Iranian public opinion in the Biden era
Wed, Feb 24, 2021 1:30 PM
A discussion surrounding the polling data on Iranian public opinion by the Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland.
As the global community continues to grapple with the coronavirus (COVID-19), the Atlantic Council is open for business. Our business, meetings, and events, however, are occurring virtually. For more information, please read an update from our President and CEO.
The election of President Biden has raised expectations for a restoration of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and a de-escalation of US-Iran tensions. The
Center for International and Security Studies at Maryland recently completed a poll of Iranian public opinion on these and other relevant issues. The
What’s new? The 2015 Iran nuclear deal has looked at best shaky since the Trump administration withdrew from it in 2018, imposing damaging economic sanctions on the Islamic Republic. In response, Tehran ramped up its nuclear activity in contravention of its obligations under the agreement. President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration could mark an inflection point.
Why does it matter? Having failed to achieve its objectives, Trump’s “maximum pressure” strategy may be nearing an end. Restoring the nuclear deal, with its considerable non-proliferation benefits, could lead to wider U.S.-Iran diplomatic engagement. But one or both sides may be tempted to make additional demands, which would be a recipe for deadlock.
To: President Elect Biden and the Biden administration
As experts on Iran, international relations and nonproliferation, we write to fully support the incoming Biden administration in its commitment to make a clean break from the Trump Administration’s failed Iran policy and maximum pressure campaign and return the U.S. to the diplomatic path and full compliance with the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), or Iran nuclear deal.
In 2017, President Trump inherited an enviable position on Iran. Iran’s nuclear program was no longer a source of major security concern, while there was a prospect to broaden diplomatic negotiations to address pressing security concerns in Syria and Yemen. Instead, Trump unilaterally withdrew from the JCPOA over the objections of close allies while Iran was still compliant with the accord. This self-inflicted wound set the U.S. on a destructive path with no easy offramp. The U.S. and Iran moved to the precipice of war twice, Iran expanded its
Fri, 12/18/2020 - 11:57am tim
The Center for Research on Vermont recently asked its members to share the titles of high impact Vermont books. The enthusiastic responses ranged from a single title to long lists. Some members simply submitted titles, while others provided extensive notes to explain why the titles are important. Some members reached back through the decades, and others offered hot-off-the-press publications.
Prudence Doherty, the Public Services Librarian at the Silver Special Collections Library at UVM stepped in to curate the list, organizing the titles into categories. The extraordinarily detailed lists from Michael Sherman, Gary Shattuck, Kevin Graffagnino and Bruce Post can be found here. Tyler Resch alerted us to The Fourteenth State, his collection of short essays on selected Vermont books.