Thirty years after Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini's return, the politics of the Islamic Republic of Iran remain as thorny as ever. More than half of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's cabinet has resigned, or been impeached, since he took office in 2005. And as the June 2009 presidential elections draw near, Iran's many political factions clash with increasing vitriol. Declining oil prices, accelerating inflation, rising unemployment, and a liquidity crisis have also triggered increased debate over the Islamic Republic's economic stability.

While president-elect Barack Obama has pledged to change U.S. policy toward Iran and renew diplomacy, he will not start with a blank slate. Nearly thirty years ago, the Carter administration’s moves to normalize relations with the Islamic Republic sparked the U.S. Embassy seizure. What is the legacy of that hostage crisis? Can engagement with the Iranian regime succeed in this political vortex? Should Obama abandon the Bush administration's emphasis on democratization, or refine its methods? To answer these and other questions, five panels of leading experts on Iran will assess the last three decades of revolution, the troubled history of U.S.-Iranian relations, and the future. Jeffrey Gedmin, president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, will deliver the keynote address.