Aftandilian in The Arab Weekly on US-Iran Tension
Gregory Aftandilian, Lecturer at the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies at Boston University, published a recent Op-Ed on the current tensions between the United States and Iran.
Aftandilian’s Op-Ed, entitled “Anything Is Possible As U.S. Flexes Muscles Against Iran,” was published in The Arab Weekly on May 19, 2019.
From the text of the article:
Tensions between Washington and Tehran heightened as the Trump administration cited new Iranian threats to US military and diplomatic personnel in Iraq and elsewhere in the Middle East.
An unidentified US Defence Department official, speaking to the Washington Post, said the threats include “credible” information involving Iranian military and proxy forces. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo was quoted as saying he had a “responsibility” to keep US diplomats safe, including those “In Erbil and Baghdad… [and] all around the Middle East.”
On May 15, Pompeo ordered the withdrawal of non-essential diplomatic personnel from Iraq.
Pompeo made a surprise visit to Baghdad on May 7 to apprise Iraqi officials of the threats. CNN reported that these include Iran’s transporting of short- and medium-range missiles aboard boats in the Gulf. A week later, Iraqi officials warned pro-Iranian militias not to take any action that could provoke the United States.
Aftandilian spent over 21 years in government service, most recently on Capitol Hill where he was foreign policy adviser to Congressman Chris Van Hollen (2007-2008), professional staff member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and foreign policy adviser to Senator Paul Sarbanes (2000-2004), and foreign policy fellow to the late Senator Edward Kennedy (1999).