Download or read book US and Iranian Strategic Competition written by and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 60 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iraq has become a key focus of the strategic competition between the United States and Iran. The US has gone to great lengths to counter Iranian influence in Iraq, including using its status as an occupying power and Iraq's main source of aid, as well as through information operations and more traditional press statements highlighting Iranian meddling. However, containing Iranian influence, while important, is not America's main goal in Iraq. It is rather to create a stable democratic Iraq that can defeat the remaining extremist and insurgent elements, defend against foreign threats, sustain an able civil society, and emerge as a stable power friendly to the US. Iran has its own goals in Iraq: at maximum to dominate the Iraqi state and make it an ally, and at a minimum to ensure that Iraq does not serve as a base for the US, serve US interests, or reemerge as a threat to Iran. Iran shares a long and porous border with Iraq, and seeks to create a stable and malleable ally, not a peer competitor. It seeks to rid the country of American influence to the greatest extent possible. Iran has aggressively used its networks, patronage, economic ties, religious ties, aid money, and military support to various factions in Iraq to achieve these goals. The competition between the US and Iran has reached a critical stage as the US prepares to withdraw its military forces and drastically scale down its aid program. The advancement of Iranian ambitions following the US withdrawal depends on how successful US efforts are in building an enduring strategic partnership with Iraq. Much will depend on the level of continued US diplomatic, advisory, military, and police training presence in Iraq, and on Iran's ability to exploit the diminished US presence.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Brandon Fite and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 37 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: China and Russia stand at the pivot of US-Iranian strategic competition. As major world powers and permanent members of the UN Security Council, China and Russia can play a critical role in shaping sanctions and other aspects of international action. The formal position of both China and Russia is that they will impose only those sanctions required by applicable UN Security Council resolutions and not enact sanctions beyond those specifically mandated. At the same time, both countries seek maximize the benefits they can gain from the ongoing competition by refusing to commit to either player. Both nations have an interest in preventing or at least forestalling open hostility as conflict will upset their balancing act. China and Russia work to leverage support to advance their own positions while at the same minimizing the diplomatic costs of double-dealing. In the recent past, China has carefully tilted toward Iran, and Russia towards the West. But China has recently been more cautious in dealing with Iran, while Russia has tended to game the issue as part of a broader hardening in its relations with the US. Leaders in Moscow and Beijing focus on the security and prosperity of their respective nations, and pursue international relationships from that standpoint. At the present, external pressure from the US and its allies is not yet significant enough to make either China or Russia give up all ties to Iran, and they manipulate such ties to Iran as a bargaining chip in dealing with the US, European, and the Arab Gulf states. If the US is to be more successful in isolating Iran, it will need to convince both countries that Iran poses a greater threat to their interests than they now perceive, seek the help of the Arab Gulf states and other powers to influence China and Russia, and develop a more powerful mix of incentives and penalties to encourage Chinese and Russian cooperation.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Aram Nerguizian and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iran's efforts to expand its regional influence in the Levant, Egypt and Jordan are a key aspect of its strategic competition with the US. Nearly twenty years after Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982, and five years after the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah War, the US and its allies continue to struggle with the realities of Iran's growing influence in the region and its use of proxy and asymmetric warfare. The Islamic Republic has developed strong ties with Syria and non-state actors in the region, including the Lebanese Shi'a group Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas Islamist movement in what Iranian and Syrian leaders have dubbed the 'Resistance Axis.' Iran continues to exploit Arab-Israeli tensions in ways that make it an active barrier to a lasting Arab-Israeli peace, while the US must deal with Arab hostility to its strategic partnership with Israel. At the same time, both the US and Iran face new uncertainties in dealing with Egypt, Syria, and the wave of unrest in the Arab world. At the same time, both the US and Iran face an unprecedented level of policy instability in the Levant, and the rest of the Middle East and North Africa, that affects every aspect of their regional competition. At present, no one can predict the outcome in any given case. Even the short term impact of changes in regimes is not predictable, nor is how they will affect the underlying drivers of regional tensions. It is particularly dangerous to ignore the risk of replacing one form of failed governance with another one, and the prospect of years of further political instability or upheavals. Syria has been a challenge for US policy-makers for decades. Yet the current round of instability is unprecedented and the US is not likely to enact a coherent strategy in the short term. This in turn informs the future pace and form of competition with