Listen free for 30 days
-
The Iran Wars
- Spy Games, Bank Battles, and the Secret Deals That Reshaped the Middle East
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: History, Americas
Add to basket failed.
Add to wishlist failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Listen with a free trial
Buy Now for £29.59
No valid payment method on file.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Shadow Commander
- Soleimani, the US, and Iran’s Global Ambitions
- By: Arash Azizi
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Until his assassination by US drone strike in January 2020, commander Qassem Soleimani was one of the most powerful men in Iran and the military spearhead for Iranian foreign policy, enacting the wishes of the country's Supreme Leader in the region. A widely popular but also feared maverick operator, he helped to establish the Islamic Republic as a major force in the Middle East, with interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. This was a long way from where he began as a youth, living on the margins in a country ruled by a monarch supported by the United States.
-
-
Fast track of IRGC AND ISLAMIC REV HISTORY
- By amir zadsham on 27-12-20
-
The Road to 9/11
- Wealth, Empire, and the Future of America
- By: Peter Dale Scott
- Narrated by: Raymond Todd
- Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is an ambitious, meticulous examination of how U.S. foreign policy since the 1960s has led to partial or total cover-ups of past domestic criminal acts, including, perhaps, the catastrophe of 9/11. Peter Dale Scott, whose previous books have investigated CIA involvement in southeast Asia, the drug wars, and the Kennedy assassination, here probes how the policies of presidents since Nixon have augmented the tangled bases for the 2001 terrorist attack.
-
Gangsterismo
- The United States, Cuba and the Mafia, 1933 to 1966
- By: Jack Colhoun
- Narrated by: Steve Coulter
- Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gangsterismo is an extraordinary accomplishment, the most comprehensive history yet of the clash of epic forces over several decades in Cuba. It is a chronicle that touches upon deep and ongoing themes in the history of the Americas, and more specifically of the United States government, Cuba before and after the revolution, and the criminal networks known as the Mafia.
-
-
Terrific book. Misleading title.
- By wordparty on 14-09-15
-
Putin’s People
- How the KGB Took Back Russia and then Took on the West
- By: Catherine Belton
- Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
- Length: 18 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Putin's People, former Moscow correspondent and investigative journalist Catherine Belton tells the untold story of the rise of Vladimir Putin and the small group of KGB men surrounding him. Delving deep into the workings of Putin's Kremlin, Belton accesses key inside players to reveal how Putin replaced the free-wheeling tycoons of the Yeltsin era with a new generation of loyal oligarchs who in turn subverted their country's economy and legal system and expanded its influence in the West.
-
-
Chilling expose of Putin’s People and there control and abuse of Russia
- By Mr M J Wheatland on 16-06-20
-
Kleptopia
- How Dirty Money Is Conquering the World
- By: Tom Burgis
- Narrated by: Tom Burgis
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
They are everywhere, the thieves and their people. Masters of secrecy. Until now we have detected their presence only by what they leave behind. A body in a burned-out Audi. Workers riddled with bullets in the Kazakh desert. A rigged election in Zimbabwe. A British banker silenced and humiliated for trying to expose the truth about the City of London. They have amassed more money than most countries. But what they are really stealing is power.
-
-
Genuinely Fascinating
- By Ellie on 08-02-21
-
The Age of Sacred Terror
- Radical Islam's War Against America
- By: Daniel Benjamin, Steven Simon
- Narrated by: Philip Bosco
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Long before September 11, 2001, Steven Simon and Daniel Benjamin warned publicly of a massive terrorist strike against America. They were not voices from the fringe; they had been the directors of the White House's counterterrorism program. Their warnings were ignored. Now they have written the definitive work on radical Islam's war against America, from its deep origins to our long struggle ahead.
-
-
very good
- By Bernie on 07-09-15
-
The Shadow Commander
- Soleimani, the US, and Iran’s Global Ambitions
- By: Arash Azizi
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 10 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Until his assassination by US drone strike in January 2020, commander Qassem Soleimani was one of the most powerful men in Iran and the military spearhead for Iranian foreign policy, enacting the wishes of the country's Supreme Leader in the region. A widely popular but also feared maverick operator, he helped to establish the Islamic Republic as a major force in the Middle East, with interventions in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, and Yemen. This was a long way from where he began as a youth, living on the margins in a country ruled by a monarch supported by the United States.
