International Security and Law Analyst
Shahram Kholdi has taught Politics and the History of the Middle East, the History of Oil, and International Relations at various universities in Ontario, Canada, over the past twelve years. He received his doctoral degree from the University of Manchester (UK) in 2011. He is currently preparing his doctoral thesis, The Politics of Memory and the Historiography of the 1979 Revolution, for publication as a book.
As diplomatic horizons narrow and domestic hardships mount, Iran appears to endure less through strategic vision than an ad hoc survival economy backed up by China, Russia and its armed allies abroad.
Tehran warily watches events in the Caribbean as its ally Venezuela faces the largest US military deployment in the region in decades, which US officials describe as a bid to confront narco-terrorism
A British inquiry into a pro-Iran charity reflects a mounting Western struggle to balance freedom of religion with efforts to confront Iranian political influence as Tehran's ties with Western Europe and North America plumb new lows.
Seven years after Donald Trump quit the nuclear deal, his duel with Ali Khamenei looks lopsided: the US president spoke from New York with renewed leverage, while Iran’s leader replied in taped defiance that evinced more strain than authority.
The sands of time fall swiftly through the glass, and with each passing day the Islamic Republic of Iran is borne closer to the fateful hour: 18 October 2025, when a 2015 nuclear deal finally expires.
Ali Larijani’s tour of Iraq and Lebanon a few weeks after his Russia visit underscores his re-emergence as a trusted envoy and crisis manager tasked with shoring up Tehran’s defences in the twilight of supreme leader Ali Khamenei’s rule.
A resilient anti-sanctions consensus dominated major Western policy circles and media narratives for a decade, but this stance risks undermining international law by normalizing Iran’s sustained nuclear defiance.
The year 2024 will be remembered as a momentous one for the Middle East, culminating in the collapse of the Assad dynasty’s 53-year rule over Syria, and ushering in a future fraught with both possibility and peril.
US president-elect Donald Trump is gearing up for his second term, pursuing a national security doctrine rooted in principles forged during his first term: a blend of pragmatism and resolute America First ideology.
Donald Trump’s victory in the 2024 US election has sent a palpable wave of desperation, masked by defiance, rippling through Iran and its regional proxies.
April to October 2024 may well be recorded by historians as the critical months when the simmering shadow war between Iran and Israel erupted into open conflict, reshaping the Middle East irreversibly.
As the initial excitement over Kamala Harris’s emergence as the presumptive Democratic nominee wanes, increased scrutiny is being directed toward her past positions, policies, and advisors.
The foreboding news, “Iran is using criminal networks in Sweden,” bespoke an association between the Islamic Republic and Swedish mobsters whose targets are Jewish and Israeli.
The news of Raisi’s helicopter crash and death has caused speculation about the question of presidential succession and its implications for the Islamic Republic of Iran.
In the wake of the IAEA chief’s recent trip to Iran and the US-Israel row over Rafah, the bravado of high-ranking Iranian officials has reached new levels regarding “nuclear deterrence”.
The Canadian House of Commons on Wednesday unanimously adopted a Report to designate Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist entity and expel about 700 Iranian agents operating in Canada.
On November 8, 2024, the world may expect a re-enactment of Donald Trump’s temperamental mono in foreign affairs after a four-year interval upon his possible re-election.
The new EU-US coordinated sanctions against Iran in the aftermath of Iran-Israel April 13-19 conflict is a notable development whose efficacious enforcement remains as elusive as ever.
April 13, 2024, Iran’s attempted retaliation against Israel marks a watershed moment in the history of contemporary Middle East that might bring Arab monarchies and Israel ever closer than before.
President Joe Biden wishes Israel not to retaliate against the Islamic Republic of Iran’s attempt to attack with 351 drones and missiles. Although the strike largely failed, it set a dangerous precedent.
Iranian regime’s direct retaliation against Israel from Iran’s soil establishes beyond any doubt that the ruling clerics are reeking in desperation in the face of Israel’s humiliating April 1 strike.
The verdict of Tuesday 9 April hearings of the Senate Banking Committee is simple: the Biden administration has failed to plug a yawning gap in its vast sanction regime: the abuse of cryptocurrency by the Iranian proxies’ crime nexus.
April 7 marked the sixth month of Hamas-Israel open conflict. Six days before this semi-anniversary, Israel’s April 1 strike on Iran’s embassy in Damascus punctuated an alarming turning point.
At 17:00 hours local time of Monday April 1, 2024, a building adjacent to the main Islamic Republic of Iran’s embassy was turned into rubble in the aftermath of a mass explosion.
The news of Tehran regime’s military-industry complex showcasing its “Gaza” drone at Doha International Maritime Defense Exhibition and Conference (DIMDEX) surprised few industry observers.
At the end of 2023, former high-ranking Israeli and American officials warned of the consequences of not countering Iran's escalatory tactics in two Op-Eds.
During a televised interview on December 16, Melanie Joly, Canada’s Global Affairs minister, did not rule out designating Iran’s IRGC as a terrorist organization.
The news of “a tentative agreement” for the release of some Hamas hostages in lieu of a humanitarian pause has again turned the spotlight on Qatar’s mediating role.
The world is well aware of Qatar’s critical mediating role for the release of Israeli and foreign hostages taken by Hamas during its October 7 attack on Israel.
Hassan Nasrallah’s much-expected November 3 speech in reaction to the month-long Hamas-Israel war was a most underwhelming affair.
The gruesome attack by Hamas militants on southern Israeli communities has revived a controversial question about “terrorism” and its sponsors.
Hamas' 7/10 invasion and terror attack on Israel, akin to Egypt's 1973 October surprise, shall be remembered as a most infamous day in Arab-Israeli conflict.
The discovery of an Iranian influence network in the United States and in Europe has alarmed many politicians and experts, prompting further scrutiny.
