Avatar photoTalking Tough to Iran

That’s the title of a short piece published today that the UK Guardian asked me to write on Obama’s proposed Iran policy, about which I have very nice things to say.

Avatar photoIndia Safeguards Agreement Stinks

I have a copy of the India-specific safeguards agreement, IAEA/2008/30. Here is the full-text. The word “perpetuity” appears not once. The section on termination of safeguards states that termination “shall be implemented taking into account the provisions of GOV/1621 (20 August 1973).” That is a worrisome clause — it appears to offer a loophole that …

Avatar photoWho Rules Iran?

A few weeks ago I attended a day-long pow-wow here in DC on U.S. policy towards Iran. Mehrzad Boroujerdi, an associate professor at the Maxwell School of Syracuse University and director of its Middle Eastern Studies Program, gave an incisive, thought-provoking presentation on the structure and varied preferences of the Iranian government and its constituent …

Avatar photoMullen's Message for Israel

Avner Cohen asks an interesting question about a speech in Tel Aviv by Tony Cordesman. Cordesman told audiences that Admiral Michael Mullen, Chairman ot the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was delivering a message when he said that Israel did not have a green light to attack Iran: Cordesman is visiting Israel this week, and gave …