After a long break, Iran Chat is back and we felt this year’s series should begin with a deep dive into the current state of US-Iran relations, focusing on the very real and growing possibility of war with Iran. To help sort through all the recent news and issues concerning US-Iran relations, we spoke with journalist Jim Lobe. He served as chief of the Washington DC bureau of Inter Press Service from 1980 to 1985 and again from 1989 to 2016. Currently he is an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies where he directs LobeLog, an award-winning web blog focused on foreign policy, featuring posts by expert contributors on a variety of global issues, with an emphasis on US policy towards the Middle East. Recently, he co-wrote an article for Lobelog entitled War Against Iran Becoming Ever More Likely. We discuss his rationale for this assessment during our conversation. Some excerpts: Regarding the Anti-Iran Advisors Around Trump There are a fairly significant number of peop...
Our latest Iran Chat is with Dr.James Miller, Managing Director of the Oxford International Development Group, a health research and project management consulting company in Oxford, Mississippi. Dr. Miller began working in the area of health diplomacy in 2004 while seeking waysto improve health outcomes and access to medical care for people in the impoverished rural Mississippi Delta region. For this, he turnedto Iran’s primary health care model, which is known for itssystem of health houses staffed by citizen health workers who provide health education and preventative health services to their local communities. Recognized by the World Health Organization for its success in improvingmedical outcomes for rural communities in Iran, Dr. James Miller began working with the architects of this system to develop and adapt the Iranian model in ways that could address the health disparity challenges in the impoverished Delta regions. Our conversation with Dr. Miller involves an examination...
Our latest Iran Chat is with Iranian-American celebrity chef Ariana Bundy. Ariana is the award-winning author of two cookbooks,Pomegranates and Roses: My Persian Family Recipesand Sweet Alternative: More than 100 recipes without gluten, dairy and soy.She is also the writer, director and star of the 8-part television series Ariana's Persian Kitchen, which airs on NatGeo People. Ariana's work has been featuredin a variety of magazines like Food & Travel, Harper's Bazaar and Food & Wine Magazine; she has also appeared on television programs like BBC's Good Food Live, Euronews and Top Billing. For more information about Ariana Bundy or to get some deliciousrecipe ideas, you can visit her website arianabundy.com or follow her on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. Some excerpts from our conversation are below: Why She Chose to Focuson Persian Cuisine "As I was working hotels and coming across different cuisines, I met a lot of people who said ‘Oh my God, my food, Turkish cuisine, is so amaz...
Our latest Iran Chat is with Swedish ultra-runner, coach and motivator, Kristina Paltén, who holds the World Record in 48 hour treadmill running, covering a distance of 322.93 kilometers.She is also the first woman to have run across Iran, and the star of a film that covers that journey called Alone Through Iran -1144 Miles of Trust. We spoke with Paltén about her experience running across Iran, from Turkey to Turkmenistan, and how that experience, and now her film, are helping to challenge prejudices and misconceptions about the country and its people. Some highlights from our conversation: About Ultra-Running "Running ultra marathons means running distances that are longer than a normal marathon. An ultra marathon could be 43 km to 1000 km [or beyond].... I love to run for a long time; not fast, but longer and longer distances. I did my first ultra when I was 36 years old, and it’s just become longer and longer. I would say it is a travel inside yourself... you learn about your...
Our latest Iran Chat is with Dr. David Collier,author of the new book, Democracy and the Nature of American Influence in Iran: 1941-1979. Dr. Collier is also a research consultant in Washington DC and teaches democracy and democratization in Boston University's Washington DC program. The first half of our conversation focuses on Dr. Collier's usage of linkage and leverage to analyze and better understand the history of the period; the second half addresses how his analysis of the history applies to current issues in US-Iran relations and US foreign policy more generally. Dr. Collier's book is being published this month; you can purchase a copy on Amazonor Syracuse University Press. Some excerpts from our conversation are below: Using Linkage and Leverage to Understand American Influence in Iran "Linkage and leverage [first introduced in a book by Levitsky and Way]have often been used to try to understand external pressure in the processes of democratization... I think it's an intere...
Our latest Iran Chat is with Navid Khonsari, video game creator and the founder of Ink Stories, the independent film and gaming studio responsible for the development of the fascinating video game1979 Revolution: Black Friday, which puts players into the world of the revolution in Iran in 1979. While our conversation focused on this game about the Iranian revolution, Mr. Khonsari is also well known for his work developing the cinematic look and feel for video games likeGrand Theft Auto, Max Payne, The Warriorsand others. For more information about1979 Revolution: Black Friday, or to purchase it, you can visit inkstories.com. Some highlights of our conversation are below: How to describe 1979 Revolution: Black Friday: In1979 Revolution: Black Fridayyou play a protagonist, Reza, who is 18 years old and who just returned to Iran from Germany, arriving in the midst of turmoil on the streets of Tehran. With this character, “you have the ability to not just physically navigate the street...
The American Iranian Council (AIC) is pleased to announce that we are bringing our interview series, Iran Chat, to audio format with a new podcast. Our first interview is with Sufi musician, Amir Vahab – one of New York’s most celebrated and distinguished composers and vocalists of Sufi and folk music. The interview includes a discussion of Mr. Vahab’s background, how he got interested in music, some advice for aspiring musicians, a description of Persian music, as well as a special demonstration of some traditional Persian instruments, which begins about halfway through our conversation. In addition to speaking with us for this series, Mr. Vahab was also kind enough to provide the music for the podcast, which you will hear at the beginning and end of each episode. To learn more about Mr. Vahab and his music, or about the Persian instruments featured in this interview, please visit Mr. Vahab’s website www.tanbour.org. Some highlights of our conversation are below: On how Mr. Vah...