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The Next Iranian Revolution

(Foreign Affairs) Eric Edelman and Ray Takeyh - For the past 40 years, almost every U.S. president has tried to reach some kind of accommodation with Iran. They all failed to understand that the Iranian regime remains, at heart, a revolutionary movement that will never accommodate the U.S. The continued vitality of the Iranian revolution mandated its relentless export. That is why regime change is not a radical or reckless idea but the most pragmatic and effective goal for U.S. policy. It is the only objective that has any chance of meaningfully reducing the Iranian threat. This does not mean advocating a military invasion of Iran, but it does mean pushing for the U.S. to use every instrument at its disposal to undermine Iran's clerical state, including covert assistance to dissidents. The U.S. cannot overthrow the Islamic Republic, but it can contribute to conditions that would make such a demise possible. The regime is weaker than many Western analysts believe. Iranians are hungry for better leadership. Eric Edelman, former U.S. Undersecretary of Defense for Policy, is Counselor at the Center for Strategic and Budgetary Assessments and Senior Adviser at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies. Ray Takeyh is Senior Fellow for Middle East Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations.
2020-04-16 00:00:00
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