Iran over Syria. While Lebanon has been relatively stable during the current period of upheaval, there are real risks of instability as well as opportunities to manage security politics in the Levant that the US should not ignore. As this report shows, Israel too is an arena for US-Iranian competition and the recent cycle of instability will remain critical to how both countries develop their bilateral relationship and security ties. The place and role of the Palestinians in US policy and competition with Iran are part and parcel of US-Iranian competition over Israel. Lastly, US policy towards Egypt and Jordan are driven by a number of common factors that have impacted whether or not these two key US allies become exposed to Iranian influence and interference. This report is a working draft, part of a comprehensive survey of US and Iranian competition and which is to be published as an electronic book in early March.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Charles Loi and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 59 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iraq is a key focus of the strategic competition between the United States and Iran. The history of this competition has been shaped by the Iran-Iraq War from 1980 to 1988, the Gulf War, the Iraq War that began in 2003, and the events that have followed. Both the US and Iran have competed to shape the structure of Iraq's politics, governance, economics, and security. The US has used its status as an occupying power and Iraq's main source of aid, and Iran has used its networks, patronage, and support of key Shiite factions to win friends and influence policy in the same areas. Iraq's leaders face critical choices about their ability to put an end to Iraq's internal violence, the extent to which they align themselves with the US and Arab world versus Iran, and how to reshape and modernize governance, Iraq's economy, and Iraq's security forces. In the process, the US and Iran will continue to compete for influence, especially in aid, military sales, and security training. If the US does not compete skillfully and consistently, Iraq's insecurity and Iran's economic ties to Iraq may tether Iraq closer and closer to Iran while US politicians cut down on the US presence in Iraq and aid. Iran's relative influence in Iraq may rise even if Iraqi nationalism chafes against Iranian interference. The US unleashed forces in 2003 it must now deal with or risk seeing Iran as the real winner of the invasion.

Download or read book The Real Outcome of the Iraq War written by and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 108 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iraq has become a key focus of the strategic competition between the United States and Iran. The history of this competition has been shaped by the Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), the 1991 Gulf War, and the US invasion of Iraq in 2003. Since the 2003 war, both the US and Iran have competed to shape the structure of Post-Saddam Iraq's politics, governance, economics, and security. The US has gone to great lengths to counter Iranian influence in Iraq, including using its status as an occupying power and Iraq's main source of aid, as well as through information operations and more traditional press statements highlighting Iranian meddling. However, containing Iranian influence, while important, is not America's main goal in Iraq. It is rather to create a stable democratic Iraq that can defeat the remaining extremist and insurgent elements, defend against foreign threats, sustain an able civil society, and emerge as a stable power friendly to the US and its Gulf allies. Yet, Iraq is diplomatically and militarily weak, and must now constantly try to find a balance between conflicting pressures from the US and Iran. Iraq has tried to walk the line between the two competitors, preventing a major rift with either nation. Iraq needs trade and cross-border support from Iran, just as it needs aid, diplomatic, and military support from the US. Iraq's much-reduced military capabilities make it dependent on aid, military sales, and training from the United States, and Iraq still lacks the resources and cohesion to resist against Iranian coercion and to defend against Iranian aggression.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Brandon Fite and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 31 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As newly imposed American and European sanctions begin to take hold on the Iranian economy, the government in Tehran seeks to mitigate their punitive effect by seeking partnerships with states on the geographic and strategic periphery of the US-Iran competition. In order to sidestep Western pressure, Iran pursues relationships with states in Latin America and Africa that are beyond the conventional geographic and political scope of US-Iranian competition. Iran seeks to build partnerships with other politically isolated governments, such as those in Venezuela and Zimbabwe. Tehran also seeks to forge closer commercial ties with states that are drawn to Iran for economic, rather than political, purposes. Although states such as Argentina and Brazil may not politically align themselves with the Islamic regime in Tehran, both have strong trading partnerships with Iran. Despite these efforts, however, Iran's embrace in the periphery is limited and has been thwarted by US actions to undermine Iranian influence. This report shows that Iran pursues cooperation with states on the geographic and strategic periphery in order to create a network of diplomatic and economic relationships or "partners" that can lessen the blow of international sanctions and generally oppose Western attempts to constrict its ambitions. These peripheral partners, located mainly in Africa and Latin America, also serve as alternative markets for Iranian oil, provide diplomatic cover for Iran's nuclear efforts, and aid Iran's acquisition of goods proscribed by international sanctions.

