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Sheehan to Present at 2014 Middle East Dialogue

Posted in analysis, assad, baghdad, CIA, clinton, college of public affairs, congress, counterterrorism, covert, delisting, democracy, deterrence, digest of middle east studies, diplomacy, dissident, DOMES, education, european union, evidence-based, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, global, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, kerry, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, middle east dialogue, military, NCRI, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, policy studies organization, politics, preemptive, protest, rajavi, regime change, research, sanctions, scholarly, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, state department, strike, tehran, terrorism, think-tank, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, university of baltimore, unrest, war, weapons, white house on February 20, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

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Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan has been invited to deliver a talk at the 2014 Middle East Dialogue hosted by the Policy Studies Organization on February 27. Dr. Sheehan’s talk titled Clarifying a Contested Concept: Regime Change from Within will trace the evolution of the concept of regime change from within and argue that meaningful policy demands more precise articulation of the term. The conference, held at the Whittemore House in Washington, D.C. will feature scholars and policy analysts that address the event’s 2014 theme of Strategies for Change in the Middle EastDr. Sheehan’s remarks at the 2013 Middle East Dialogue resulted in the publication of an article in the peer-reviewed journal, Digest of Middle East Studies.

Clarifying a Contested Concept: Regime Change from Within

The term “regime change from within” has become increasingly popular in opposition and policy discourse, especially in relation to the Islamic Republic of Iran. It has also begun entering the academic literature. But what does it mean? Despite its increasing use “regime change from within” is rarely defined and scant scholarly attention to date has been paid to defining it. This is problematic since, as an “umbrella concept,” the term can be stretched to include a wide variety of discrepant processes. In fact, “regime change from within” has been used as a holder for democracy promotion efforts within a country that start both inside and outside a country, as well as indigenous efforts that exclude outside support, to highlight the need for radical change, and more vaguely to call for “continuous” change or reform. This paper argues that coherent strategic policy demands better articulation of the meaning of the term. As a first step, the paper traces the evolution of use of the term “regime change from within,” tries to unpack its components, and develops a preliminary framework that partitions the concept into ends (vision) and means (strategy) to assess its utility for policy.

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SHEEHAN: Face the Facts on Iran Agreement | The Hill | Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, ballistic missiles, bipartisan, chemical weapons, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, european union, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, Fox, freedom, geneva, gingrich, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, israel, kerry, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, murder, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, politics, preemptive, protest, qum, rajavi, regime change, sanctions, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, state department, strike, syria, tehran, terrorism, the hill, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, war, warships, weapons, white house, zakaria, zarif on February 20, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

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SHEEHAN: Face the Facts on Iran Agreement | The Hill | Commentary

As world powers gather in Vienna to discuss a comprehensive agreement to curtail Tehran’s nuclear program, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the The Hill on what Congress can do to correct White House missteps on Iran policy.

As the White House rolls the dice on a permanent pact and embraces the failed strategy of appeasement, Congress should place a check on the administration’s unwillingness to face the facts.

A nuclear compromise with Tehran will surrender the peace, not secure it. #PDF

UPDATE: 2/25 – This article was translated into Farsi and reprinted for a global audience. The policy recommendations were also featured Iranian National Television. Details soon.

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SHEEHAN: Facing the Facts on the Iran Agreement | Townhall.com | Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, ballistic missiles, bipartisan, chemical weapons, CIA, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, european union, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, geneva, gingrich, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, israel, kerry, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, murder, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, politics, protest, qum, rajavi, regime change, republican, sanctions, security studies, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, soldier, state department, strike, syria, tehran, terrorism, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house, zarif on February 11, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

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SHEEHAN: Facing the Facts on the Iran Agreement | Townhall.com | Commentary

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published at Townhall.com on February 11 on why Congress must pass the Nuclear Weapons Free Iran Act as well as protect the intelligence capabilities of the Iranian opposition detained in Iraq.

The U.S. policy of engagement with the Iranian regime at the expense of concerns raised by key allies – including Israel and Saudi Arabia – has chilled U.S. relations with global partners and strengthened Tehran’s hand in ongoing discussions with the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council and Germany.

Iranian interpretations of the interim agreement have somehow preserved the domestic perks of the arrangement – including access to currency and the lifting of sanctions – while necessitating few of the actual obligations that would serve regional security interests.

