The Iran Files II: Why This War May Still End in Constrained Negotiations

The declassified record suggests the present war against Iran may end in the same pattern of constrained diplomacy, but with the balance of leverage shifting toward Tehran.

In March 2009, while serving as a diplomat in a country bordering Iran, I received an unexpected meeting request from the Deputy Chief of Mission (DCM) of the US Embassy. Only a week earlier, President Barack Obama had congratulated the Iranian people on Nowruz (Persian New Year) and offered a “new beginning” in diplomatic engagement after decades of st…