-
-
Fast track of IRGC AND ISLAMIC REV HISTORY
- By amir zadsham on 27-12-20
-
The Road to 9/11
- Wealth, Empire, and the Future of America
- By: Peter Dale Scott
- Narrated by: Raymond Todd
- Length: 11 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is an ambitious, meticulous examination of how U.S. foreign policy since the 1960s has led to partial or total cover-ups of past domestic criminal acts, including, perhaps, the catastrophe of 9/11. Peter Dale Scott, whose previous books have investigated CIA involvement in southeast Asia, the drug wars, and the Kennedy assassination, here probes how the policies of presidents since Nixon have augmented the tangled bases for the 2001 terrorist attack.
-
Gangsterismo
- The United States, Cuba and the Mafia, 1933 to 1966
- By: Jack Colhoun
- Narrated by: Steve Coulter
- Length: 13 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gangsterismo is an extraordinary accomplishment, the most comprehensive history yet of the clash of epic forces over several decades in Cuba. It is a chronicle that touches upon deep and ongoing themes in the history of the Americas, and more specifically of the United States government, Cuba before and after the revolution, and the criminal networks known as the Mafia.
-
-
Terrific book. Misleading title.
- By wordparty on 14-09-15
-
Putin’s People
- How the KGB Took Back Russia and then Took on the West
- By: Catherine Belton
- Narrated by: Dugald Bruce-Lockhart
- Length: 18 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Putin's People, former Moscow correspondent and investigative journalist Catherine Belton tells the untold story of the rise of Vladimir Putin and the small group of KGB men surrounding him. Delving deep into the workings of Putin's Kremlin, Belton accesses key inside players to reveal how Putin replaced the free-wheeling tycoons of the Yeltsin era with a new generation of loyal oligarchs who in turn subverted their country's economy and legal system and expanded its influence in the West.
-
-
Chilling expose of Putin’s People and there control and abuse of Russia
- By Mr M J Wheatland on 16-06-20
-
Kleptopia
- How Dirty Money Is Conquering the World
- By: Tom Burgis
- Narrated by: Tom Burgis
- Length: 10 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
They are everywhere, the thieves and their people. Masters of secrecy. Until now we have detected their presence only by what they leave behind. A body in a burned-out Audi. Workers riddled with bullets in the Kazakh desert. A rigged election in Zimbabwe. A British banker silenced and humiliated for trying to expose the truth about the City of London. They have amassed more money than most countries. But what they are really stealing is power.
-
-
Genuinely Fascinating
- By Ellie on 08-02-21
-
The Age of Sacred Terror
- Radical Islam's War Against America
- By: Daniel Benjamin, Steven Simon
- Narrated by: Philip Bosco
- Length: 6 hrs and 13 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Long before September 11, 2001, Steven Simon and Daniel Benjamin warned publicly of a massive terrorist strike against America. They were not voices from the fringe; they had been the directors of the White House's counterterrorism program. Their warnings were ignored. Now they have written the definitive work on radical Islam's war against America, from its deep origins to our long struggle ahead.
-
-
very good
- By Bernie on 07-09-15
-
MI6
- Life and Death in the British Secret Service
- By: Gordon Corera
- Narrated by: Gordon Corera
- Length: 15 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The British Secret Service has been cloaked in secrecy and shrouded in myth since it was created 100 years ago. Our understanding of what it is to be a spy has been largely defined by the fictional worlds of James Bond and John le Carre. MI6 provides a unique and unprecedented insight into this secret world and the reality that lies behind the fiction.
-
-
A brilliant history.
- By mcfontaine on 30-03-21
-
Rise and Kill First
- The Secret History of Israel's Targeted Assassinations
- By: Ronen Bergman
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro
- Length: 25 hrs and 58 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this pause-resisting, eye-opening audiobook, journalist and military analyst Ronen Bergman - praised by David Remnick as 'arguably [Israel's] best investigative reporter' - offers a riveting inside account of the targeted killing programs: their successes, their failures, and the moral and political price exacted on the men and women who approved and carried out the missions.
