Why does this seem familiar?
Despite the ongoing nuclear crisis and the increasing tensions between Iran and the United States and Europe, Tehran’s ongoing economic cooperation and energy policy might be effectively creating a “counter-alliance” that could substantially influence the existing balance of power, while enhancing the country’s regional status. Iran’s growing emphasis on energy and economic cooperation in Latin America, Asia, and in the Central Asian/Caspian region, as central elements of its foreign policy, are macro-indicators of this strategic re-alignment. In this sense, an important trend is Iran’s current role in Central Asia.
Oh yeah—I said much the same thing in July. Benedetta Berti covers the situation pretty thoroughly, and does a good job of highlighting yet another potential strategic headache the next administration may face.
This post was written by...
Joshua Foust – author of 1771 posts on Registan.net.
Joshua Foust is a Fellow at the American Security Project and the author of Afghanistan Journal: Selections from Registan.net. His research focuses primarily on Central and South Asia. Joshua is a correspondent for The Atlantic and a columnist for PBS Need to Know. Joshua appears regularly on the BBC World News, Aljazeera, and international public radio. Joshua is also a regular contributor to Foreign Policy’s AfPak Channel, and his writing has appeared in the New York Times, Reuters, and the Christian Science Monitor.