As was widely predicted, Ebrahim Raisi, a hardline conservative, won last Friday’s Iranian presidential election in a landslide and will succeed Hassan Rouhani as president in August. However, the historically low turnout of voters and …
Articles by: "Ian Dudgeon"
Ebrahim Raisi, a hardline conservative, is widely predicted to be elected as Iranian President Hassan Rouhani’s successor in elections scheduled for 18 June. But the vote won’t just determine the country’s next president; it’s also …
US President-elect Joe Biden is expected to make a detailed policy statement on the Middle East in the weeks following his inauguration on 20 January 2021. A new, timely ‘grand bargain’ initiative by Iran, especially …
A major priority of whoever wins the US presidential election will be to set or reset relations with Iran. Whichever way it goes, the result will have huge implications for regional security. For both Donald …
Iran is considering an offer from Beijing to revive an agreement which, combined with an enhanced security and military relationship, could give China a new strategic foothold in the Middle East. In early July, Iranian …
While the United States and China squabble about the origins of the novel coronavirus, a more serious contest is underway over the severe economic sanctions against Iran, Syria, Venezuela, Cuba, North Korea and, to a …
President Donald Trump’s public response to Iranian missile strikes on two US airbases in Iraq suggests that he and Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, have reached a mutual ‘no war’ agreement. Barring any miscalculation …
Petrol rationing and major fuel price hikes in Iran, and the rioting that followed, have demonstrated the extent to which international sanctions are hurting the oil-rich nation. Protests broke out in more than 50 cities …
There are two strong reasons behind the Morrison government’s decision on 21 August to join the US-led International Maritime Security Construct (IMSC) in support of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz. The first …
US President Donald Trump’s threat last week to respond militarily if Iran attacks ‘anything American’ is a clear warning to Iran’s leadership, and all stakeholders, that the US has now added lethal military action to …
Iran and the US are engaged in a strategic race with opposing objectives, but a common deadline—the US presidential election in November 2020. For Iran, it’s a race for survival of the regime, to ensure …
On 17 October, the Morrison government announced a review of Australia’s support for the Iran nuclear deal, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), to determine whether it remains ‘fit for purpose’. …