Synopses & Reviews
Have the diplomatic efforts of the Obama administration toward Iran failed? Was the Bush administration's emphasis on military intervention, refusal to negotiate, and pursuit of regime change a better approach? How can the United States best address the ongoing turmoil in Tehran? This book provides a definitive and comprehensive analysis of the Obama administration's early diplomatic outreach to Iran and discusses the best way to move toward more positive relations between the two discordant states.
Trita Parsi, a Middle East foreign policy expert with extensive Capitol Hill and United Nations experience, interviewed 70 high-ranking officials from the U.S., Iran, Europe, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Brazil—including the top American and Iranian negotiators—for this book. Parsi uncovers the previously unknown story of American and Iranian negotiations during Obama's early years as president, the calculations behind the two nations' dealings, and the real reasons for their current stalemate. Contrary to prevailing opinion, Parsi contends that diplomacy has not been fully tried. For various reasons, Obama's diplomacy ended up being a single roll of the dice. It had to work either immediately—or not at all. Persistence and perseverance are keys to any negotiation. Neither Iran nor the U.S. had them in 2009.
Review
"You gotta get this. . . . Really, it is an amazing perspective on all the elements that go into even the smallest of diplomatic deals."—Jon Stewart, The Daily Show Jon Stewart
Review
"Well-timed...Absorbing...A tale of missed opportunities, obduracy and short-sightedness, all of which are pushing the Middle East towards greater instability."—Economist The Daily Show
Review
"The most incisive account available. . . . Eminently readable, sometimes gripping."—L. Carl Brown, Foreign Affairs Economist
Review
"From leaked cables, confidential documents, and dozens of interviews, Parsi reconstructs the history of political trauma that underlies the United States' relationship with Iran. . . [Parsi] explores an important issue in depth and with clarity, providing a useful view of current concerns about a nuclear Iran.”—New Yorker L. Carl Brown - Foreign Affairs
Review
"With this book, Trita Parsi has given us an authoritative document on one of today's most urgent and nettlesome foreign policy challenges. He not only draws on the published record, but contributes original reporting from the vantage points of all the players, including the Iranian perspective. It will be edifying for a wide range of readers, from foreign policy specialists to anyone with a stake in the outcome—which is all of us."—David Shorr, Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists New Yorker
Review
"In this penetrating, thoughtful, and engaging book, Parsi (president, National Iranian American Council) gives the reader a rare glimpse into the complexities of the Obama administration's policy toward the Islamic Republic of Iran in the first three years of his administration. . . . his analysis is balanced, piercing, insightful, refreshing, and rich in facts and details. Readers are going to find much food for thought in this volume, which sheds light on one of the most vexing political imbroglios of the last 30 years . . . this timely book is a must read."—M. Dorraj, Choice David Shorr - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
Synopsis
The first objective assessment of the high-stakes diplomatic sparring between Washington and Tehran during President Obama’s first years in office
Synopsis
The first objective assessment of the high-stakes diplomatic sparring between Washington and Tehran during President Obama's first years in office
Have the diplomatic efforts of the Obama administration toward Iran failed? Was the Bush administration's emphasis on military intervention, refusal to negotiate, and pursuit of regime change a better approach? How can the United States best address the ongoing turmoil in Tehran? This book provides a definitive and comprehensive analysis of the Obama administration's early diplomatic outreach to Iran and discusses the best way to move toward more positive relations between the two discordant states.
Trita Parsi, a Middle East foreign policy expert with extensive Capitol Hill and United Nations experience, interviewed 70 high-ranking officials from the U.S., Iran, Europe, Israel, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Brazil--including the top American and Iranian negotiators--for this book. Parsi uncovers the previously unknown story of American and Iranian negotiations during Obama's early years as president, the calculations behind the two nations' dealings, and the real reasons for their current stalemate. Contrary to prevailing opinion, Parsi contends that diplomacy has not been fully tried. For various reasons, Obama's diplomacy ended up being a single roll of the dice. It had to work either immediately--or not at all. Persistence and perseverance are keys to any negotiation. Neither Iran nor the U.S. had them in 2009.
Synopsis
In this illuminating book, Trita Parsi uncovers the full details of the diplomatic encounters between Washington and Tehran during Obama's early presidency, then discusses whether diplomacy should be the foreign policy approach of choice for the U.S.
About the Author
Trita Parsi is president of the National Iranian American Council and a former Public Policy Scholar at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. In 2010 he received the Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order, and he is frequently consulted by Western and Asian governments on foreign policy matters. He lives in McLean, VA.