All Policy Analysis by Mehdi Khalaji

Given Iran's hegemonic history under the Safavids, the Shah, and the mullahs alike, Washington should not expect the regime to compromise its principles any time soon.

A recent article on a high-profile political website shows how even the most primitive anti-Semitic slurs and conspiracy theories have found their way into all levels of Iranian discourse.

The Supreme Leader expressed skepticism that any progress was made at Lausanne and warned about barriers to resolving the nuclear impasse.

Iran needs a nuclear deal to provide daylight for its stricken economy, but if the supreme leader senses that the impending agreement falls short of that, he may impose new redlines that effectively close down the discussions.

President Rouhani speaks of conciliation with the United States, but the differing bilateral descriptions of the parameters have some Iranians worried that a deal is by no means certain.

Initial public statements by Iranian officials emphasize that the United States and its partners have accepted an outcome in which Tehran need not change course.

By issuing blanket calls for the lifting of all sanctions, Tehran may undermine efforts to forge, implement, and enforce a viable nuclear deal.

Failure to reach a nuclear agreement would have grim consequences for Iran's president and the wider reformist movement, but even a successful deal would leave him open to further conservative challenges on the resultant concessions.

In all likelihood, Khamenei's potentially imminent successor will be even more of a hardliner, and he could renege on a deal just as easily as the next U.S. president.

The receptiveness that many Yemeni Shiite leaders have shown toward Iran's foreign policy and religious practice give Tehran a ready means to expand its reach in Yemen.

Implementing a nuclear agreement will be no easier than reaching one, and Washington will have little influence over what Iran decides to do over time about the deal.

As the P5+1 and Iran negotiate about the nuclear impasse, Iranian factional politics has heated up. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has made disparaging comments about the nuclear negotiations, yet supported continuing the talks. The Rouhani government is facing a variety of criticisms: it is vigorously defending its record at

The Assembly of Experts may soon have a new leader, but hints of a name have yet to emerge.

This new study by Mehdi Khalaji focuses on explaining the decisionmaking process within Iran's highest political echelon.

Two Iran experts discuss how the Supreme Leader, other key officials, and the Iranian public view the ongoing negotiations with the West and the strategic purpose of the nuclear program itself.

Despite offering nominal support for Iran's nuclear negotiating team, Khamenei and his circle continue to criticize the talks and could sabotage them outright if internal dynamics go against President Rouhani.

Although Tehran worries about internal threats from Salafi jihadists, it may well cooperate with such groups if they attack Western interests.