Understanding Iran
Abstract
Over the years, there have been numerous efforts to locate the roots of the Islamic Republic's intentions and motivations in the distinctiveness of its political culture and history. A rich and ancient nation, Iran has always beguiled outsiders. This complexity, combined with America's lack of access to Iran since 1979, has produced a peculiar view of the Islamic Republic, a view defined by mystique and a superficial reading that places too much emphasis on Iran's "abnormal" and "exceptional" characteristics. This document is a short, accessible guide intended to help U.S. policy makers understand the Islamic Republic. It offers a set of short analytic observations about the processes, institutions, networks, and actors that define Iran's politics, strategy, economic policy, and diplomacy. From these, it sets out an argument for appreciating the challenges and fundamentals of negotiating with Iran. Papers presented at a workshop organized by the RAND Corporation are appended. The papers are as follows: "Decisionmaking for National Security: The Nuclear Case," by Shahram Chubin; "Negotiating with Iran: A Case Study," by James Dobbins; "Iran's Defense Establishment," by Anoush Ehteshami; "Negotiating with Iran," by Jerrold D. Green;" Understanding Ayatollah Khamenei: The Leader's Thoughts on Israel, the U.S., and the Nuclear Program," by Karim Sadjadpour; "The Politics of Factionalism in Iran," by Amin Saikal; "Economic Decisionmaking in Iran," by Koichiro Tanaka; "Iran in the Arab Sphere: Debating Legitimacy, Sovereignty, and Regional Order," by Fred Wehrey; and "Iran's Oil Sector: Questions, Puzzles, Explanations, by Charles Wolf, Jr.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA493440
Entities
People
- Charles Wolf, Jr
- Frederic Wehrey
- Jerrold D. Green
Organizations
- RAND Corporation