Has Iran's direct retaliatory strike on Israel been a major blow to Israel's deterrence capacity or a blow to Tehran on a world stage? MEMO speaks to leading experts on US-Iran relations Dr Trita Parsi.

In this week’s MEMO in Conversation we speak to award winning author and expert on US-Iran relations, Dr Trita Parsi to discuss the latest escalation between Iran and Israel. Parsi offers his insights on the dangers of the current moment, drawing comparisons to the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962.

US President Joe Biden is making moves to prevent an escalation in the region, but has he been effective? The conversation explores the reasons behind Iran's decision to retaliate this time, unlike in the past, and consider whether there was a major miscalculation on the part of Tel Aviv. Has Tehran's strike been a major blow to Israel's deterrence capacity?

Don't miss this timely and thought-provoking conversation with one of the world's leading experts on US-Iranian relations and the geopolitics of the Middle East.


Parsi is an award-winning author and the 2010 recipient of the Grawemeyer Award for Ideas Improving World Order. He is an expert on US-Iranian relations, Iranian foreign policy and the geopolitics of the Middle East. He has authored three books on US foreign policy in the Middle East, with a particular focus on Iran and Israel. He was named by the Washingtonian magazine as one of the 25 most influential voices on foreign policy in Washington DC in both 2021 and 2022, and preeminent public intellectual Noam Chomsky calls Parsi 'one of the most distinguished scholars on Iran.'His first book, 'Treacherous Alliance: The Secret Dealings of Iran, Israel and the United States', won the silver medal winner of the 2008 Arthur Ross Book Award from the Council on Foreign Relations. His second book, 'A Single Roll of the Dice – Obama’s Diplomacy with Iran' , was selected by Foreign Affairs as the Best Book of 2012 on the Middle East.Parsi’s latest book, 'Losing an Enemy: Obama, Iran and the Triumph of Diplomacy', reveals the behind the scenes story to the nuclear deal with Iran.