Download or read book The Outcome of Invasion written by and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 128 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Events in Iraq since the US withdrawal have made it all too clear that the US celebrated the end of the Iraq War without any realism as to the impact the war and US occupation had on Iraqi society. Iraq remains a violent and unstable place, with Iranian influence on the rise. The political, economic, and security situation in Iraq, as well as the US and Iranian competition in the country, are all examined in depth in this report. Iraq has become a key focus of the strategic competition between the United States and Iran. Since the 2003 war, both the US and Iran have competed to shape the structure of Post-Saddam Iraq's politics, governance, economics, and security. This competition between the US and Iran has reached a critical stage as the US has withdrawn its combat troops and continues to drastically scale down its aid program. The advancement of Iranian ambitions following the US withdrawal depends on how successful US efforts are in building an enduring strategic partnership with Iraq. Much will depend on the level of continued US diplomatic, advisory, military, and police training presence in Iraq, and on Iran's ability to exploit the diminished US presence.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Nori Kasting and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 49 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: China and Russia are key players in US-Iranian strategic competition. Leaders in Moscow and Beijing focus on the influence, security and economic gains to their respective leaderships, and pursue international relationships from that standpoint. At present, external pressure from the US and its allies is not able to make either China or Russia give up all ties to Iran, and they manipulate such ties to Iran as a bargaining chip in dealing with the US, as well as the European and Arab Gulf states. Both countries seek to maximize the benefits they can gain from the ongoing competition by refusing to commit to either player. Both nations have an interest in preventing or at least forestalling open hostility that will upset this balancing act, as any conflict could have an impact on their economies and seek to use their support of either side to advance their own positions. The resulting US and Iranian competition for influence over China and Russia plays out over proliferation and sanctions, trade and energy investments, arms sales, and each nation's position in dealing with Afghanistan and Central Asia. If the US is to be more successful in isolating Iran, it will need to convince both countries that Iran poses a greater threat to their individual interests than they now perceive, seek the help of the Arab Gulf states and other powers to influence China and Russia, and develop a more powerful mix of incentives to encourage Chinese and Russian cooperation.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by D. Brandon Fite and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report shows that China and Russia stand at the pivot of US-Iranian competition with China leaning toward Iran, and Russia leaning, more gradually, to the West. As major world powers and permanent members of the UN Security Council, both nations are essential to either inhibiting or shielding Iran's nuclear and regional ambitions. Neither China nor Russia is fully committed to either competitor, and both are engaged in a complex balancing act: leveraging support to advance their own positions while at the same minimizing the diplomatic costs of double-dealing. To secure Chinese and Russian support, the US and Iran stress the value of their relationship and the costs of partnership with the other. The struggle to capture Chinese support centers on energy security but is framed as a contest of worldviews. The US works to integrate China into the present international order, while Iran rejects the status quo and urges China, as a fellow non-Western power, to create a new system apart from the West. Competition plays out over issues of proliferation and sanctions, trade and energy investments, and arms sales. Importantly, Iran seeks to win Chinese support by billing itself as a secure and dedicated source of energy resources for a century of Chinese growth. China has been able to maintain positive if somewhat strained relations with both the US and Iran by selectively supporting each side. As both a supporter and spoiler, China exploits it dual-role as Iranian benefactor and permanent member of the Security Council, and serves as a de facto gatekeeper to meaningful international sanctions of Iranian nuclear ambitions. China is willing to use US competition with Iran as an opportunity to grow its influence and test the boundaries of the US-led international order. Its moves are calculated to reap the benefits of US-Iranian conflict while deemphasizing the costs associated with supporting both sides. Unlike China whose overriding interest in Iran is energy security, Russia has a multiplicity of interests, none of which are predominant. As a result, Russia's approach to Iran is both broader and more flexible than the PRC's, and the US and Iran compete for Russian support on an issue-by-issue basis. The primary areas of competition are proliferation and sanctions, trade and energy deals, nuclear technology and infrastructure sales, arms sales, and influence in the Gulf and Middle East. Russia has historically been an important contributor to Iran's nuclear infrastructure and conventional arms capacity, but relations between the two states have been impacted by intensifying Iranian competition with the West and warming Russian relations with the US in the wake of the Obama administration's "reset" policy. Russia has begun to cooperate with the US in meaningful ways, but Moscow's move away from Tehran should not be interpreted as a wholesale shift in Russian policy. Russia's strategy to maintain coeval relations with the US and Iran has been to portray itself as an intermediary power. By cooperating on a limited basis with the West while advocating for a softer approach to Iran, Russia reaps the benefits of selective cooperation without incurring the costs of full allegiance. The ties that bind China and Russia to Iran are primarily based on an opportunistic assessment of the costs and benefits of partnership. Leaders in Moscow and Beijing are principally concerned with the security and prosperity of their nations, and they will pursue international relationships from that standpoint. External pressure is not yet significant enough to negate the fruits of cooperation with Tehran. If the US is to be successful in its attempt to isolate Iran by severing these great power connections, it must work to upset their present cost-benefit calculations.