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Rouhani, Iran Key To Political Solution in Syria

Inviting Iran to the Geneva II conference on Syria would be an encouraging gesture from Washington, supporting President-elect Hassan Rouhani in his moderate stance.
Presidential candidate Hassan Rohani shows his ballot before casting it during the Iranian presidential election in Tehran June 14, 2013. Millions of Iranians voted to choose a new president on Friday, urged by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to turn out in force to discredit suggestions by arch foe the United States that the election would be unfair. REUTERS/Yalda Moayeri  (IRAN - Tags: POLITICS ELECTIONS) - RTX10ND6

With the election of pragmatic, moderate Hassan Rouhani, change in Iran’s regional policy, especially in the Syrian crisis, has become possible. While a shift in style and rhetoric is inevitable due to Rouhani’s newly introduced discourse of “moderation,” a meaningful change in Iran’s regional policy is more dependent on the severity of the threat stemming from it.

This threat has two dimensions: an actual military threat from the United States and Israel, and the perceived threat from local rivals in minimizing Iran’s regional role.

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