Proliferation

By demonstrating firmness at the negotiating table, Washington can make plain the alternatives and force Tehran to confront, rather than evade, the consequences of its choices.

In recent months, optimism has replaced malaise in the Iran nuclear talks. This shift is usually attributed to the election of the more pragmatic Hassan Rouhani as president and the impact of U.S. sanctions on Iran's economy. Yet a third, equally important factor is also at work: namely, the United

Institute managing director Michael Singh joined Matthew Duss of the Center for American Progress for a Bloggingheads.tv discussion of Iranian president Rouhani's UN address and the choices facing U.S. policymakers as they explore diplomatic solutions to the nuclear impasse.

More than any previous Iranian president, Hassan Rouhani is an open book. In addition to his own copious Persian-language writings, he has engaged the domestic and international press throughout his three-decade political career, including as former chief nuclear negotiator. Analyzing these writings, speeches, and interviews can help clarify fundamental questions

On October 1, BICOM senior visiting fellow Brig. Gen. (ret.) Michael Herzog briefed journalists on a BICOM conference call, providing his assessment of Iranian president Hassan Rouhani's diplomatic offensive and the requirements for a successful deal to set Iran back from nuclear breakout capacity. The following is a summary of

An official Iranian protest to the world's nuclear watchdog could be an attempt to undermine its role in verifying the regime's compliance with potential diplomatic agreements.

Sanctions might have brought Rouhani to the table, but they won't keep him there.

Stopping Iran's increasingly rapid progress toward becoming a de facto nuclear weapons state requires significant diplomatic progress, and quickly.

Syria's Bashar al-Assad may have thrown a wrench into Iranian President Hasan Rouhani's plans for nuclear negotiations with the West -- if the United States learns the right lessons from the Syria experience.