Iran-Tehrans Understanding in Us Policy

Iran and the US have had a long standing tension since the early 80s. Interestingly enough this article outlines that Iran and the US actually have a few mututal policies that they share. Both aim to rebuild Iraw and Afghanistan, eliminating drug trafficking that is funding terrorists and war lords, as well as defeating Al-Qaeda and the Taliban. Iran is driven to ensuring the survival of the Islamic Republic, something that Tehran sees as an exestential threat posed by the US. Unfortunately, the US has an oversensationalized view of Iran that is a series of hit and run assaults on  US interests, and that it is filled with irrational undeterrable leaders. With a view like this, it will be difficult to make a friendly relationship between the two states. Tehrans foreign policy is rather strategic, formulated by organized ayatollahs basing decsions off of the combonation of Iran's future ambitions and Tehran's perceptions of threat. They see the US as a threat and are using deterrence and competition in the Middle East to coutner it. In order to avoid US military action, Iran is developing ways to pursue low intensity warfare, as well as modernizing its weapons through the creation of missile and anti-missile systems and developing a nuclear program. They are even seeking the use of the European Union with Russia and China as potentioal counterweights to Washington from leading a united front against it. There sphere of influence has its hands in Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan, even some Palestinians are on board. Their support for Hezbollah and Islamic Hamas is giving them a depth of influence in Israel's backyard as well. Iraq is a key component for both Iran and the US, Iran iseager to start with Iraq's reconstruction to help further their influence in the region, they want to avoid giving the US a stronghold of Iraq so that we do not use the Iraqi territory to attack or undermind Iran, which is very strategic planning on their part. There has to be some understanding between Iran and the US, mostly on the front that Tehran does have rationale and isn't just a stereotypical hot headed Islamic state, without this, there will never be a reasonable long term strategy with Iran. Focusing solely on Iran's nuclear ambitions will be less the productive, whereas a ful engagement might laed to more cultural, economic, and educational exchange between the two nations. This is a long term project, not one that can be solved in a short term.