iran seeks to ignite the apocalypse?
The Gulf Cooperative Council and the Arab Spring
The Saudis in particular, and the other Gulf States in general, are fearful of two main threats, real or perceived. The first threat is Iran, which challenges their long-held religious and ethnic tenets. The second threat is the Arab Awakening, which challenges them ideologically and politically. The two threats seem to be connected now, and they will only be more so in the future. The Gulf State strategy seems to be based on the assumption that the stability of all Gulf regimes can only be disturbed by outside forces.
The Fading U.S.-Pakistan Alliance
As the United States struggles to stabilize the volatile landscape in Afghanistan, assert a long-term strategic presence in Iraq, and contain Iran’s nuclear ambitions, it is gradually confronting a precarious and consequential estrangement from its long-term strategic ally, Pakistan. With rising dissatisfaction among the Pakistani political elite and growing popular anger against America, Washington is on the verge of losing another vital ally.