Featured Guests

Arang Keshavarzian
Professor of Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies
Political economy of free trade zones in the Persian Gulf, imperialism and globalization in the Persian Gulf
Middle East Research and Information Project
Farrah Hassen
Policy analyst,social innovator
Syria and the Iraq War, U.S./Syria relations, U.S. policy in the Middle East, Iraq, Iran, Middle East peace process
Institute for Policy Studies
Lawrence Korb
Policy Analyst
Terrorism retaliation and response, National security organization, policy, and process; U.S. foreign policy, arms control, and defense budget; NATO; conventional arms trade; military budget, ballistic missile defense.
Center for American Progress
Melvin Goodman
Senior Fellow
international security policy and strategy; intelligence; homeland security
Center for International Policy
Robert Dreyfuss
Independent Journalist
national security, foreign policy, vietnam, 9/11, politics, Middle Eastern Affairs
Robert Dreyfuss
Robert Naiman
Professional
Iraq, Iran, U.S. diplomacy and foreign policy, Iraqi death toll more than 1 million (Lancet Study)
Just Foreign Policy
Stephen Heintz
Policy analyst,social innovator,Professional
Foreign policy, economic reform, civil society development, international security
Rockefeller Brothers Fund
Stephen Zunes
Senior Analyst
Israeli-Palestinian conflict: US policy, peace process, arms control, human rights and international law, Palestinian perceptions and views of the Israeli peace movement, Palestinian Christian community, the roots of the extremist Islamic groups, domestic roots of U.S. policy as based on strategic concerns, good overview of the history of the conflict and, in particular, a history of the peace process and the U.S. role; U.S. policy towards practically anywhere in the Middle East as well as Islamic movements, military/strategic issues, terrorism and human rights. In terms of countries, I could talk about the Gulf (including Iran, Iraq and the Arab sheikdoms), Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco and Western Sahara. In considering the war on terror: Yemen, Georgia, Iran, Iraq, Somalia.
Stephen Zunes
Trita Parsi
Policy analyst,Professional,Author
International relations, Middle Eastern foreign policy, Middle Eastern Affairs, Middle East, Iran, Israel, Iran-U.S.-Israel relations
Trita Parsi

And the Loser is...

Can Iran's Presidential Election be verified? What will the outcome mean for Iran/U.S. relations?
Issue Area:


And the Loser is...

In Iran, the Presidential election has sparked riots after Ahmadinejad claimed a landslide victory over reformist candidate Mir Hossein Mousavi, raising questions about the election's legitimacy. Protests have turned to riots in the streets of Tehran, where police in plain clothes have beaten protestors with batons and used tear gas to disperse crowds. Some reports say that gunmen have fired into a crowd in Tehran, killing one person and injuring several others.

President Obama has been careful not to take sides as the outcome of the election and events unfold in Iran. He could thwart the opportunity for U.S. talks with Iran if the U.S. tries to influence the political outcome. Obama said in his Cairo speech that Iran has a right to a peaceful nuclear energy program but that it must follow all inspection rules and cooperate to ensure the world that it is not masking the development of a nuclear bomb.

The election has revealed a deep divide among Iranians. Moussavi, the former Prime Minister of Iran and the strongest challenger, was very critical of Ahmadinejad's handling of the economy and Iran's international image. The violent response to the election shows Ahmadinejas's hold on the government is weaker than previously thought.

In a surprise reversal, Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, called for an inquiry into opposition claims that the election was fraudulent, after initially certifying the results. Moussavi and his supporters were emboldened by Khamenei's decision to conduct a 10 day inquiry into the election process after massive protests.

Did Obama's Cairo speech influence the Iranian election? How will the outcome of the election affect Iran's nuclear ambitions? How should Obama respond to the Iranian election?