Iran-U.S. Relations

Featured Posting

Republics of Myth: National Narratives and the US–Iran Conflict

Washington, D.C., April 14, 2022 – After weeks of uncertainty over ongoing multilateral nuclear negotiations with Iran, it is still an open question whether they will actually…

Apr 14, 2022

Previous Postings

U.S.-Iran Relations: 40 Years of Antagonism, Distrust, and Frustration Reflected in New Volume of Declassified Documents

Sep 20, 2021

Israeli Attack on Iraq's Osirak 1981: Setback or Impetus for Nuclear Weapons?

Jun 7, 2021

COUP 53: New Documentary on Overthrow of Iran's Mosaddeq

Aug 17, 2020

Documenting Iran-U.S. Relations, 1978-2015

Dec 19, 2019

1979 Iran Hostage Crisis Recalled

Nov 4, 2019

New documentary film on 1953 coup in Iran features declassified documents from Archive collection

Oct 15, 2019

Iran’s 1979 Revolution Revisited: Failures (and a Few Successes) of U.S. Intelligence and Diplomatic Reporting

Feb 11, 2019

The Iran-Contra Affair

Dec 9, 2018

Excessive U.S. sanctions could push Iran “over the brink”: UAE official to U.S. in 1995

Aug 8, 2018

Of Interest

Podcast features Archive Iran Project partner

“A Dangerous Puzzle: Losing and Regaining an Enemy”

Iran Project partner Huss Banai (Indiana University) talks to Christopher Lydon about the reasons underlying the seemingly intractable official U.S.-Iranian animosity. Trita Parsi and John Ghazvinian are also interviewed.

Click here for more information.

About this Project

The Iran-U.S. Relations Project promotes the multinational, multi-archival exploration of “hot button” issues in the two countries’ complex relationship spanning more than 70 years.

Our documentary holdings, from Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests and archival spelunking on location in Tehran, Baku, Moscow, London and elsewhere, range from a collection of the published, shredded files taken from the U.S. Embassy in Tehran in 1979, to key episodes such as the 1946 Azerbaijan crisis, the 1953 coup, and the 1980s Iran-Iraq War, all the way to the JCPOA.

More about the Project >>

Books

Republics of Myth

By Hussein Banai, Malcolm Byrne, John Tirman
Johns Hopkins, 2022

“Republics of Myth is an outstanding and balanced review of the difficult relationship between Americans and Iranians. Based on unique research, this timely book addresses the grievances of both sides and pays special attention to the Iran-Iraq War.” – Bruce O. Riedel, Brookings Institution

Worlds Apart

By Malcolm Byrne and Kian Byrne
Cambridge, 2021

“It's not a pretty story, but it should be required reading to understand how our two countries have been stuck on a road to nowhere for forty years. It's all here: the ignorance, the obliviousness, and the insights ignored. Thanks to the authors for giving us the raw material of history free of biases and personal agendas.” – John Limbert, U.S. State Department, retired

More books >>

Blog Posts

New Digital National Security Archive Document Collection Covers U.S. Policy toward Iran from 1978-2015

Dec 12, 2019

CIA Caught Between Operational Security and Analytical Quality In 1953 Iran Coup Planning

Mar 19, 2018

New Documents about 1953 Iran Coup Enliven Regime Change Debate

Jul 17, 2017

Britain Considered Nuking Middle East Oil Fields if USSR Invaded, Documents Show

Jun 23, 2016

Iran-Contra: Who Leaked Ronald Reagan's 1985-1986 Arms-for-Hostages Deals?

Nov 4, 2014

More >>

Videos

Republics of Myth: National Narratives and the US-Iran Conflict. Washington History Seminar.

A provocative new book by three long-time experts on U.S.-Iran posits that diverging national narratives have contributed heavily to a dysfunctional relationship. Click here for more information.

Starr Forum (MIT): Republics of Myth: National Narratives and the US-Iran Conflict
Why does the rift between the US and Iran persist? A new book by CIS scholars sheds new light on this longstanding conflict.

More video and audio in
Iran-U.S. Project Media Library >>

In the Media

Perspectives on Politics - Review of Republics of Myth

Perspectives on Politics

Dec 14, 2022

How ‘national narratives’ shaped US-Iran relations

Responsible Statecraft

May 25, 2022

The Clashing Narratives That Keep the U.S. and Iran at Odds

DAWN

May 10, 2022

A Dangerous Puzzle: Losing and Regaining an Enemy

Open Source with Christopher Lydon

May 5, 2022

Worlds Apart: A Documentary History of US-Iranian Relations, 1978-2018

Survival

Apr 1, 2022

Conferences

The following is a list of conferences and events that have involved the Iran-U.S. Relations Project. It does not include individual public presentations by Project staff over the years.

List of Conferences

Conference Participants

The following is a partial listing of U.S., Iranian and other international figures who have taken part in some of our events.

List of Conference Participants

Advisory Board

Farideh Farhi
University of Hawaii, Manoa

Mark Gasiorowski
Tulane University

Mary Ann Heiss
Kent State University

William Roger Louis
University of Texas, Austin

Bruce Riedel
The Brookings Institution

Project Partners

Malcolm Byrne
The National Security Archive
The George Washington University

John Tirman
Center for International Studies
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Huss Banai
School of Global and International Studies
Indiana University, Bloomington

James Blight & janet Lang
Balsillie School of International Affairs
Waterloo, Ontario