The Impact of Culture: Communicating with Iran
Abstract
Within the past decade United States involvement in the Middle East increased along with our interaction with Iran, a country that seeks to play a dominate role within the region and whose interests at times conflict with U.S. interests. The United States struggled in its attempt to engage Iran through a number of venues and players with limited success. This paper examines ways to engage Iran from a cultural appreciation of both nations. To provide a recent historical context, this paper briefly examines the relationship between Iran and the U.S. over the last fifty years, focusing on some of the successes and failures. It then addresses Iranian involvement in support of terrorism and the drive to acquire nuclear weapons, two key issues that dominate today's geopolitical agenda. To provide a cultural foundation for later recommendations on how best to engage Iran, it discusses how Iranians communicate and negotiate. After briefly identifying key cultural aspects of how Americans communicate and negotiate, this paper offers four broad recommendations on ways to strategically negotiate and communicate with Iranians through a more informed cultural understanding.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 2009
- Accession Number
- ADA498468
Entities
People
- Eric J. Winkie
Organizations
- United States Army War College