Iran's Nuclear Hedge: The Development of the Iranian Nuclear Program and Why it Keeps the Nuclear Option On The Table
Abstract/Contents
- Abstract
- Since its genesis in 1957, the Iranian nuclear program has been the subject of worldwide attention. Two successive Iranian regimes, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi’s authoritarian monarchy (1941-1979) and the Islamic Republic of Iran (1979-present), have maintained the argument that, as a signatory of the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty, Iran has a right to a civilian nuclear program. Evidence suggests, however, that both regimes maintained a nuclear hedging strategy in an attempt to keep the nuclear weapons option open. Iran’s reluctance to cooperate with the International Atomic Energy Agency resulted in international sanctions that have been severely detrimental to both its economy and political standing in the world. This thesis aims to explain why these two regimes sought, and arguably still seek, the nuclear option. In addition to the security model and the domestic politics model, this study will introduce the strategic culture model as a new framework to apply in the Iranian case. For the purpose of this analysis, strategic culture is defined as the set of shared beliefs, assumptions, and narratives that shape the strategic decision-making process of a state. This thesis identifies three key elements of Iranian strategic culture that influence its drive for nuclear technology and a nuclear hedge strategy. These three elements include: [1] Iranian nationalism; [2] a ubiquitous sense of vulnerability; and [3] a love/hate relationship with modernity.
Description
Type of resource | text |
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Date created | May 2014 |
Creators/Contributors
Author | Ansari, Yassamin | |
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Advisor | Milani, Abbas |
Subjects
Subject | Iran |
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Subject | Iranian nuclear program |
Subject | Iranian foreign policy |
Subject | US-Iran relations |
Subject | Nuclear Proliferation |
Subject | Center for International Security and Cooperation |
Genre | Thesis |
Bibliographic information
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- Use and reproduction
- User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.
- License
- This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution Non Commercial 3.0 Unported license (CC BY-NC).
Preferred citation
- Preferred Citation
- Ansari, Yassamin (2014). Iran's Nuclear Hedge: The Development of the Iranian Nuclear Program and Why it Keeps the Nuclear Option on the Table. Stanford University, California. http://purl.stanford.edu/fj569py0340.
Collection
Stanford University, Center for International Security and Cooperation, Interschool Honors Program in International Security Studies, Theses
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- Contact
- yansari@stanford.edu
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