Revolution and Aftermath: Forging a New Strategy toward Iran

by Eric Edelman, Ray Takeyh

Overview

In Revolution and Aftermath: Forging a New Strategy toward Iran, Eric Edelman and Ray Takeyh examine one of the most underappreciated forces that has shaped modern US foreign policy: American-Iranian relations. They argue that America’s flawed reading of Iran’s domestic politics has hamstrung decades of US diplomacy, resulting in humiliations and setbacks ranging from the 1979–81 hostage crisis to Barack Obama’s concession-laden nuclear weapons deal. What presidents and diplomats have repeatedly failed to grasp, they write, is that “the Islamic Republic is a revolutionary state whose entire identity is invested in its hostility toward the West.” To illuminate a path forward for American-Iranian relations, the authors address some of the most persistent myths about Iran, its ruling elite, and its people. Finally, they highlight lessons leaders can learn from America’s many missteps since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780817921545
Publisher:	Hoover Institution Press
Publication date:	07/01/2018
Edition description:	None
Pages:	168
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Ambassador Eric S. Edelman is the Roger Hertog Distinguished Practitioner-in-Residence at the Philip Merrill Center for Strategic Studies at Johns Hopkins University. He was US ambassador to Finland in the Clinton administration and Turkey in the George W. Bush administration. Ray Takeyh is a Hasib J. Sabbagh Senior Fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Preface xi

Chapter 1 The Permanent Revolution? 1

Chapter 2 How Foreign Policy Has Sustained the Revolution at Home 13

The Rafsanjani Years: Pragmatism and Its Discontents 22

Tehran Spring 28

Iran's New Frontiers 32

Chapter 3 Key Episodes in US-Iran Diplomacy 43

America Held Hostage 44

Iran-Contra Affair 55

George W. Bush: The Diplomatist 63

Obama's Outreach 80

Lessons to Learn 89

Chapter 4 Toward a New Iran Strategy 93

US Grand Strategy and Iran, 1945-2017 94

New Wine in Old Bottles 116

Containment Begins at Home 119

Pushing Back in the Region 121

Notes 127

Suggestions for Further Reading 131

About the Authors 137

About the Hoover Institution's Herbert and Jane Dwight Working Group on Islamism and the International Order 139

Index 142

Editorial Reviews

"Eric Edelman and Ray Takeyh cut through the wishful thinking that so often passes for analysis to deliver a needed warning: Iran's imperial aggression against us and our allies isn't a drain on the ayatollahs' power; it's the lifeblood of the regime. Many books predict and prognosticate, but Revolution and Aftermath gives the much-needed historical context to understand the feints and thrusts of our most dangerous enemy in the Middle East. Anyone who wants to understand the true nature of the Iranian regime-and the threat it poses-should read this book." —Tom Cotton, US Senator from Arkansas


"The revolutionary regime in Iran represents one of the biggest challenges to US national security. In this short but important book, one of America's leading Iran experts and a deeply experienced national security practitioner explain why Iran has been such a daunting and persistent challenge for policymakers, the historical role it has played in US grand strategy, and what a realistic policy to prevent Iran from gaining a nuclear weapon might look like. If you are looking for a cogent and concise introduction to this vital topic-this is it." —Dick Cheney, 46th Vice President of the United States

From the Publisher