ایران

The regime’s attempts to stir up nationalist support and increase its legitimacy postwar are not working—opposition is at a historical high.

Given Tehran’s long record of using maritime provocations to counter increased international pressure, the United States and its partners must be ready to respond swiftly and forcefully against ship seizures, mine warfare, suicide drones, and more.

Actually enforcing them will require hard work by Western diplomats and experts in the face of opposition from Tehran, Beijing, and Moscow.

Tehran’s recruitment of Israelis for military surveillance, sabotage, assassination plots, and other operations is on the rise, showing how the shadow war between the two adversaries continues to evolve even after their recent hot war.

Both before and after the twelve-day war, the Islamic Republic has taken U.S. citizens hostage, necessitating a multifaceted U.S.-led strategy that ends the practice for good.

The Israeli and U.S. military campaigns revealed how far Moscow and Beijing are willing to go (or not go) in their support for Tehran, providing Washington with opportunities to keep Iran in a weakened position.

The axis hasn’t fallen apart—if anything, these countries appear willing to work together even more closely now than before the Iran-Israel war.

While the recent military strikes against its nuclear program may further incentivize Tehran to go for the bomb, they may also complicate such efforts and give Washington more leverage to dissuade it.

The Supreme Leader and his domestic echo chambers have shown a remarkable shift in emphasis from religious authority to full-throated pre-revolutionary nationalism, and Washington should adjust its messaging accordingly.