Quote Originally Posted by JJackson View Post
Dial back the rhetoric and do as little as possible. Any overt attempt to 'assist' will provide ammunition to the opposition. Being seen as supported by the US is not going to be a bonus they will need to sway their peers on their own.
I agree that overt (or covert) US support for reformers in Iran is very counterproductive--it both heightens regime paranoia and discredits those you are trying to help.

I do think its a shame that more Western scholars and others don't travel to Iran to speak and share different perspectives on the world. I found colleagues and students there diverse and eager to engage. The range of questions I received in open fora was quite remarkable (including one on the Kurdish right to self-determination in an independent state, which I certainly wouldn't have received in Syria or Turkey!)

Among students with whom I spoke, opinions were split of whether Iran was/should try to acquire nuclear weapons. On the issue of Iran developing nuclear research and technical capacities, however, there was very strong support. One university even proudly showed off their MSc programme in enrichment and fuel cycle management (suggesting that the IAEA is quite right in suggesting that particular horse has long ago bolted the stable.)