A few weeks ago, Bloomberg View economics writer Noah Smith wrote a blog post on his website, noahpinion, arguing that Iran was a fundamentally weak country. He bounced his idea off Bloomberg View's international affairs specialist, Marc Champion, who disagreed. They took the exchange online.
Noah: Opponents of the Iran nuclear deal often talk about Iran as a powerful, ascendant adversary and claim that the deal would make it even stronger. Now, I'm no expert on foreign policy, but I know a little about economics, and the claim of Iranian strength has always rung false to me.
Iran is a petrostate dependent on oil and the recent drop in oil prices has hit it hard and probably won't be reversed because of U.S. shale production. The rest of Iran's economy is corrupt and dominated by the Revolutionary Guard corps -- a typical outcome in countries suffering from the "resource curse." Shouldn't we take all of this as a sign that Iran's position with or without the deal is fundamentally weak?
Commentaries, Analysis, And Editorials -- August 25, 2015
The ultimate argument in favor of the Iran deal -- Michael Crowley, Politico
Future Risks of an Iran Nuclear Deal -- David Sanger and Michael Gordon, NYT
Iran deal does not mean peace in the Middle East -- Malak Chabkoun, Al Jazeera
Why is Britain an 'old fox' in Iranian media rhetoric? -- Parham Pourparsa, BBC
How evil is ISIL? -- James Denselow, Al Jazeera
Assad is more than happy to play a waiting game -- Hassan Hassan, National Interest
Hamas caught between Tehran and Riyadh -- Ali Hashem, Al-Monitor
Analysts: Arab League Has No Choice But to Create Regional Force -- Heather Murdock, VOA
Is a Tougher China Policy on the Way in the US? -- Bonnie Glaser, Lowy Institute
4 Reasons Shinzo Abe Should Attend China’s WW2 Military Parade -- Dingding Chen, The Diplomat
Two Koreas reach deal, but analysts doubt calm will last -- Chang May Choon, Straits Times
Russia Won't Suffer the Soviet Union's Fate -- Leonid Bershidsky, Bloomberg
Hillary vs. Biden Would Get Ugly Fast -- Michael Tomasky, Daily Beast
Obama’s Ready to Take on ‘the Crazies’ – Here’s Why That Comment Could Hurt Him -- Martin Matishak, Fiscal Times
Wall Street: We Have Too Much Stuff -- Michael Maiello, Daily Beast
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