Mehrdad Khonsari - openDemocracy

Raisi’s first 100 days: a bad omen for what lies ahead for Iran

Hopes for a better future for Iran, amid resumption of talks on the nuclear deal, seem slim while the regime remains mired in its tired old theocratic ways

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 22 Nov 2021

Raisi’s first 100 days: a bad omen for what lies ahead for Iran

Who decides Iran’s presidential elections?

On Friday, Iranians will go to the polls to vote for the new president. But the will of the people is not the only thing that determines the results

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 18 Jun 2021

Who decides Iran’s presidential elections?

A call for sanity and tolerance in Iran at a time of national emergency

An open letter to Iran’s head of judiciary and deputy leader of Iran’s council of experts, Hojat-ol Eslam Ebrahim Raissi.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 3 Apr 2020

A call for sanity and tolerance in Iran at a time of national emergency

Iranian hardliners 'engineer’ parliamentary elections in a show of defiance

Many in Iran had foreseen the outcome since 2018 when President Trump first sealed the fate of the reformists by pulling the US out of the nuclear deal.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 26 Feb 2020

Iranian hardliners 'engineer’ parliamentary elections in a show of defiance

Iran: wanting revenge but needing compromise

How is Soleimani’s demise likely to alter Iran’s policy options?

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 8 Jan 2020

Iran: wanting revenge but needing compromise

US and Iran both need a new deal

Breaking the current impasse requires an interim gesture by the US which provides Iran with the incentive it needs to come to the negotiating table.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 20 Nov 2019

War is no solution to the US-Iran standoff

Nothing other than direct talks can offer a prospect for a solution to the crisis.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 15 Aug 2019

War is no solution to the US-Iran standoff

Bullying Iran will not work

The US narrative should be adjusted in such way to be more in ‘synch’ with realities on the ground and not simply restricted to hostile and at times highly exaggerated denunciations.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 10 Dec 2018

Can Iran turn crisis into opportunity?

Iran is facing what is what is potentially the greatest existential threat it has faced since its inception in 1979.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 2 Jul 2018

Europe must honour its commitments: protect the nuclear deal

From an Iranian standpoint there continues to be a huge gap between what had been promised and what has actually been delivered.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 2 May 2018

Relinquishing the ‘moral high ground’ to Iran

Any move to dismantle the nuclear deal will only relinquish the moral high ground to Iran, leaving the US as the isolated party.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 12 Oct 2017

Defying conventional wisdom and ‘getting real’ with Iran

The process of reviewing the new US administration’s policy on Iran has been greatly hampered by out-of-date preconceptions and wanton comments on the part of some senior officials interested in scoring points with certain domestic constituencies.

By Mehrdad Khonsari

/ 28 Jul 2017