U.S. Policy
On January 5, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told CNN that the United States wants to amplify the voices of Iran’s protestors. “We know the regime listens to the world, and that’s why we’ve been working diligently with others in the world, including our European partners, to also amplify these…
On December 18, President Trump unveiled his long-awaited National Security Strategy. “For generations the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has been understood as the prime irritant preventing peace and prosperity in the region. Today, the threats from jihadist terrorist organizations…
On December 14, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, presented what she referred to as "undeniable" evidence of Iran’s transfer of arms to Houthi rebels in Yemen. “It’s hard to find a conflict or a terrorist group in the Middle East that does not have Iran’s fingerprints all over…
On December 2, Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo said that he sent a letter to the commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards Qods Force, Major General Qassem Soleimani, warning that Iran would be held responsible for attacks on U.S. interests in Iraq. Soleimani, once a…
On November 20, the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned a wide network that was helping Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps Qods Force “counterfeit currency to support its destabilizing activities.” The U.S. government has accused the Qods Force of meddling in the affairs of Iran’s…
On November 1, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said that the United States is Iran’s top enemy and that “resistance” is the only way to counter it. Citing President Donald Trump’s recent characterization of the Islamic Republic as a “terrorist nation like few others,” Khamenei argued that…
President Donald Trump reportedly asked French President Emmanuel Macron to broker a conversation with Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, according to several administration and foreign officials who spoke with The Washington Post. The three leaders were all in New York City in September for the U.N…
U.S. officials have defended President Trump’s new Iran policy since his October 13 speech, in which he decertified Iran’s compliance with the nuclear deal. The following are excerpted remarks.
Secretary of State Rex Tillerson
QUESTION: You said recently that Iran is in technical…
On October 3, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that it was in the U.S. national interest to continue to honor the nuclear deal if Iran is meeting its obligations. “I believe at this point in time, absent indications to the contrary, it is something the President should consider staying with,” he…
On September 26, General Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. (United States Marine Corps), appeared before the Senate Armed Services Committee to discuss his reappointment to the grade of general and reappointment to be Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. When asked about the nature of the threat posed by…