May 13, 2013

If All Else Fails: The Challenges of Containing a Nuclear-Armed Iran

By: Colin H. Kahl, Jacob Stokes and Raj Pattani

Dr. Colin H. Kahl, Raj Pattani and Jacob Stokes argue in If All Else Fails: The Challenges of Containing a Nuclear-Armed Iran that the Obama administration is rightly committed to preventing – not containing – a nuclear-armed Iran, but add that prevention efforts, up to and including the use of force, could fail. Thus, they note, the United States could eventually be forced to shift to a policy of containment despite current preferences. Dr. Kahl, a CNAS Senior Fellow; Mr. Pattani, a Georgetown University security studies student; and Jacob Stokes, a CNAS Research Associate, outline a comprehensive framework to manage and mitigate the consequences of a nuclear-armed Iran based on what they call the “Five Ds.” These five steps would deter Iranian nuclear and conventional threats, defend the U.S. homeland and American allies, disrupt Tehran’s destabilizing activities, de-escalate regional crises, and eventually denuclearize Iran’s program. Such planning and preparation is needed, they say, “not because the United States wants to take this path, but because it may eventually become the only path left.”

Authors

  • Colin H. Kahl

    Steven C. Házy Senior Fellow, Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation

    Colin Kahl is the Steven C. Házy senior fellow at Stanford University’s Center for International Security and Cooperation (CISAC) and the faculty director of CISAC’s Program o...

  • Jacob Stokes

    Senior Fellow and Deputy Director, Indo-Pacific Security Program

    Jacob Stokes is a senior fellow and deputy director of the Indo-Pacific Security Program at the Center for a New American Security (CNAS), where his work focuses on U.S.-China...

  • Raj Pattani

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