Ariane Tabatabai (Persian: آرین طباطبایی) is an Iranian-American political science expert and author. She is a senior policy advisor to the United States Department of Defense.[1]
Ariane Tabatabai | |
|---|---|
| Education | Stony Brook University |
| Alma mater | King's College London |
| Occupation | Political scientist |
Early life and education
editTabatabai is the daughter of Javad Tabatabai, an Iranian professor of political science and law at the University of Tehran. She attended King's College London, where she earned her PhD in defence studies in 2015.[2]
Career
editStarting in 2015, Tabatabai worked as a researcher for the southern California-based RAND Corporation think tank.[3][4] She was then a curriculum director and visiting associate professor of security studies at Georgetown University,[5] an international civilian consultant for NATO,[6] and a former Middle East Fellow at the Alliance for Securing Democracy at the German Marshall Fund of the United States.[3]
Tabatabai wrote an article published by Foreign Policy magazine prior to the 2020 US presidential election, arguing that Iran's economy was fragile and its leaders would be forced to negotiate and make concessions; she urged the winning US presidential candidate not to return to the nuclear agreement and press for more points.[7]
After the Biden administration took office in January 2021, Robert Malley was appointed to lead U.S. nuclear negotiations with Iran, with Tabatabai appointed as a team member.[8] She departed the negotiating team (along with Richard Nephew) after a few months because she believed that the U.S. would lift too many sanctions on Iran and consequently, a reinstated agreement would not be strong enough.[9]
Tabatabai is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.[3]
Controversies
editIn September 2023, a large cache of Iranian government correspondence and emails reported for the first time by Semafor and Iran International claimed to connect Tabatabai with the Iran Experts Initiative, an effort initiated by senior Iranian Foreign Ministry officials to bolster Tehran's image and positions on global security issues.[10][11] In response, Senator Marsha Blackburn called for a review of her security clearance.[12][13] In October 2023, after a review, Tabatabai retained her top-secret security clearance,[14] as confirmed by Rheanne Wirkkala, the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Legislative Affairs, in a letter dated 13 October 2023 to Senator Joni Ernst.[15] Two weeks later, the Pentagon released a statement confirming that "Dr. Tabatabai was thoroughly and properly vetted" as a condition of her employment with the Department of Defense.[10][16]
Books
edit- Tabatabai, A. (2020). No Conquest, No Defeat: Iran's National Security Strategy. London: Hurst & Company.[17]
- Tabatabai, A. and Dina Esfandiary (2021). Triple-Axis: Iran's Relations with Russia and China. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.[18]
References
edit- ^ "Ariane Tabatabai". Wilson Center.
- ^ "Profile: Miss Ariane Tabatabai Nejad". King's College London. London. 2015. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ a b c "Ariane Tabatabai".
- ^ Toosi, Nahal (3 December 2019). "Trump team scours intel sent by Iranians as it weighs new sanctions". Politico. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
Ariane Tabatabai, an Iran specialist at the RAND Corporation...
- ^ "Georgetown University Faculty Directory".
- ^ Ariane Tabatabai
- ^ "For Iran, Negotiations Aren't Optional". September 15, 2020.
- ^ "U.S. Official: Time for Iran to decide whether to revive nuclear deal". NBC News.
- ^ "Russia may do Biden a favor by killing the Iran deal". Politico.
- ^ a b Jay Solomon (26 September 2023). "Inside Iran's influence operation". Semafor.
- ^ Bozorgmehr Sharafedin (26 September 2023). "Inside Tehran's Soft War". Iran International.
- ^ "Blackburn To DoD: Senior Official's Iranian Ties Are Dangerous". U.S. Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee. 2 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ "Calls Grow To Revoke Iran-Linked Pentagon Official's Clearance". Iran International. 1 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ "Biden White House regularly hosted Pentagon official with ties to Iran". Iran International. 12 August 2024.
- ^ "Rheanne E. Wirkkala (Assistant Secretary of Defense) to Sen. Joni Ernst (R., Iowa)" (PDF). 13 October 2023. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
- ^ Wood, Graeme (28 September 2023). "Iran's Influence Operation Pays Off". The Atlantic. Retrieved 23 October 2024.
The Pentagon says that Tabatabai was "thoroughly and properly vetted" for her current job.
- ^ "No Conquest, No Defeat". Hurst Publishers.
- ^ "Triple-Axis". Bloomsbury.
External links
edit- Foreign Policy Research Institute
- Ariane Tabatabai at C-SPAN
- RAND Corporation
- Tabatabia, Ariane (2015). "God, Country, and the Bomb: The stretegic [sic] implications of Islamic ethical and legal-nuclear discourses" (doctoral thesis). King's College London. London. Retrieved 23 October 2024.