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PRESS CONFERENCE | Iran: Nuclear Ambitions, The Agreement, Rights Violations: Prospects & Challenges | July 21, 2015 |

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore, participated in a live online press briefing with journalists from around the world on July 21, 2015. The briefing featured remarks from former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Human Rights Commission Kenneth Blackwell and The Honorable Linda Chavez, whose distinguished record of public service includes having served in the White House under Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, and George W. Bush. The speakers addressed congressional oversight of the preliminary Iran nuclear accord announced by President Barack Obama in July 2015. Sanctions, state-sponsored terrorism, and human rights concerns were also addressed.

Dr. Sheehan is the Director of the graduate programs in Negotiations and Conflict Management and Global Affairs and Human Security in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more about Dr. Sheehan, follow him on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

#Update: Dr. Sheehan’s remarks on the Iran nuclear deal were featured in a prominent Arab newspaper on July 22. #PDF / I / II

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2015 Annual Conference for Democracy in Iran

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In June 2015 Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore, traveled to Paris as part of a distinguished research delegation examining the Iranian opposition in the context of the ongoing P5+1 nuclear negotiations with the Iranian regime.

A guest of the organizing committee, Dr. Sheehan met with a series of elected officials while at the meeting to discuss U.S.-Iran policy and his research on regime change.

The annual conference – which featured crowds estimated at 100,000 – is the largest annual gathering of the democratic Iranian opposition in exile. The June event featured remarks by leaders from more than fifty countries, a bipartisan delegation of U.S. policymakers, and prominent academics from around the world. The ongoing nuclear negotiations between the P5+1, democracy, human rights, the rule of law, and the deteriorating situation in neighboring Iraq were discussed.

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is the Director of the graduate programs in Negotiations & Conflict Management and Global Affairs & Human Security in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more about Dr. Sheehan, follow him on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

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Sheehan Joins Global Research Delegation at 2015 Conference for Democratic Change in Iran

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Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore, has been invited to Paris as a guest of the Committee for the Convention of Democracy in Iran to join a delegation of researchers at the largest annual gathering of the democratic Iranian opposition on June 13, 2015. The event will feature remarks by leaders from more than fifty countries, a bipartisan delegation of U.S. policymakers, and distinguished academics from around the world. P5+1 nuclear negotiations, democracy, human rights, ISIS, and the Iranian regime’s interference in the sovereign affairs of Middle East countries will be examined.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more, follow Dr. Sheehan on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

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Sheehan Speaks at Rally Outside White House

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Hundreds of Iranian-Americans rallied outside the White House on April 14 as Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi met with President Obama.

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan, Associate Professor of Public and International Affairs at the University of Baltimore, addressed the crowds by discussing the destructive role played by the Iranian regime’s interference in Iraq and called for the prompt eviction of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force and its commander, Major General Qassem Soleimani, from Iraq noting that these were prerequisites for a durable solution to the Iraqi crisis.

Also speaking at the event were Col. Wesley Martin, formerly stationed at Camp Ashraf as Senior Anti-Terrorism and Force Protection Officer for Coalition Forces in Iraq; Professor Raymond Tanter, a Senior National Security Council staffer in the Reagan White House; Mr. Bruce McColm, former Executive Director of the prominent human rights organization Freedom House; and Mr. Steven Schneebaum, international lawyer and Professorial Lecturer at Johns Hopkins University’s School of Advanced International Studies. The speakers pointed to ongoing detention of the Iranian resistance in Iraq and called on the international community to do more to protect the Iranian dissidents from Iraqi forces acting as proxies for Tehran.

Dr. Sheehan is the Director of the graduate programs in Negotiations and Conflict Management and Global Affairs and Human Security in the College of Public Affairs at the University of Baltimore.

For additional research or media related updates or to learn more about Dr. Sheehan, follow him on Twitter @ProfSheehan or link to his research profiles.

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SHEEHAN: What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | Oct 14

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SHEEHAN: What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | Fall 2014 | Vol. 23, Issue 2

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan is published in the fall 2014 issue of the Digest of Middle East Studies, a peer-reviewed journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the Policy Studies Organization. Dr. Sheehan’s latest study — What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran — clarifies the contested concept of regime change from within via Tehran’s organized opposition and makes contributions to the concept’s formation to increase its policy relevance and classificatory significance.

Abstract: The use of the phrase “regime change from within” has surged in recent years in media, policy, and opposition discourse, especially in relation to the Islamic Republic of Iran. But what does “regime change from within” actually mean? Is it just a script to encourage the aspirations of a people, or can it be defined with more specificity? This article argues that to be of value as a concept and the basis for articulate policy, “regime change from within” needs to be better defined. To bring greater clarity to the term, the article tries to unpack the concept by disaggregating it into three analytically separable problem components: the “regime,” “change,” and “from within.” Drawing on the case of Iran, I argue that although most of the current debate around the concept is on the “from within” component, the definitional choices that need more discussion are the “regime” and “change” aspects of the phrase.

