Deterring Iran after the Nuclear Deal

Despite a U.S. focus on securing an international deal to curb Iran’s nuclear development for the last several years, the United States lacks a strategy to combat the full range of Iranian activities that threaten the interests of the United States and its allies but fall short of conventional warfare. In this report, CSIS’s International Security Program sets forth analysis of Iran’s strategy, motivations, military, and paramilitary capabilities and evaluates the effects of Iranian behavior on key U.S. partners. The study leverages the expertise of contributing authors at CSIS, the American Enterprise Institute, the Center for Naval Analyses, the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Harvard University, and the University of Hawaii to inform its analysis. The study proposes a framework for deterring Iran, including practical recommendations for the U.S. administration and Congress that would enhance the security of the United States and its allies and partners.


Jon B. Alterman

Senior Vice President, Brzezkinski Chair, and Director, Middle East Studies Program, CSIS

Michael Connell

Director, Iranian Studies Program, Center for Naval Analyses

Michael Eisenstadt

Kahn Fellow, Washington Institute for Near East Policy

Farideh Farhi

Affiliate, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Thomas Karako

Senior Fellow and Director, Missile Defense Project, CSIS

J. Matthew McInnis

Resident Fellow, American Enterprise Institute

Hijab Shah

Research Associate, International Security Program, CSIS

Michael Sulmeyer

Director, Cyber Security Project, Belfer Center for Science & International Affairs

Ian Williams

Associate Fellow, International Security Program, CSIS

Melissa Dalton

Kathleen H. Hicks