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Marissa Allison and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The current strategic landscape in the Gulf is shaped by a competition between Iran, Iraq, the US, and the individual Southern Gulf states for influence in the military, political, and economic realms. Iran is making broad efforts to expand its influence over the entire Gulf, as well as to deter US military action, reduce US influence, and establish itself as the dominant power in the region. In recent years, Iran has pursued this strategy by building up its capability to pose a missile, nuclear, and asymmetric threat; exploiting the Arab-Israeli conflict; attempting to discredit the US; expanding its influence over Iraq's Shiites; and by making direct country-to-country contacts with each of its Southern Gulf neighbors designed to increase its influence and leverage. This report analyzes the nature of the competition between Iran and the US in each Arab Gulf country, paying special attention to Saudi Arabia's major role in this competition.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Brandon Fite and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The various states that comprise the EU and non-EU Europe play a critical role in the competition between the US and Iran. Iran's progress towards a nuclear weapons threshold capability, and evidence that it may be seeking to deploy nuclear armed missiles has led to enhanced policy coordination between leaders in the US and Europe. In the face of a growing Iranian threat, Western governments have stepped up their efforts, including strong economic sanctions, to pressure Iran to fully comply with its obligations under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty. The role Europe plays is laid out in detail in this report. The analysis shows that the EU states, and particularly the EU3 (Britain, France, and Germany), are America's most consistent allies in seeking to roll back Iran's nuclear efforts. Although the approach of EU and European states have differed from that of the US, disagreements with the US have focused more over tactics and timing than over the need to take strong steps to halt Iran's progress towards nuclear weapons.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Alexander Wilner and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Iranian government's statements and actions provide considerable insight into the country's strategic competition with the US. They help show how the regime perceives and responds to external pressure and its relationship with the international community. The regime's rhetoric regarding its 'soft war' against external cultural influence and domestic liberalism as well as laws such as the proposed Supervision of Members of Parliament bill provide key insights into the changing nature of the regime and its outlook. The articles in this report reflect the history of political developments within the Iranian government, as well as the general outlook and priorities of the regime. They also reflect an increasingly authoritarian, hard-line set of attitudes, as well as the regime's tendency to link internal unrest to what it perceives as external ideological threats, including the US. Additionally, they help provide insight into Iran's foreign policy goals, actions abroad, and how it perceives competition with other states. These articles reveal that the progressively more authoritarian and hard-line set of attitudes of the Iranian regime have important implications for the country's strategic competition with the US. Faced with mounting internal pressure and criticism, the regime has responded by purging moderates within the government and aggressively suppressing domestic opposition. The regime has concurrently adopted an apparent intransigence regarding its nuclear program in addition to stepping up its support for paramilitary proxies in other countries such as Afghanistan and Lebanon. In light of these developments, the Iranian regime's authoritarian response to internal dissent correlates with the country's increasingly defiant, aggressive disposition abroad. These statements also show that three central themes have come to dominate Iran's internal politics since Sept. 2010: pressure on the opposition movement and its renewed activity in the wake of protests across the region; efforts on behalf of the ruling establishment to eliminate moderates and conservatives from the country's decision-making process; and, the regime's increased focus on what it deems a 'soft war' against alleged influence and meddling on the part of the foreign 'enemies' and internal dissenters.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Alexander Wilner and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 134 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The recent history of US and Iranian military competition reflects the fact that Iran has sought to bridge the gap in conventional capability by building a strong asymmetric warfare capacity. Iran has also created robust nuclear and ballistic missile programs, which have become a focal point of US-Iranian military competition. Military competition between the US and Iran will likely continue to intensify given the importance of the Gulf in global energy security, Iran's goals of becoming a regional power, and socio-political instability in the Middle East. Despite US conventional superiority, Iran's asymmetric strategy presents a unique challenge for US policy makers, as it hinges on bolstering and diversifying its unconventional, nuclear, and missile capabilities to undermine the US presence in the region. To compete with Iran most effectively, US decision-makers must carefully assess and address Iran's asymmetric strategy, as well as its perception of military competition.

