Even a quick glance at the television will reveal that tensions between the United States of America and Iran are ramping up. It could also be said that these same tensions have been flaring off and on for the better part of the past five years. While the Iran Nuclear Deal is capturing attention from geopolitical forces around the world, a more nuanced look at the relationship between Iran and the United States is all but necessary in an effort to curb misinformation. With that being said, let’s approach a useful summary detailing the relationship and tensions that have the U.S.A. and Iran on the world’s center stage.

Current tensions between the United States and Iran can be traced back to a statement made by Donald Trump, current President of the United States. President Trump made the declaration that he would be withdrawing the United States from the Iranian Nuclear Deal.

The Iran Nuclear Deal had been put in place with an effort by President Obama and his administration. The ultimate goal of the deal was to restrict Iran’s ability to develop a nuclear arsenal while offering to rescind sanctions that had been impacting the Middle Eastern country’s economy. In order to understand why reducing the availability of another nuclear arsenal is important, you can read more in-depth explainers by Middle Eastern experts like energy attorney Amir Handjani. With additional resources at your disposal, you’ll see that these tensions are broad and far-ranging.

The root of geopolitical discussions surrounding Iran and the U.S.A. are founded on concerns of potential war. President Trump and his administration have repeatedly claimed that Iran poses a direct and immediate threat which implies that further military actions might be coming down the pipe. With instability in the region, broader concerns of a war between both nations have been legitimized in recent months. As tensions are ratcheted up, political experts are still waiting to hear what the Trump Administration is citing as a direct and rising threat. To make matters more complicated, the United States has to deal with lingering doubt in the region due to the faulty intelligence collection that caused the 2003 invasion in Iraq. Compounding this complication is the fact that President Trump has been operating from a brash standpoint, thus rarely approaching Iran in a manner that they will find respectful.

While the threat of war with Iran is leading to comparisons to the Iraq invasion, political experts argue that they aren’t quite the same. Iran is almost four times larger than Iraq. The Islamic Republic of Iran also possesses a population north of 80 million people. As one of the most populated countries in the region, a war with Iraq would spell disastrous for millions of lives. With all of this being said, there is some healthy skepticism that the two nations will ever come to blows. Iran and the United States have been squabbling for decades with flare-ups including the Iranian Navy actually capturing American sailors and their patrol boats. As for what is in store for the future, with President Trump and Iran involved, who can say?

Donny white