Foreign Policy on Iran Patt Riley Matt Cowell Jordan Klunder-MIA

Background Iran has a population of 80 million Around 90% of Iranians are Shia Muslims which dominates their government (Theocracy) Iran was U.S. ally when Shah was in power, he was oppressive and in the late 1970’s he was overthrown by a popular revolt that created anti American sentiment still held today

Foreign Affairs Iran refuses to recognize Israel as a nation and does not have official diplomatic relations with the U.S. Iran is supported tentatively by Russia and China. It also has ties to Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez and has trade with Bolivia, Ecuador, and Nicaragua.

Public Opinion 32% of Americans believe Iran is the biggest threat to America’s safety (largest number) But only one in four Americans favor a military strike on Iran

Split by Parties Around 80% of Democrats feel the U.S. and her allies should pursue further negotiations with Iran while only about half of Republicans do Many Republicans criticize Obama for being too easy on Iran and not giving enough support to Israel

Differing Opinions Obama met with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel to discuss these differences Obama believes that they should have diplomacy and pressure Obama reassured Netanyahu that U.S. is determined to keep nuclear weapons out of Iranian hands

Cont. Obama told that same audience Sunday that it would be wise for the U.S. to speak softly and carry a big stick. The loose talk of war, he warned, is only benefiting Iran by driving up oil prices Daniel Levy of the New America Foundation says Obama played it well, reassuring Israelis that the U.S. has Israel's back, while not giving into his Republican critics or Netanyahu's calls for clear red lines

Differences (cont.) He also tried to persuade Israel to give diplomacy and sanctions some time and not rush to military action Netanyahu said he has been warning the world about the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran for the past 15 years the Israeli leader made clear his country reserves the right to attack pre-emptively, saying Israel must remain master of its fate.

Quote "My friends, Israel has waited, patiently waited, for the international community to resolve this issue. We've waited for diplomacy to work. We've waited for sanctions to work. None of us can afford to wait much longer," he said to applause. "As prime minister of Israel, I will never let my people live in the shadow of annihilation."

Support in the U.S. Netanyahu dismissed those who worry about the costs of striking Iran. He says it is time to talk about the costs of not stopping Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons capability Netanyahu won loud cheers at AIPAC, as did Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, who called for "overwhelming force" against Iran if it begins to enrich uranium to weapons-grade levels

Iran’s Defense Iran claims to be developing nuclear technology for the purpose of creating clean energy Experts believe even if Iran were to secretly develop nuclear weapons they would not have them available until 2013

Alternative Solutions Sanctions have been the number one tool by which the U.S. and her allies have taken on Iran, first sanctions on companies and products related to the nuclear research but recently the scope of sanctions have widened Diplomacy is the ideal solution for the issue requiring no bloodshed and possibly benefiting both sides,

Consequences of Action The Iranians have threatened to blockade the Strait of Hormuz, where around a third of the worlds oil passes through They have already responded to the recent EU sanctions by cutting oil exports to the UK and France Conflict with Iran would be costly to the already strained governments of the U.S. and Israel

The Progressive American-Iranian Committee “Doves” oppose any conflict with Iran Oppose harsh sanctions on Iran and support open diplomacy with Iran Criticize the state department for siding with lobby groups that undermine theocracy of Iran Comprised of mostly Iranian Americans

Interest Groups The Emergency Committee for Israel is a religious group that favors action against Iran to protect Israel It is led by evangelical Christians and recently published a one page paper in the NY times urging Americans to call their politicians and ask for them to support Israel and a military strike on Iran

Why Military Action is Advocated Iran’s claim that they are using nuclear research in pursuit is illogical considering their vast reserves of oil and natural gas International investigations of the program have found that the focus of the Iranian research is Uranium enrichment, a key component of creating nuclear weapons

Military Action “Hawks” believe now is the time to strike Iran, before they have the capability to strike back with nuclear weapons Iran has threatened Israel and the West before, claiming it would “blow Israel into the Mediterranean” and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has proven to be an anti Semite and an unstable leader Israel has air superiority