How the US could return to the Iran nuclear deal

To what extent can and will Iran policy be a priority of the incoming administration? What can Europeans do to bolster transatlantic diplomacy on Iran?

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The election of Joe Biden presents an opening to strengthen transatlantic diplomacy on Iran. Biden has already outlined his intention to prevent a nuclear-armed Iran, primarily by ensuring the US re-joining the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), from which the US unilaterally withdrew under outgoing President Trump. However, to what extent can and will Iran policy be a priority of the incoming administration? What can Europeans do to bolster transatlantic diplomacy on Iran? This week Mark Leonard is joined by Nasser Hadian, professor of political science at the University of Tehran, Ilan Goldenberg, director of the Middle East Security Program at the Center for a New American Security and ECFR’s Ellie Geranmayeh, deputy head of our Middle East and North Africa programme to discuss these issues.

This podcast was recorded on 2 December 2020.

Further Reading:
A call for Europe to bolster transatlantic diplomacy on Iran”, a joint statement by ECFR Council Members

On Iran, the Next Administration Must Break With the Past by Elisa Catalano Ewers, Ilan Goldenberg, and Kaleigh Thomasin Foreign Affairs

Bookshelf:
“Losing the Long Game: The False Promise of Regime Change in the Middle East”, by Philip H. Gordon
• “A Promised Land” by Barack Obama

Cover image:
Secretary Kerry and Team Resume Talks in Switzerland With Iranian Officials About the Future of Their Nuclear Program

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