Editor's Note: FMSO’s Operational Environment Watch provides translated selections and analysis from a diverse range of foreign articles and other media that analysts and expert contributors believe will give military and security experts an added dimension to their ...

When President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad emerged from seemingly nowhere to capture the Iranian presidency in 2005, American officials were dumbfounded. Whereas his predecessor, Mohammad Khatami, sought to assuage the West with talk of ‘dialogue of civilizations’, Ahmadinejad was crude and coarse.

Only overwhelming sanctions leading to Iran’s economic collapse can work, but with Russia and China shielding Iran, such crippling sanctions appear unlikely.

Ahmadinejad and his supporters may look simple, but they have used the most subtle methods to undermine the authority of the clergy.

By following fluctuations in the careers of other individuals in Major General Qassem Suleimani's network, we can assess his power in the Islamic Republic.

Mir Hossein Mousavi is the most unlikely revolutionary leader imaginable.

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is increasingly looking to former members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps to help maintain influence in Iran.

On May 18, President Barack Obama imposed sanctions against Major General Qassem Suleimani. To counter Suleimani and the Quds Force, US strategists need to understand his history of overconfident behavior and military successes.