The Red Velvet Lawyer

Strategic Impasse that is Unlikely to Change Absent Third-Party Intervention Pushing the Limits: US –  Iranian Brinkmanship in the Gulf Brookings Doha Center October 20, 2019 Intercontinental Hotel, Doha Qatar Three panelists expressed pessimism and pragmatism last week in assessing the current tensions between the US and Iran.  The moderator, Ali Fathollah-Nejad , Visiting Fellow, Brookings Doha Center, began the program by giving a brief summary of recent actions taken by both belligerents. He described President Trump’s unilateral withdrawal of the US from the nuclear deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) . In 2018, the Trump administration imposed sanctions on Iran , that among others things, affected Iran's ability to sell and export oil and natural gas. While European countries promised to mitigate the economic impact of these sanctions, their promises fell short.  As a consequence, Iran adopted a “maximum resi...

Iran's Islamic Revolution at 40 Regional Cooperation: Prospects and Challenges By Dr. Kamal Kharazi Last night, I attended a lecture sponsored by the Al Jazeera Centre for Studies .  I have attended prior programs offered by the Centre and found them intellectually stimulating.  They always offer points of view I have seldom heard in the West. I have blogged about them in a series of posts beginning here .  The invited guest, Dr. Kamal Kharazi , Chair of the Strategic Council on Foreign Relations of Iran, gave a lecture followed by a brief question and answer period at the Sheraton Hotel in Doha, Qatar.  The moderator introduced Dr. Kharazi as an "insider" to the Iranian Revolution .  That revolution celebrates its 40th anniversary in 2019.  He spoke in English from prepare remarks. Before I start, I want to note that I am working from my notes and apologize in advance if my summary contains any errors or misstatements.  I am h...

Iran and the Gulf: Between Cooperation, Competition, and Confrontation On April 28-29, 2018, Al Jazeera held its 12th Forum providing an opportunity for leading scholars and other experts to discuss a variety of topics affecting the Arab world.  The website for the forum,  @aljazeeraform , provides additional information and links to the videos of each session.  You can follow the Twitter coverage at  #AJForum . As I noted in my  first post  in this series, I am working from my notes, so I apologize in advance if I incorrectly paraphrase the remarks of any speaker. I was also reliant on the quality of the translation services and their audibility. Therefore, I am happy to make any needed edits to this summary. For summaries of the other sessions see: Opening Session Session 1: The Gulf Crisis Session 3: Change in the Region? Session 4: Changing Alliances in the Arab World Session 5: Palestine and the "Deal of the Century" Session 6: ...