You might not be aware of it, because (nearly) every news organization in the world seems to think that it isn’t news, but talks between Iran and the International Atomic Energy Agency have broken down once again. The talks, held in Vienna on May 15, ended with no breakthroughs. There is no date set for
In six weeks Iranians will be asked to “pick” the successor to the current President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Never mind that potential candidates for elected office have to be pre-cleared by the unelected and democratically unaccountable Guardian Council, we still get to call this an “election”! However, given the experience of average Iranians the last time
Yesterday the New York State Assembly announced new legislation to curb Iran’s continuing nuclear pursuits. Below is a press release from the unveiling. You can find the text, and accompanying video here. Speaker Sheldon Silver announced today the introduction of a bill (A.6855) that builds upon the Iran Divestment Act by prohibiting domestic insurers from
The BBC has a nice primer this morning on the upcoming Iranian “elections”. We are happy to report that the the article is prefaced by a strong reminder regarding the legacy of the 2009 “election”. Four years later, two of the candidates are still under house arrest, hundreds of political activists are in prison and
Claudia Rosett has an important piece in Forbes today about the manner in which pariah states, in part because of international isolation, seek each other out, learn from each others policy “successes”, and are able to minimize the costs of isolation through partnerships of convenience. The most disturbing contemporary example of this is of course
The Washington Post reports on some disturbing results from ongoing negotiations between the P5+1 and the Iranian regime in Kazakhstan. From the WaPo: Negotiations opened in the Kazakh city of Almaty with Iranian diplomats unveiling what they described as a “comprehensive proposal” for ending international tensions over Iran’s advances in nuclear technology. The deputy leader
Fantastic satire from The Onion today, which is funny because it seems scarily close to truth. Iran Promises To End Nuclear Program In Exchange For Detailed Diagram Of Atomic Bomb TEHRAN—In an unprecedented display of international cooperation from the Middle Eastern nation, Iran reportedly pledged to end the country’s burgeoning nuclear weapons program in exchange
Reports from Almaty, Kazakhstan indicate that the P5+1 and the Iranian regime regarding its nuclear program are going to move into a second day. The demands of the P5+1 mirror the “stop, shut, and ship” formula that has long been advocated by the IAEA and members of the international community. According to the New York
They say that diplomats are honest men sent abroad to lie for the good of their homeland. The truth is that they aren’t all honest men. Last night, when the Iranian Ambassador to the United Nations Mohammed Khazaee spoke at the Asia Society, was ample evidence of this fact. Khazaee did his best impression of
Last week at the Munich Security Conference Vice President Joe Biden made two very important things clear. The first is that the United States will not allow Iran to acquire a nuclear weapon. The second is that the United States is willing to sit down and negotiate with the Iranian regime in good faith to