-
-
Fascinating, enlightening and shocking
- By Derrick on 19-01-19
-
How Spies Think
- Ten Lessons in Intelligence
- By: David Omand
- Narrated by: David Omand
- Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the former director of GCHQ, learn the methodology used by the British intelligence agencies to reach judgements, establish the right level of confidence and act decisively. Intelligence officers discern the truth. They gather information - often contradictory or incomplete - and, with it, they build the most accurate possible image of the world. With the stakes at their absolute highest, they must then decide what to do.
-
-
Not the way to teach maths.
- By Bouquiniste on 22-11-20
-
Directorate S
- The C.I.A. and America's Secret Wars in Afghanistan and Pakistan
- By: Steve Coll
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 28 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Resuming the narrative of his Pulitzer Prize-winning Ghost Wars, best-selling author Steve Coll tells for the first time the epic and enthralling story of America's intelligence, military, and diplomatic efforts to defeat Al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan since 9/11.
-
-
Filled with facts and beautifully written
- By Saad on 08-05-18
-
The Spymaster of Baghdad
- The Untold Story of the Elite Intelligence Cell That Turned the Tide Against ISIS
- By: Margaret Coker
- Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell
- Length: 10 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Spymaster of Baghdad is the gripping story of the top-secret Iraqi intelligence unit that infiltrated the Islamic State. More so than that of any foreign power, the information they gathered turned the tide against the insurgency, paving the way to the killing of ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in 2019.
-
-
Super interesting.
- By E. Shachaf on 01-03-22
-
America's War for the Greater Middle East
- A Military History
- By: Andrew J. Bacevich
- Narrated by: Rob Shapiro, Andrew J. Bacevich
- Length: 15 hrs and 7 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From the end of World War II until 1980, virtually no American soldiers were killed in action while serving in the Greater Middle East. Since 1990, virtually no American soldiers have been killed in action anywhere else. What caused this shift? Andrew J. Bacevich, one of the country's most respected voices on foreign affairs, offers an incisive critical history of this ongoing military enterprise - now more than 30 years old and with no end in sight.
-
-
Must read
- By ReadingFan on 03-05-16
-
Black Wave
- Saudi Arabia, Iran and the Rivalry That Unravelled the Middle East
- By: Kim Ghattas
- Narrated by: Kim Ghattas, Nan McNamara
- Length: 16 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A timely and unprecedented examination of how the modern Middle East unravelled and why it started with the pivotal year of 1979. 'What happened to us?' For decades, the question has haunted the Arab and Muslim world, heard across Iran and Syria, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan, and in the author's home country of Lebanon. Was it always so? When did the extremism, intolerance and bloodletting of today displace the region's cultural promise and diversity?
-
-
A real five star eye opener
- By E P on 16-02-20
-
Six Days of War
- June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East
- By: Michael B. Oren
- Narrated by: Robert Whitfield
- Length: 17 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In Israel and the West, it is called the Six Day War. In the Arab world, it is known as the June War or, simply, as "the Setback". Never has a conflict so short, unforeseen, and largely unwanted by both sides so transformed the world. The Yom Kippur War, the war in Lebanon, the Camp David accords, the controversy over Jerusalem and Jewish settlements in the West Bank, the intifada, and the rise of Palestinian terror are all part of the outcome of those six days.
-
-
A fascinating acoount of the politics of a war
- By Mark on 25-04-12
-
Exceptional
- Why the World Needs A Powerful America
- By: Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney
- Narrated by: Liz Cheney, Dick Cheney
- Length: 7 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A new book by former vice president and number-one New York Times best-selling author Dick Cheney and Liz Cheney.