Update: 2/26 – Syndicated in the Augusta Free Press

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SHEEHAN: Stiffen the Penalties on Iranian Non-Compliance | The Hill | Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, bipartisan, chemical weapons, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, european union, fordow, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, geneva, gingrich, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, israel, kerry, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, murder, natanz, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, politics, protest, qum, rajavi, regime change, sanctions, senate, senate foreign relations committee, sheehan, state department, syria, tehran, terrorism, the hill, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house, zarif on January 20, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

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SHEEHAN: Stiffen the Penalties on Iranian Non-Compliance | The Hill | Commentary

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the congressional newspaper The Hill on January 20 on the merits of the U.S. Senate enacting bipartisan legislation to address shortcomings in White House Iran policy.

The president’s first-term foreign policy pragmatism has regrettably given way to a global passivity that has increased instability in the Middle East.

Syria and Iraq are ablaze with bloody civil wars, Tehran is facilitating al Qaeda in Iraq’s foothold, and Shiite domination of political rivals has gone unchallenged.

Obama’s rhetorical goal of peacefully terminating Iran’s nuclear weapons program is admirable but negotiations without mechanisms to ensure verification are a fool’s endeavor and bargaining without extracting meaningful concessions is a rookie mistake.

Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Ph.D.

The writer is director of the Negotiations and Conflict Management and Global Affairs and Human Security graduate programs in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore. #Image1 / #Image2 / #Image3

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Sheehan Published in Roll Call on Pending House Legislation

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, european union, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, geneva, gingrich, global, haaretz, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, israel, jerusalem post, kerry, killing, maliki, mandela, media, MEK, MI6, mossad, murder, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, PMOI, policy, politics, protest, rajavi, regime change, sanctions, sheehan, state department, syria, tehran, terrorism, the hill, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house on January 7, 2014 by Professor Sheehan

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SHEEHAN: Mandela’s Legacy Lives on in Iranian Resistance | Roll Call | Commentary

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan was published in the congressional newspaper Roll Call on January 7, 2014. He calls on Congress to take up legislation that  would protect Iranian dissidents detained in Iraq at Camp Liberty. The Department of State has condemned the most recent violence directed at the group but more must be done to ensure that additional lives are not lost.

Recently, 17 members of the U.S. House of Representatives took an important step in this regard by filing H.R. 3707 “To ensure the emergency protection of Iranian dissidents living in Camp Liberty.”

The legislation calls on the U.S. to take “all necessary and appropriate steps to ensure the safety of the residents of Camp Liberty” in accordance with international agreements, and to assist the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in the timely resettlement of “Liberty” residents to safe locations outside of Iraq, including in the United States.

Passing the legislation would be a clear signal to Tehran that the U.S. is committed to living up to its prior agreements, enforcing human rights, and protecting those in harms way. But Congress should also push the White House to address the apartheid-like conditions in Iran and explain why the U.S. should compromise human rights to strike a deal with Tehran on uranium enrichment.

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SHEEHAN: Mandela’s Legacy Lives on in Iranian Resistance – Townhall.com – Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, chemical weapons, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, framing, freedom, geneva, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, iran, iraq, israel, kerry, maliki, mandela, media, MEK, MI6, military, murder, NCRI, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, politics, protest, rajavi, regime change, sanctions, sheehan, state department, strike, syria, tehran, terrorism, the hill, threat, u.s. foundation for liberty, unrest, war, weapons, white house on December 10, 2013 by Professor Sheehan

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SHEEHAN: Mandela’s Legacy Lives on in Iranian Resistance – Townhall.com – Commentary

As the international community commemorates Human Rights Day and world leaders gather to mourn the loss of former South African President Nelson MandelaDr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan takes to Townhall.com to contend that Mandela’s commitment to freedom and human rights lives on in the Iranian opposition.

UPDATE: 12/13Syndicated @ The Hill

Speaking from the White House briefing room shortly after Mandela’s passing, President Obama remembered his fellow Nobel Peace Prize recipient as a “a man who took history in his hands and bent the arc of the moral universe toward justice.” Mandela’s principles – like those of the Iranian opposition – were forged in the crucible of injustice, exclusion, imprisonment, and exile. Like the Iranian opposition, he challenged the terror tag used to delegitimize his country’s quest for freedom. And like the Iranian opposition he rejected overtures that failed to address non-negotiable issues of injustice, asymmetry, and human rights. His tireless commitment to peace and justice inspired both hopes and fears but the long road to freedom he charted provides the contemporary architecture that inspires democratic movements seeking regime change from within.

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