BU Now » Iran

Iran’s nuke dilemma

Dick Taffe — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:04:54 +0000

With international atomic energy officials still dickering with Iran over Iran’s uranium-enrichment program, international relations Professor Augustus Richard Norton, in a Q&A with BU Today, says that given the political realities in the United States it’s going to be difficult to deter the Iranians from what they’re doing.

“If I were advising the president on this topic, I would allow the situation in Iran to continue to unfold, pursue and facilitate the swap of enriched uranium vis-à-vis Turkey, and pursue limited sanctions with a view to targeting Iranian officials rather than the Iranian public in general.”

Contact Augustus Richard Norton, 617-353-7808, arn@bu.edu

Iran denies nuke story

Dick Taffe — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 23:02:48 +0000

Iranian President Ahmadinejad denies reports of a confidential Iranian document describing that country’s effort to design an atomic bomb trigger. He says it was forged by America. Attorney Philip O’Neill, who teaches national security law at BU Law School and is the author of the soon-to-be published “Verification in an Age of Insecurity,” says Iran is still holding back on the truth.

“Deflection by Iran is no substitute for the answers it has long owed the world about its nuclear program, nor a reason to forego the continuing effort to impose more meaningful sanctions in their absence.”

Contact Philip O’Neill, 617-951-2253, poneill@eapdlaw.com

How the media is covering Iran

Dick Taffe — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 18:42:23 +0000

With authorities expelling journalists and limiting access to demonstrations, “user-generated” content — text via Facebook or Twitter and cell-phone video posted to YouTube — have become the staple of news coverage of post-election Iran. College of Communication journalism Professor Anne Donohue, who covered the 1979 Iranian revolution (and soon was evacuated with the Shah), can offer perspective on media coverage of then and now.

Contact Anne Donohue, 617-353-3418, adonohue@bu.edu

Obama to discuss Iran/North Korea

Tom Testa — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:29:13 +0000

With President Obama set to address the questions surrounding his handling of recent threats to our nation’s foreign and domestic policy, political expert Thomas Whalen is available for analysis.

Contact Thomas Whalen, 617-353-4785, tjw64@bu.edu

Iran’s disputed election

Tom Testa — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 15:11:41 +0000

What does the continued political unrest in Iran mean for U.S. diplomacy in the region? Ambassador Charles Dunbar, a professor of international relations who began his diplomatic career in Iran during the 1960s, says in a BU Today Q&A, “We need to pursue the policies that Obama had begun to pursue, including the concession he made that we would be willing to begin discussions with Iran even without a halt in its uranium enrichment program. Of course, those opposing Obama’s policy will say, ‘You’re delusional, trying to deal with an illegitimate leader.’”

Contact Charles Dunbar, 617-353-5633, cfdunbar@bu.edu

Estimating crowd size in Iran

Ron Rosenberg — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 17:27:41 +0000

Iran’s largest street protests in 30 years, following the disputed election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, appear as a sea of people on television with crowd estimates of his opponents and supporters in the hundreds of thousands, possibly millions. Farouk El-Baz, Director of BU’s Center for Remote Sensing can talk about how more precise estimates are determined.

Contact Farouk El-Baz, 617-353-5081, farouk@bu.edu

International Relations prof. William Keylor comments on Iran crisis

Jo Breiner — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 01:20:48 +0000

Iran Frees American Journalist

Dick Taffe — Mon, 11 May 2009 14:34:38 +0000

As a former long-time ABC News foreign correspondent, College of Communication journalism Professor Robert Zelnick can offer unique perspective on the decision by the Iranian government to free American journalist Roxana Saberi.

“The freeing of Roxana Saberi, a courageous journalist whose three months imprisonment rightly triggered international outrage, shows that even Iran cannot be completely tone deaf to world opinion. But I would be cautious before reading into this event a new Iranian responsiveness to President Obama’s personal diplomacy or a willingness to yield in its effort to develop nuclear weapons. One happy ending does not validate a foreign policy steeped in myth.”

Contact Robert Zelnick, 617-353-5007, bzelnick@bu.edu