Iran expert brings timely insights to Australia, NZ
“The Islamic Republic is fighting a military conflict designed to bail out Hamas – it’s trying to strike Israel on the cheap without absorbing any strikes,” Behnam Ben Taleblu, a Senior Fellow at the Washington D.C.- based Foundation for Defence of Democracies told journalists at an AIJAC press briefing this week.
Ben Taleblu Pic: Arek Dybel.
Ben Taleblu, who is currently conducting a series of top-level briefings in Australia and New Zealand as a guest of AIJAC, brought special insights for understanding Iran’s involvement in the wars that Israel is fighting on multiple fronts, against multiple Iranian proxies.
Iran, Ben Taleblu explained, is using the instability and uncertainty of its own making to pressure the U.S. and its allies into restraining Israel and avoiding decisive action against Iranian proxies.
The prolonged delay for an Iranian retaliatory strike after Israel’s elimination of Hezbollah Chief of Staff Fuad Shukr in Beirut, and its presumptive responsibility for the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Teheran is strategic, Ben Taleblu added, and will likely only come when they feel secure enough to withstand Israeli counterattacks.
Likewise, Iran is using the threat of nuclear weaponisation as a strategic tool, he said, hinting at further escalation if it is cornered. This in turn serves to keep Western powers cautious, off-step and engaged in diplomacy while Iran holds onto its nuclear assets.
Ben Taleblu said that Iran’s ongoing war on Israel has helped it to strengthen ties with China and Russia by showcasing its value as a regional power, challenging Western influence and projecting confidence in its ability to resist external pressures.
On an encouraging note, Ben Taleblu – who is fluent in Farsi and has his ear to the ground on the situation inside Iran, said that recurring waves of anti-government protests throughout the country expose the vulnerability of Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei’s deeply unpopular Islamist rule, especially among the younger generation.
For this reason, Ben Taleblu considers regime change to not only be the best Western option for changing Iran’s trajectory, it’s also a realistic and attainable one, which he said can be hastened by sanctions and other strategic options.
