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The Challenge of Iran

Date: Wednesday, December 1, 2010 / Time: 4:00am - 7:30am 

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USIP launched “The Iran Primer: Power, Politics and U.S. Policy,” featured Ambassador Dennis Ross, Special Assistant to the President, followed by top experts discussing the internal and external crises facing Iran. "The Iran Primer," a joint product of the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, brings together 50 seasoned scholars on Iran from some twenty foreign policy think tanks, eight universities, and six U.S. administrations.

The West has struggled to understand how to deal with Iran since its 1979 revolution. On the eve of a new diplomatic effort, the challenge now looms even larger in the face of its controversial nuclear program, disputed 2009 election, growing human rights violations, and angry rhetoric. Difficult to engage yet impossible to ignore, Iran is the world’s most complex foreign policy dilemma.  
 
USIP launched “The Iran Primer: Power, Politics and U.S. Policy,” featuring Ambassador Dennis Ross, Special Assistant to the President, followed by top experts discussing the internal and external crises facing Iran. "The Iran Primer,” a joint product of the U.S. Institute of Peace and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, brings together 50 seasoned experts on Iran from some twenty foreign policy think tanks, eight universities, and six U.S. administrations. Edited by Senior Fellow Robin Wright, the book and website offer a comprehensive overview of Iran’s politics, economy, military, foreign policy and nuclear program. 

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Speakers

9:00am - 10:00am
  • Ambassador Dennis B. Ross, Keynote Speaker
    Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for the Central Region, National Security Staff, The White House
Session One: Iran's Internal Crisis- What is Tehran trying to do?
10:00am - 11:15am
  • Karim Sadjadpour on politics
    Associate, Middle East Program, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace
  • Suzanne Maloney on the economy
    Senior Fellow, Saban Center for Middle East Policy, Brookings Institution
  • Alireza Nader on the Revolutionary Guards
    International Policy Analyst, RAND Corporation
  • David Albright on the nuclear program
    President, Institute for Science and International Security
  • Robin Wright, Moderator
    Senior Fellow, U.S. Institute of Peace and Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars
Session Two: Iran's External Crisis- What to do about Tehran?
11:15am - 12:30pm
  • James Dobbins on engagement
    Director, International Security and Defense Policy Center, RAND Corporation
  • Kenneth Pollack on containment
    Director, Saban Center for Middle East Policy, Brookings Institution
  • Patrick Clawson on sanctions
    Deputy Director of Research, The Washington Institute of Near East Policy
  • Dov Zakheim on the military option
    Senior Advisor, Center for Strategic and International Studies
  • Ellen Laipson, Moderator
    President and CEO, The Stimson Center

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