Iran

Blame will go to the departing president while praise will go to his handpicked successor.

Iran’s presidential election on June 18 is expected to have the lowest turnout of any election to date and the implications are likely to extend far beyond the ballot box.

Alex Vatanka joins host Alistair Taylor to discuss Iran’s upcoming presidential election on June 18. The election comes at a pivotal time for the country, as it faces a serious economic crisis and growing popular dissatisfaction at home, as well as a changing regional environment and ongoing talks over the revival of the 2015 nuclear deal.

Today, as we approach the end of Rouhani’s government, how should historians and scholars evaluate the economic, political, and social situation over the last eight years? The issues of women’s political participation and social freedom, which were promised by Rouhani, especially during his first campaign, are of particular importance in this regard.

“من المرجح أن ينخفض الإقبال بصورة تاريخية إلى نحو 20% مما يدل على عدم جدوى هذه الانتخابات”

Blessed with milder temperatures than its Gulf neighbors as well as abundant rain and snow fall, Iran is one of the last countries in the region to introduce a seawater transfer plan to fight unprecedented levels of drought. The plan, once fully implemented, could help build water corridors linking the shores of Iran’s southern Gulf to those of its northern Caspian Sea. Named the Hope Transfer Line, the plan promises prosperity for farmers and industrialists, and potable water for communities in some 10,000 villages and urban areas located in so-called Red Zones, a category that applies to regions coping with severe water scarcity. 

On Sept. 15, 2020, the world witnessed a new era of Israeli-Arab relations as the UAE and Bahrain opened diplomatic relations with Israel, in what is known as the Abraham Accords. Unlike the Israeli-Egyptian or the Israeli-Jordanian peace deals, which aimed to end direct military confrontations, the Abraham Accords seek to maximize common interests and address security issues to form a new front against Iranian threats. As Biden’s administration shows a willingness to return to some form of the 2015 Iran nuclear deal, the joint cooperation between Israel and the Gulf states is becoming more visible than ever, particularly in cyberspace, where they share a common enemy.

Expert regional analysis by MEI scholars and contributors.

With supplies running out, water security could be the issue that finally makes the region’s countries work together.

As the Islamic Republic of Iran approaches its 13th presidential election, the candidacy of former President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (2005-13), once strongly supported by the conservative camp, poses a significant challenge to other conservative candidates by dividing their base. Given Ahmadinejad’s transformation into an opposition voice — one who openly crosses the Islamic Republic’s redlines — the ruling establishment is now facing a predicament on whether to allow the controversial statesman to run, or to bar him from participating in the presidential elections.