-
Known and Unknown
- A Memoir
- By: Donald Rumsfeld
- Narrated by: Donald Rumsfeld
- Length: 30 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A powerful memoir from the late former US Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld. With the same directness that defined his career in public service, Rumsfeld's memoir is filled with previously undisclosed details and insights about the Bush administration, 9/11, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq. It also features Rumsfeld's unique and often surprising observations on eight decades of history. Both a fascinating narrative and an unprecedented glimpse into history, Known and Unknown captures the legacy of one of the most influential men in public service.
-
-
Stuff Happens
- By Nathan Matthews on 27-01-21
-
MBS: The Rise to Power of Mohammad bin Salman
- By: Ben Hubbard
- Narrated by: Robert Petkoff
- Length: 11 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
MBS is the untold story of how one man fought his way to the summit of power in Saudi Arabia, the wealthiest country in the Middle East and a key ally of the United States. Even in his youth as an obscure prince among the vast Saudi royal family, Mohammed bin Salman nurtured sweeping ambitions to accumulate power and reshape his staunchly conservative kingdom and its interactions with the world.
-
-
A lopsided view, but a great read nonetheless
- By Lance Johnson on 08-06-20
-
The Looming Tower
- Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11
- By: Lawrence Wright
- Narrated by: Lawrence Wright
- Length: 16 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A sweeping narrative history of the events leading to 9/11, a groundbreaking look at the people and ideas, the terrorist plans and the Western intelligence failures that culminated in the assault on America. Lawrence Wright's remarkable book is based on five years of research and hundreds of interviews that he conducted in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Sudan, England, France, Germany, Spain, and the United States.
-
-
Astounding
- By HashTag on 03-09-18
Summary
From Qasem Soleimani to the nuclear deal, a deeply reported exploration of Iran’s decades-long power struggle with the United States - in the tradition of Steve Coll’s Ghost Wars and Lawrence Wright’s The Looming Tower
“A front-row view of the spy games, assassinations, political intrigue and high-stakes diplomacy that have defined relations with one of America’s most cunning and dangerous foes.” (Joby Warrick, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS)
For more than a decade, the United States has been engaged in a war with Iran as momentous as any other in the Middle East - a war all the more significant as it has largely been hidden from public view. Through a combination of economic sanctions, global diplomacy, and intelligence work, successive US administrations have struggled to contain Iran’s aspirations to become a nuclear power and dominate the region - what many view as the most serious threat to peace in the Middle East. Meanwhile, Iran has used regional instability to its advantage to undermine America’s interests. The Iran Wars is an absorbing account of a battle waged on many levels - military, financial, and covert.
Jay Solomon’s book is the product of extensive in-depth reporting and interviews with all the key players in the conflict - from high-ranking Iranian officials to Secretary of State John Kerry and his negotiating team. With a reporter’s masterly investigative eye and the narrative dexterity of a great historian, Solomon shows how Iran’s nuclear development went unnoticed for years by the international community only to become its top security concern. He catalogs the blunders of both the Bush and Obama administrations as they grappled with how to engage Iran, producing a series of both carrots and sticks. And he takes us inside the hotel suites where the 2015 nuclear agreement was negotiated, offering a frank assessment of the uncertain future of the US-Iran relationship.
This is a book rife with revelations, from the secret communications between the Obama administration and the Iranian government to dispatches from the front lines of the new field of financial warfare. The Iran Wars exposes the hidden history of a conflict whose outcome could have far-reaching geopolitical implications.
