As the world watches for a comprehensive nuclear deal to be reached between Iran and the world powers today, July 10, it is important to consider how such a deal can help to increase cooperation between Iran and the United States on regional issues.

The prospect of a nuclear deal owes a lot to initial confidence-building measures toward the United States inside Iran and, as Iran's Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein-Amir Abdollahian put it in a July 6 CNN interview, the “positive impression” the United States left in the recent nuclear talks. Any meaningful cooperation between Iran and the United States on regional issues also requires a change in Iran’s domestic politics toward US goals in the region.

The prevailing view in the United States is that the strength of Iran’s regional policy is mainly based on forming coalitions with friendly parties such as Hezbollah, Hamas and Shiite factions in Iraq and Yemen. While these coalitions are perceived as advantageous to Iran’s regional policy, one should not ignore that following a policy of actively preserving Iran’s national interests and security in regional issues is supported by all of Iran’s domestic political forces.

Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif maintains the necessity of establishing stability and security, and of combating terrorism and extremism in the wider Persian Gulf region. Indeed, preserving Iran’s geopolitical and ideological interests in Iraq, Syria and Yemen is a constant in Iran’s foreign policy, holding the support of both policymakers and the Iranian public.