ASSESSMENTS

The Key to Countering Iran

Mar 25, 2019 | 22:03 GMT

U.S. leaders know that any attempt to thwart Tehran's ambitions must start by restricting the movements of its most powerful military branch, the IRGC.

(WSFURIAN/iStock)

Highlights

Political and economic pressure from the United States will unite Iran's fractious political system behind the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), which lies at the heart of Tehran's regional strategy.
Washington's recent addition of the IRGC to the Treasury Department's list of terrorist groups probably won't have a substantial impact on the organization's ability to fund itself and allied militant groups across the Middle East.
In response to the U.S. decision, Iran will boost its military and political support for the IRGC by expanding its budget for asymmetric operations, including the activities of the elite Quds Force and ballistic missile development.

Since this assessment first published on Oct. 15, 2017, there have been further developments in the U.S.-Iran saga. We have included some critical updates on the proposed labeling of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States and are redistributing this analysis. In a diplomatic dispute that seems to be growing more heated by the day, the United States has taken another swipe at Iran. On Oct. 13, 2017, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his decision to forgo the certification of Iran's nuclear deal with the West, just two days before the deadline, and to slap a new round of sanctions on a portion of the government in Tehran. As mandated by the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act of 2017, Trump also labeled the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) -- one of Iran's most powerful military branches -- a terrorist group. He...

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