Critic reviews
"An illuminating, deeply reported account from one of the best journalists writing about the Middle East today. Jay Solomon's The Iran Wars offers a front-row view of the spy games, assassinations, political intrigue and high-stakes diplomacy that have defined relations with one of America's most cunning and dangerous foes." (Joby Warrick, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Black Flags: The Rise of ISIS)
"Wall Street Journal chief foreign affairs correspondent [Jay] Solomon offers an evenhanded look at the backdoor schemes involving the building of Iran's nuclear weapons and the world players involved in and against its machinations...." (Kirkus Reviews)
More from the same
What listeners say about The Iran Wars
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Michael Friedman
- 03-05-17
An important history of the Iran Nuclear Deal
This important book chronicles the history of US/Iranian relations since the 1979 revolution and does an excellent job of describing the amazingly complex process that resulted in the Iran nuclear deal. It is a far from perfect agreement and only time will tell if it will serve its purpose of opening up Iran, preventing nuclear proliferation and stopping a war in the Mideast. This book also describes how interrelated, complex and difficult the process was to bring Iran to the bargaining table. The ability to bring our allies, especially Europe, on board with tremendous banking sanctions coupled with balancing diplomacy with our other allies (Saudi Arabia, Oman, Israel, etc.) makes one hope that he best of the best can direct our countries towards peace in the coming years. Mr. Solomon was a participant as a journalist and historian during these years and his views are important and well written.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- MindinMotion
- 29-05-18
Solid recounting by knowledgeable writer
A very fair account given the perceived conservative bias of the WSJ that Solomon writes for. This recounts the successes and failures of our decades old relationship with Iran and leaves one with an understanding of both sides. Well worth the time.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Ernie Acosta
- 21-05-17
Interesting and Insightfull Without Anti-US Bias
What did you love best about The Iran Wars?
Well substantiated story without opinion. Allows the reader to develop his own opinion regarding US policy to countering Iran. Very interesting to learn about the strategy behind economic sanctions and the manner in which they are implemented.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- DTM
- 11-12-16
Clarity on middle east politics
Insight into the dynamics of the middle east and major players that have shaped middle east foreign policy
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Sushanth R
- 16-11-16
Iran demystified
What made the experience of listening to The Iran Wars the most enjoyable?
The inner details of complex international negotiations were revealed in an engaging manner.
What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?
The author being a professional journalist has covered the story thoroughly. Its an ongoing episode and the longterm repercussions are not fully understood. History would decide the winners and losers.
Which scene was your favorite?
All scenes related to negotiations that lasted close to three years.
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
Green Movement
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall

- Alexander Betzel
- 15-06-21
pretty tame overview
This book reads like an Israeli/US State Department overview of US - Iranian relations. Barely questions US decision to invade Iraq or institute institutions friendly to US interests, but drones on about the evils Iran had committed. Iran is evil for supporting Hamas, Hezbollah, and the Mahdi army, but the US supporting the Taliban, Sunni groups (both before and after invasions in Afghanistan and Iraq), Mossad (a little less directly) and Israeli interests is justified and in accordance with Western values (it's not). If you can look past the dog shit political takes and misinformation from US and Israeli sources trying to cover their own ass, it's not horrible for a biased history.
The funny thing is how many Israelis he quotes saying they were against the Iraq War, which we now have definitive proof was largely a result of the Israeli lobby and their neoconservative allies. He often gloss over the natural coincidence of interests between the US and Iran and makes erroneous conclusions that Iranian terrorism is uniquely a threat to the US (... and Israel?).
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- JL
- 06-01-20
great and accurate historical Of Iran
perfect historical recent of Iran. interested to read more of this author. It is great
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Jim
- 19-03-17
Titled Towards Confrontation
Any additional comments?
Jay Solomon’s The Iran Wars tilts heavily towards a confrontational approach to Iran. Light on both analysis of Iran’s strategic goals and the regional context, he cherry picks events and perspectives to make the Iran Nuclear Agreement seem destabilizing and harmful. He glosses over the fact that without the agreement Iran would have the bomb or we would have attacked them. The deal is only a step in the right direction and taking more steps will be difficult. The US needs help understanding Iran so that we know where to pressure them and where to extend a hand. But this book’s preference for rhetoric over analysis fails to deliver such understanding and provides a rationale for simplistic, unreflective positions on Iran.
The contains a great deal of solid information on US sanctions, the negotiation process and Iran’s support of various proxies in the region. It is a shame that such an informed and influential journalized spends so much ink stoking fear rather that increasing understanding.
Here are a few examples:
2003 Iraq War:
Solomon does a great job of describing Iran’s dual approach to the conflict. They supported the democratic process in Iraq because pro-Iranian Shiite candidates closely tied to the Iran kept winning. They simultaneously supported Shia insurgencies, training and arming fighters who accounted for 20% of the American deaths in Iraq. This is how Iran works. They shake with one hand while slashing out with a knife in the other. Doubling dealing is what they expect and respect. Our approach needs to understand this. The nuclear diplomacy worked because of the economic noose we squeezed around the country while talking. But how should we apply pressure now?
