Iran's Opportunities with Rouhani

The election of moderate cleric Hassan Rouhani as the next president of Iran will help maintain domestic stability amid the country's continued economic and political pressures. Following four years of fractious infighting between Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and outgoing President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Rouhani's election helps safeguard against public unrest and presents the West with a presumably more conciliatory Iranian president. Nevertheless, despite his campaign rhetoric Rouhani will have to deal with the same realities of the office that his predecessor faced: upholding Iranian support for the embattled regime of Syrian President Bashar al Assad, continuing Iran's nuclear program and mitigating the challenges of a fluctuating domestic economy and rising sectarian opposition to Iranian influence in the region.