Download or read book US and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Anthony H. Cordesman and published by . This book was released on 2013 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "The US faces major challenges in dealing with Iran, the threat of terrorism, and the tide of political instability in the Middle East. Following visits to the Gulf and discussions with top US, Gulf, and European officials by Burke Chair Anthony Cordesman, the Burke Chair at CSIS in Strategy is issuing an updated edition of its study on Iran's military threat in the Gulf, titled "The Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula." This new edition builds on previous Burke Chair reports, including: US and Iranian Strategic Competition: The Conventional and Asymmetric Dimensions--This study looks at Iran's Military forces in detail, and the balance of forces in the Gulf Region. US and Iranian Strategic Competition: The Missile and Nuclear--This study looks at Iran's Missile and Nuclear forces. "The Gulf and the Arabian Peninsula" examines in detail the Iranian military threat in the Gulf, as well as US-Gulf security cooperation with the Southern Gulf States. The report is written by Anthony H. Cordesman and Robert M. Shelala II, and is available on the CSIS web site at http://csis.org/files/publication/120228_Iran_Ch_VI_Gulf_State.pdf It examines the growing US security partnership with Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE--established as the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC). It analyzes the steady growth in this partnership that has led to over $64 billion in new US arms transfer agreements during 2008-2011. It also examines the strengths and weaknesses of the security cooperation between the Southern Gulf states, and their relative level of political, social, and economic stability. The study focuses on the need for enhanced unity and security cooperation between the individual Gulf states. It finds that such progress is critical if they are to provide effective deterrence and defense against Iran. Improve their counterterrorism capabilities, and enhance other aspects of their internal security."--Publisher description.

Download or read book US Strategic Competition with Iran written by Jordan D'Amato and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 51 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: As the US continues to search for a solution to its diplomatic and military issues with Iran, competition is likely to intensify. The structure of this competition will depend on several variables including global economic trends and energy prices, the impact of sanctions on Tehran's strategic calculus, the character of the incoming US Congress, and Sino-American and US-Russia relations. American policy makers must continue to balance diplomatic, economic, and military options to engage Iran. Nonetheless, until the United States is able to change Iran's strategic objectives, it is unlikely that the Islamic Republic will act against its own national interests. It is not possible to predict how Tehran's strategic calculus will change in response to ongoing multilateral sanctions. It is clear, however, that both the United States and Iran have conflicting political and geostrategic interests which drive competition over regional resources and influence. Given that these interests are vital for both powers, US strategic competition with Iran over the nuclear issue, economics, and energy resources is likely to continue in the near future.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Aram Nerguizian and published by . This book was released on 2012 with total page 148 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Iran's efforts to expand its regional influence in the Levant, Egypt and Jordan are a key aspect of its strategic competition with the US. Nearly twenty years after Israel's invasion of Lebanon in 1982, and five years after the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah War, the US and its allies continue to struggle with the realities of Iran's growing influence in the region and its use of proxy and asymmetric warfare. The Islamic Republic has developed strong ties with Syria and non-state actors in the region, including the Lebanese Shi'a group Hezbollah and the Palestinian Hamas Islamist movement in what Iranian and Syrian leaders have dubbed the 'Resistance Axis.' Iran continues to exploit Arab-Israeli tensions in ways that make it an active barrier to a lasting Arab-Israeli peace, while the US must deal with Arab hostility to its strategic partnership with Israel. At the same time, both the US and Iran face new uncertainties in dealing with Egypt, Syria, and the wave of unrest in the Arab world. At the same time, both the US and Iran face an unprecedented level of policy instability in the Levant, and the rest of the Middle East and North Africa, that affects every aspect of their regional competition. At present, no one can predict the outcome in any given case. Even the short term impact of changes in regimes is not predictable, nor is how they will affect the underlying drivers of regional tensions. It is particularly dangerous to ignore the risk of replacing one form of failed governance with another one, and the prospect of years of further political instability or upheavals. Syria has been a challenge for US policy-makers for decades. Yet the current round of instability is unprecedented and the US is not likely to enact a coherent strategy in the short term. This in turn informs the future pace and form of competition with Iran over Syria. While Lebanon has been relatively stable during the current period of upheaval, there are real risks of instability as well as opportunities to manage security politics in the Levant that the US should not ignore. As this report shows, Israel too is an arena for US-Iranian competition and the recent cycle of instability will remain critical to how both countries develop their bilateral relationship and security ties. The place and role of the Palestinians in US policy and competition with Iran are part and parcel of US-Iranian competition over Israel. Lastly, US policy towards Egypt and Jordan are driven by a number of common factors that have impacted whether or not these two key US allies become exposed to Iranian influence and interference. This report is a working draft, part of a comprehensive survey of US and Iranian competition and which is to be published as an electronic book in early March.

Download or read book U S and Iranian Strategic Competition written by Erin Fitzgerald and published by . This book was released on 2011 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: US and Iranian efforts to bolster their strategic ties to Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Central Asia are another significant aspect of their confrontation. This aspect of the competition between them is analyzed in detail in U.S. and Iranian Strategic Competition: The Impact of Afghanistan, Central Asia, and Pakistan.--Publisher description.