Iran’s goals:
Solomon’s says little about Iran’s goal beyond “to defeat the US or destroy Israel.” This doesn’t help us understand the country, which is critical to achieving our ends. Here is a simple version of the country’s goals:
Iran seeks to enhance its regional and global stature; to promote its ideals, including Islamic democracy but it is distinct religiously (Shia vs. Sunni) and culturally (Arab vs. Persian) from most of its neighbors. It has chosen to attract other countries by aggression action with US and Israel.
And so they:
- Continuously harass Israel from via proxies.
- Works to weaken Saudi Arabia, its only serious Arab opponent, to the extent that Riyadh can no longer oppose its regional expansion.
- Keeps Iraq, Lebanon, and Syria fragmented along sectarian lines so that the secular Arab order will face colossal challenges whenever it manages to emerge.
Their goal isn’t to defeat us as much as inflate themselves. Is there a different path for them to the influence that they seek? How might we encourage them to try it?
Green Revolution:
Solomon rightly points out that we had no idea the popular rejection of Iranian election outcome was coming. The Obama Administration took a stance of silence. It was consistent with their approach to the country. Solomon engages fantasy thinking when saying missed a tremendous opportunity. We have helped plenty of countries overthrow their leaders, but it takes planning, support and lots of lead-time. As horrific as Iran’s repression of the protestors was, perhaps our silence avoided a worse outcome. The protestors struggled against both a theocratic government and the military that controls almost half of the economy. Supporting the protestors was unlikely to uproot either power-base and may have just created another Syrian or Libyan catastrophe.
I’m not arguing the Obama Administration made the right the decision but rather that Solomon’s description is idealistic and incomplete. His certainty that we missed an opportunity is founded on sand because he has given us so little content on Iran’s internal factions or external goals. He relies on some undergraduate hope that the people just need to rise up and over through the government. It is an argument made for use by American pundits on American TV but doesn’t help us understand Iran.
Same ol’ partisan fights:
We need to drop the Democratic/Republican split when discussing foreign relations. Far too often we use event overseas as fodder for political battles as home. This is dangerous as we end up acting based on internal politics rather than external realities. Solomon’s book suffers from this penchant as US mistakes under the Bush Administration get minimized while those under Obama’s get amplified. We would be better served by examining the interests of the entire country rather than one party at a time. Or how about we focus on the inherent weakness of switching approaches every 4 or 8 years?
Our relationship with Iran two possible futures: Solomon rightly says that we don’t understand or trust Iran and that there are two possible futures for our relationship with Iran. He describes one future as greater conflict and mistrust. He hopes that future isn’t before us – but never states what the other future is! The other future never even gets named, never mind described. How about Iran positions itself as a trading hub, a cultural center, and a regional model, instead of as an opponent and threat. They build hospitals rather than bombs. We don’t know which future will develop. But if we maintain our bias towards confrontation, Iran is likely to remain an oppositional threat.
My wish is that journalists such as Solomon spend more time discussing how to improve the situation rather than gear us up for war. The seeds of such an approach lie dormant in the book. The US’ dual strategy of diplomacy and tough sanctions worked. We must conduct open dialogue while tightening the screws. The hard part is to know where to place the screws. Solomon describes how effective General Petraeus is in combatting Iran’s use of IRAM weapons in Iraq. He knew the players, the tactics, and their intentions, and, therefore, developed a strong, effective deterrent. But such informed action is very rare in our dealing with Iran. We rarely know what is happening in the country, who has influence, what they want or how they plan to get it. This is the information so needed and the information that is missing in this book.
5 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Ashley Celestine
- 17-09-16
Inside to the Iran-US relations
Excellent in-debt book! What the media doesn't tell about the two countries relationship with each other.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- dave
- 04-06-21
brilliant recount
just brilliant. a must for anyone who is interested in the middle east, Iranian history and current events