Donald J. Trump returns to the Oval Office for the second time as the least interventionist American president since 1941. As the Islamic Republic of Iran – which recently tried to kill him – is at its lowest point in forty years, could the end be near? And what does that all mean for the UK?
The death of the Islamic Republic has been predicted many times before, always prematurely. But today, with the fall of Syria’s Bashar al-Assad, economic collapse at home, and an incoming Trump administration, the moment feels different. The Iranian rial is trading at 820,000 to the dollar; it was 59,000 back in 2017. It has lost more than $30 billion (£25 billion) in contracts due to the collapse of the Assad regime. Its advanced air-defence and radar systems were destroyed by Israel in October. Hezbollah has faced a historic setback. Iran also fears unrest at home.
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