The delicate strategic dance between the Obama administration and Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad continues: The U.S. has offered to attend direct talks with Iran aimed at resolving an ongoing dispute over Iran's nuclear program. But why now? The answer may be more complex than you think. The Takeaway talks to Gary Sick, a senior research scholar at Columbia University. Also joining the conversation is Trita Parsi, author of Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Iran, Israel and the United States and President of the National Iranian American Council and President of the National Iranian American Council.
"They're not reducing Iran into a one issue country. It's not just about the nuclear issue. It's obviously a very important part of it, but they're not going to view Iran only through that prism." —Author Trita Parsi on U.S. discussions with Iran
Here is CNN's report on opening lines of communications between the two countries:
President Obama worked to rally the country behind his economic agenda last night in a press conference that focused heavily on the budget and skimmed almost entirely over foreign policy issues. But the press conference wasn't the only way President Obama worked to get his message out yesterday. He held a smaller news meeting shortly after noon, where he called reporters to the Oval Office to talk about his efforts to revive the economy and what he hoped would come out of the G-20.
He also released a video right before the press conference inviting ordinary people to go to Whitehouse.gov to submit questions that he will answer in an online town hall on the economy tomorrow.
With all of this new media and community involvement, is the traditional press conference obsolete? Joining us for a recap and some analysis are April Ryan, White House Correspondent for American Urban Radio Networks and Dan Froomkin, who writes the White House Watch blog for the Washington Post.
Have your own thoughts to add to the President's speech? Click here!
In a call to the American people, President Obama released a video asking for questions about the economy. Watch it below.
Last Friday, President Barack Obama addressed the people of Iran in a video message on Nowruz, the Persian New Year. In his appeal, Obama paid tribute to Iranian history and culture and stressed the need for stronger diplomatic ties. But how did that message resonate with ordinary Iranians and Iranian Americans? To answer that question, The Takeaway talks to Cyrus Razzaghi a marketing consultant from Tehran who joins us from his Nowruz celebration on the Caspian Coast. Also adding his voice to the discussion is Amir Farokhi is an Iranian-American attorney in Atlanta, Georgia who is running for a seat on the Atlanta City Council.
Watch President Obama's Nowruz message to the Iranian people below.
President Obama made a direct appeal to the people of Iran last night. It's an attempt to end 30 years of distrust between Washington and Tehran. The Takeaway breaks down what this means for the relationship between the two countries with Zadeq Zibakalam, political science professor at Tehran University.
"For the first time we have a U.S. president which actually hasn't tried to separate between Iranian on the one hand and Islamic regime on the other. That in itself is a new development." — Sadeq Zibakalamn, political science professor at Tehran University, on Obama's Nowruz address to Iran
Watch President Obama's Nowruz message to the Iranian people below.
Marjan Tehrani is an Iranian-American director/producer whose forthcoming documentary chronicles her brother Alex's wedding to Heather, an American woman from California. The couple traveled to Iran for the wedding and discovered that U.S. - Iranian relations aren't only political, but often very personal as well. The Takeaway is joined by Marjan and Alex Tehrani to discuss the film.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton wants to hold a conference on Afghanistan this month, and U.S. officials say Iran will receive an invite. Yes, that's "axis of evil" Iran. Ali Ansari of the University of St Andrews joins The Takeaway to explain the role Afghanistan could play in forming new international bonds.
Last month, President Obama sent a secret hand-delivered letter to Russia's President Dmitri Medvedev. It was an offer: the U.S. would back off from deploying a new missile defense system in Eastern Europe, if Moscow would help deter Iran from developing long-range weapons. Moscow has not responded to the letter, but many people see this as an effort to reset the relationship between the U.S. and Russia. New York Times reporter Peter Baker wrote a front page story on this and he joins us now.
For over thirty years, Iran has been working on a nuclear reactor. They claim that the facility will be used to provide energy to the country, but the West is clearly skeptical. Today Iran conducts a virtual test of the reactor and the world is watching closely. For more, Jon Leyne of the BBC joins us from the site of the nuclear reactor.
As the Obama administration continues to carefully move toward new diplomatic relations with Iran, a book has just been released that gives new insight into life in Iran during the era of President Ahmadinejad. The Takeaway talks with author Azadeh Moaveni about her new book Honeymoon in Iran: Two Years of Love and Danger in Iran.
Today marks the 30th anniversary of a momentous event in history: the Iranian Revolution. Thirty years ago, Iran was a monarchy ruled by the U.S.-backed Shah. The revolution saw the overthrow of the Shah and the coming to power of Islamic clerics under Ayatollah Khomenei. But did you know that almost half the current population of modern-day Iran are under the age of 25? That means that a huge percentage of modern Iran don’t remember the revolution at all, because they weren’t there. But that doesn’t mean the revolution of 1979 has not shaped their lives. For more we turn to BBC Correspondent Jon Leyne who joins us from Tehran.
On the 30th anniversary of the Islamic revolution, Tehran Correspondent Jon Leyne, took a look at the new cultural revolution in Iran.
This month Iran is celebrating the 30th anniversary of the Islamic Revolution. The revolution signified a profound paradigm shift: transitioning its monarchy to an Islamic Republic. Three decades on it remains one of the most turbulent and profound moments in the history of the modern Middle East. For a look at how the aftermath of the revolution is still shaping Iranian society, we are joined by Darius Rejali, the chair of the political science department at Reed College and the author of Torture and Democracy.
This weekend marks the 30th anniversary of thousands of Iranians taking to the streets and changing history. Their demonstration started the Iranian Revolution that transformed the role of Iran and established Islamic law as a template for political governance. Their revolution resonates even today, particularly in our relations with Iran. Jon Leyne from the BBC joins us from Tehran to give a preview of the 30th Anniversary of the Revolution.
President Obama gave his first televised interview last night, but his audience was far from home. Instead, Obama chose to speak to the residents of the Middle East via the Dubai-based television network Al Arabiya. He did his best to show that Americans are not the enemy and pledged to extend a hand to the Muslim world. For the reaction to this interview we turn to BBC Correspondent Jon Leyne in Tehran, Iran.
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