Iranian President Hassan Rouhani was elected on a moderate foreign policy platform which promised, among other things, to resolve the Iranian nuclear crisis, thereby weakening the harsh economic sanctions imposed on Iran for its nuclear program. The Bashar al-Assad regime’s alleged use of chemical weapons against rebels and civilians and a potential U.S. military response, however, has the potential to undo the Rouhani administration’s moderate foreign policy by escalating tension between Iran and the United States and its allies, specifically undermining nuclear negotiations. Rouhani may have hoped to ignore Syria while engaging in nuclear negotiations, leaving it in the hands of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) who […]
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