As Donald Trump has swung between vowing to strike Iran “very hard” and hinting at peace “pretty soon”, the war in Iran has spread in new and dangerous ways.
USSC Director of Research Jared Mondschein spoke with ABC News about Iran's calculus regarding diplomacy or continued fighting with the United States, saying, "I think that Iran is willing to horizontally escalate tensions, because they are fighting existential challenges, whereas Donald Trump is fighting a political one."