Iran
Nuclear deals? Sanctions? Proxy wars? This is Vox’s home for explanation and analysis of a key player in the Middle East.
The killing of militant leaders sparked clashes that, for now, have ended in a shaky ceasefire.
Trump withdrew from the accord, and Biden is working toward its resurrection.
The number of human-made existential risks has ballooned, but the most pressing one is the original: nuclear war.
Talks are set to resume at the end of the month, but the challenges to reaching an agreement are still immense.
Iranians elected Ebrahim Raisi as the next president in an election rigged in his favor.
Iran has been ramping up its uranium enrichment. The suspected Israeli cyberattack on the Natanz nuclear site might be retaliation for that.
The US and Iran took a small step toward reviving the nuclear deal. But major hurdles still remain before it’s fully alive.
Washington and Tehran will meet indirectly in Austria next week as part of a gathering to keep the Iran nuclear deal alive.
It’s still unclear who launched the rockets, but it strongly resembles past attacks by Iran-backed proxies.
President Biden hasn’t handled Iran and Saudi Arabia like candidate Biden planned.
US and Iran ties are tense. Iran’s rejection of nuclear deal talks won’t help.
It’s not clear that the president’s decision was legal.
It’s the first known military action of Biden’s presidency.
Colin Kahl, Biden’s pick for a top Pentagon job, is a staunch Iran deal supporter. That might doom his nomination.
It’s a strong signal that US and Iranian negotiators may soon meet face to face to once again discuss curbing Tehran’s nuclear program.
Even US officials say the offer for negotiations isn’t a “breakthrough.”
What the deal means for the Middle East, America, and the world.
Three top Biden team members made clear that reentry into the pact is a “long ways” away.
Iran plans to enrich uranium to 20 percent purity — a level it last reached before the 2015 nuclear deal.
Zam was best known for reporting on a wave of anti-regime protests in 2018.
Iran has blamed Israel for the attack, and pledged retaliation.
Experts say the suspected sabotage is part of Israel’s long-term efforts to delay any and all of Iran’s nuclear development.
The US has set a red line: kill an American, be met with force.
The new large burial trenches are visible from space.
It’s scary, but nowhere near as scary as it could be.
The supreme leader is also at risk.
If you had to pick a region primed for an outbreak, the Middle East would be a top choice.
Eight Republicans joined with Democrats to send the president a message.
First, it was “no casualties.” Then, 11 military members injured. Now? It’s 34.
It doesn’t look like these anti-US protests will be sustainable, at least for now.
Brian Hook says the new Quds Force leader could “meet the same fate.”
Trump’s remarks struck many as callous. But he may have had a reason for making them.
“The more that comes out, the more it looks like we got incredibly lucky in avoiding a war,” an expert told Vox.
“The positions are not mutually exclusive.”
The announcement is mainly a message to Western Europeans, an Iranian audience, and maybe Trump.
Foreign policy may actually play a role in the Iowa debate.
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani: “It was the US that caused such an incident to take place.”
Two new reports show Trump’s “imminent” attack claim may not be the whole story.
Why did the US kill Qassem Soleimani? Why do the US and Iran hate each other?
Trump said Soleimani was planning attacks on “four US embassies,” but Defense Secretary Mark Esper said he “didn’t see” intelligence about such strikes.