Excerpt | What Is “Regime Change From Within?” Unpacking the Concept in the Context of Iran | Digest of Middle East Studies | F.14 | Vol. 23, Issue 2 –

[The concept of] ‘regime change from within’ has been employed for an array of very disparate processes — as a holder for democracy promotion efforts from outside a country as well as indigenous efforts that exclude outside intervention, to highlight the need for radical change and more vaguely to call for continuous reform. But to be of value as a concept and the basis for articulate policy, a term needs to have some degree of specificity of meaning, some shared consensus. Otherwise, it just becomes a proverbial “you know it when you see it” concept that is difficult to distinguish from other types of political phenomena.

To address this gap and bring greater clarity to the concept, this article looks at some of the definitional choices that need to be addressed to come to a consensus on the meaning of “regime change from within.” Using the case of the Islamic Republic of Iran, I show how different decisions about what constitutes “regime change from within” could lead to very different conceptualizations in empirical cases…

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SHEEHAN: Iran is the Real Middle East Threat | The Hill | Commentary

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SHEEHAN: Iran is the Real Middle East Threat | The Hill | Commentary

While presenting at the World Congress of Middle East Studies in Turkey on August 19, Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan published an article in the congressional newspaper The Hill on Iraq, Iran, ISIS and the growing unrest on the Iraqi street. In the article, he questioned whether White House officials have a plan to counter the larger threat posed by the Islamic Republic of Iran.

“…U.S. policy on Iran must ensure significant consequence for continued Iranian interference in Iraq. The failure to act against Assad by enforcing the red line in Syria or push back on Putin’s adventures in Ukraine diminished U.S. credibility and squandered valuable influence. But Congress can correct these missteps by insisting that the White House lean in on Iran by giving the ayatollahs a new problem to keep them busy.

Since Tehran fears internal threats more than external ones, U.S. legislators should embrace a policy of regime change from within via Iran’s organized opposition.

Obama’s declaration that there is no military solution to Iraq’s troubles and that a legitimate Iraqi government must be established is an accurate diagnosis insofar as it goes. But the intoxication resulting from a combination of U.S. impotence, Iranian interference, and Iraqi frustration will only lead to continued regional instability.

Solving the Iraq puzzle requires that U.S. officials double down on the real threat in the Middle East and increase the prospect of collapse in Tehran.” #PDF

You can learn more about Dr. Sheehan’s recent media appearances in a University of Baltimore press release.

Please also stay tuned for forthcoming publications in fall 2014 on topics related to regime change in Iran and suicide terrorism.

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UPDATE: 2/25 – See Farsi Translation

Sheehan Policy Recommendations Featured on Iranian Television

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The segment featuring Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan begins at 00.45

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

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

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

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

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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

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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.

Sheehan Article Translated into Farsi

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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

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 Mandela, Dr. 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: 12/13 – Syndicated @ 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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Turn up Heat on the Iranian Regime – The Hill – Commentary

Posted in analysis, arak, ashraf, assad, baghdad, chemical weapons, CIA, clinton, congress, counterterrorism, covert, crimes against humanity, delisting, democracy, diplomacy, dissident, european union, foreign policy, foreign policy analysis, freedom, geneva, gingrich, global, hostages, human rights, human security, IAEA, intelligence, international relations, international security studies, iran, iraq, israel, maliki, media, MEK, MI6, middle east, military, mossad, NCRI, negotiation, netanyahu, nuclear, obama, P5+1, paris, peace, PMOI, policy, politics, preemptive, protest, rajavi, reagan, regime change, republican, sanctions, security studies, sheehan, state department, strike, syria, tehran, terrorism, the hill, threat, unrest, war, weapons, white house, wsj, zarif on November 15, 2013 by Professor Sheehan

SHEEHAN: Turn up Heat on the Iranian Regime in Advance of P5+1 – The Hill – Commentary

Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan takes the White House to task in The Hill for promoting a policy of engagement with the Iranian regime at the expense of concerns raised by key allies – thereby chilling U.S. relations with valuable global partners – and undermining U.S. security interests.

Wendy Sherman, the administration’s trusted Iran hand, appears intent to reach an agreement at all cost. Her recent efforts to convince the U.S. Congress to back off the sanctions that forced Iran to the negotiating table in the first place were as naïve as they were ill conceived. Sanctions imposed under a provision of the 2011 Defense Authorization Act known as the Kirk-Menendez Amendment crippled Iran’s economy and facilitated the regime’s current crisis. Far from being paused, eased, or lifted, the penalties should be increased, extended and enhanced to further ensure Iranian compliance. Congress should ignore White House requests to delay further sanctions and turn up the heat on the regime by slashing oil exports and targeting the Iranian currency.

Sheehan Article Featured on MSNBC

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An article by Dr. Ivan Sascha Sheehan was featured on MSNBC in advance of Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s visit to the White House on Nov. 1. The commentary was featured in an interview with Ambassador Marc Ginsberg, former U.S. Ambassador to Morocco., who described Maliki as part of the problem and not the solution. #Screenshot

SHEEHAN: Use al-Maliki Visit to Send Iran a Clear Message – The Hill