Foreign Policy

This subject is scheduled to be discussed on December 9, 2013.

After years of an intensifying standoff between the U.N. Security Council and Iran, an agreement was recently announced to moderate the pace of Iran’s nuclear development and to provide a time frame for negotiating a more comprehensive agreement.

• Does the agreement make war more or less likely? (On the face of it, many have argued that, while not perfect, the agreement makes military action much less likely. Others have taken the position that the six month time frame may severely narrow our options if the period elapses without significant progress toward a full agreement.)
• Should Congress pass additional sanctions to bolster the pressure on Iran if they do not agree to severe limits on their nuclear activities?
• What evidence is there that the Iranians are actually pursuing a nuclear weapon?
• Israel and Saudi Arabia both seem to dislike this agreement…to what degree should that give the U.S. cause for concern?
• How should we interpret the different ways the two sides characterize the agreement? The Iranians say the agreement recognizes their “right to enrich;” the US says they do not have any such right.)

Here are some recent Economist articles to read on the subject:

20131130 The Iran Deal (Economist)

20131130 Unlocking the Middle East (Economist)

This subject was discussed on October 14, 2013.

The attached article, located by one of the active Beyond Labels participants, examines the possibility that the Obama administration “may have strayed into the radical reforging of American foreign policy.” The author, Graham Fuller, is a former colleague of another participant.

This week’s topic will be to examine that assertion in the context of current events. To the extent we have time, we will also discuss the latest goings-on in Washington, DC. It’s been an eventful week!

20130930 Has Obama (Inadvertently) Broken the Mold in US Foreign Policy