Model Diplomacy
World101
CFR Centennial
Council of Councils
Think Global Health
Online Store
President Trump sent U.S. troops to the border with Mexico to supplement the work of authorities there. President Biden pledges a new approach as pressures mount along the boundary.
About the Expert
Expert Bio
Ray Takeyh is Hasib J. Sabbagh senior fellow for Middle East studies at the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR). His areas of specialization are Iran, political reform in the Middle East, and Islamist movements and parties.
Prior to joining CFR, Takeyh was senior advisor on Iran at the Department of State. He was previously a fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy.
Takeyh is, most recently, the author of The Last Shah: America, Iran, and the Fall of the Pahlavi Dynasty. He is the coauthor of The Pragmatic Superpower: Winning the Cold War in the Middle East and is the author of three previous books, Guardians of the Revolution: Iran and the World in the Age of the Ayatollahs, Hidden Iran: Paradox and Power in the Islamic Republic, and The Origins of the Eisenhower Doctrine: The US, Britain and Nasser's Egypt, 1953–1957. He has also written more than 250 articles and opinion pieces in many news outlets including Foreign Affairs, the New York Times, and the Washington Post.
Takeyh has testified more than twenty times in various congressional committees and has appeared on PBS Newshour, Charlie Rose, ABC, NBC, CBS, CNN, BBC, FOX, and CSPAN.
Takeyh has a doctorate in modern history from Oxford University. He speaks Persian and has a working knowledge of Arabic.
Affiliations:
None
Featured
Ray Takeyh provides new interpretations of many important events—including the 1953 coup against Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadeq and the rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini—significantly revising our understanding of the United States’ and Iran’s complex and difficult history.
Current Projects
-
Iran welcomes the departure of U.S. forces from its eastern neighbor but could have concerns about the potential reemergence of Sunni-Shia tensions with the Taliban back in power.
-
-
-
Ebrahim Raisi, a staunch regime loyalist, can be expected to follow through on talks to revive the nuclear deal but rebuff attempts to further limit Iran’s weapons programs and regional behavior.
-
-
-
Washington and Tehran seem determined to revive the deal that freezes Iran’s nuclear program, despite domestic criticism on both sides and the apparent sabotage of an Iranian facility.
-
-
-
-
Ray Takeyh provides new interpretations of many important events—including the 1953 coup against Prime Minister Mohammad Mossadeq and the rise of Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini—significantly revising our understanding of the United States’ and Iran’s complex and difficult history.
-
-
-
-
-
The assassination of Iranian scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh will intensify debate in Tehran over whether to reengage in the nuclear deal with the Biden administration.
-
-
The recent agreement between Israel and the United Arab Emirates reflects a profound shift in which Gulf Arab states opposed to Iran no longer consider relations with Israel off limits.
-
-
An explosion has caused heavy damage to an Iranian nuclear facility just as the country approaches a bold new energy partnership with China, but Iran shows no signs of slowing down its nuclear program.
-
-
Iran has suffered one of the most severe coronavirus outbreaks and remains highly vulnerable as a result of official missteps and misinformation.
-
-