The Atlantic

The Alternate Future Hinging on Trump's Iran Decision

In one scenario, the Islamic Republic slowly restarts its nuclear program—and further destabilizes the region.
Source: Nazanin Tabatabaee Yazdi /TIMA / REUTERS

Last fall, a group of Israeli and American experts simulated what could happen next if Donald Trump were to do what he may well do Tuesday afternoon: reinstate sanctions lifted as part of the 2015 international nuclear deal with Iran. When the simulation concluded after nine hours, it wasn’t with a triumphant United States and a submissive Iran. While Trump argues that the U.S. “got nothing” from the “horrible agreement,” the exercise conducted by the Israel-based Institute for National Security Studies and the U.S.-based Rand Corporation suggested that nixing the agreement wouldn’t get America much either.

The participants, who included a former Israeli defense minister, a former Israeli ambassador to

You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.

More from The Atlantic

The Atlantic7 min readAmerican Government
The Americans Who Need Chaos
This is Work in Progress, a newsletter about work, technology, and how to solve some of America’s biggest problems. Sign up here. Several years ago, the political scientist Michael Bang Petersen, who is based in Denmark, wanted to understand why peop
The Atlantic6 min read
Florida’s Experiment With Measles
The state of Florida is trying out a new approach to measles control: No one will be forced to not get sick. Joseph Ladapo, the state’s top health official, announced this week that the six cases of the disease reported among students at an elementar
The Atlantic7 min readIntelligence (AI) & Semantics
I Went To A Rave With The 46-Year-Old Millionaire Who Claims To Have The Body Of A Teenager
The first few steps on the path toward living forever alongside the longevity enthusiast Bryan Johnson are straightforward: “Go to bed on time, eat healthy food, and exercise,” he told a crowd in Brooklyn on Saturday morning. “But to start, you guys

Related Books & Audiobooks