February 11, 2015 | Press Release

U.S. Needs To Avoid Alliances With Iranian Proxies In Middle East, FDD Scholar Tells Congress

WASHINGTON – Tony Badran, a research fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, told the House Foreign Affairs Committee Wednesday that Iran’s interest in becoming a Middle Easter power extends beyond the goal of nuclear weapons, and the United States must resist forming de facto alliances with Iranian proxies throughout the region.

“Iran’s goal of regional domination and global influence are the overarching threat to American national security,” Badran said in prepared testimony. “Building a nuclear arsenal is part of that strategy, and a sure means to secure it.”

Badran told the Subcommittee on Terrorism, Nonproliferation and Trade that Iran seeks to build up alternatives to weak central governments in the region, as well as to dominate state institutions and dictate states’ overall strategic orientation against traditional U.S. allies.

He said the Obama administration needs to clarify that they understand the links between Sunni radicalism, the Islamic State and Iranian influence. He said U.S. policymakers will need to adjust how they conduct their operations in the region, and perhaps degrade cooperation with elements otherwise aligned against the Islamic State.

“As things stand today, the Obama administration’s de facto partnership with Iran across the region has resulted in the gradual loss of all commonality with America’s traditional allies,” Badran said. “But the U.S. cannot lose sight of the fact that Iran remains an unreconstructed revolutionary, anti-American actor intent on replacing the U.S. as the dominant power in the Middle East.”

In his testimony, Badran outlined Iran’s aggressive regional expansionist drive, including Iranian officials openly bragging about controlling four Arab capitals – Baghdad, Beirut, Damascus and Sanaa. In each capital, Iran has developed proxies to extend its reach and target U.S. allies and interests, he said.

Badran singled out Hezbollah, which he said has been instrumental in helping Tehran develop Arab assets and spread its influence across the region.

“The ability to export its revolutionary model to willing Arab groups allowed Iran to embed itself in Arab societies and project influence, which otherwise would have been far more constrained,” he said. “This strategy has arguably reached its peak moment today.”

Badran said Iran’s biggest assets are the militias that serve as direct extensions of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and adhere to the same ideological doctrine. Iran deploys militias to Syria to advance Iranian strategic interest there. The IRGC and Hezbollah have also built ties to the Houthi movement in Yemen.

“Iran’s expansionist drive – as it presses ahead with its nuclear program – represents without question the greatest strategic challenge for the U.S. in the Middle East,” he explained. “Unlike Al-Qaeda, the Iranian network of assets is a state enterprise. What’s more, these assets now control weak central governments, allowing them to use these governments to obtain the cover of legitimacy.”

Badran makes several recommendations for United States policy going forward.

  • The United States needs to condition aid to Lebanon on Hezbollah’s influence to the Lebanese Armed Forces.
  • Assistance with Iraq should come conditional on the end of cooperation between Iranian-backed Shiite militias and the Iraqi Security Forces.
  • The United States should end any cooperation with the Houthis in Yemen or coordination with the Syrian regime.

“For decades, the U.S. policy had been to push back against Iranian subversion in the region, in order to protect the U.S. alliance system in the region,” Badran said. “It is time we turn again to that policy, roll back Iran’s expansionist drive, and disabuse it of its dreams of regional hegemony.”

Badran’s research is focused on Iran, Lebanon, Syria, and Hezbollah. His research includes U.S. policy towards Iran, Lebanon, and Syria, as well as Syrian foreign policy, with a focus on its regional relations and its ties to militant non-state actors and terrorist groups.  Born and raised in Lebanon, Badran also specializes in Lebanese affairs, including the military history of the Lebanese civil war, and has written extensively on Hezbollah. He has testified on the region before the House of Representatives and the European Parliament and speaks frequently at leading policy research institutes.

He has recently authored an article in Business Insider about Iran’s attempts to destabilize Syria and Iran and wrote in the Weekly Standard about the history of Hezbollah. His writings appear regularly in a range of publications including The Los Angeles TimesThe Washington PostForeign PolicyForeign Affairs, and The Weekly Standard.

The full text of the written testimony can be found here.

About the Foundation for Defense of Democracies:
The Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) is a non-profit, non-partisan 501(c)3 policy institute focusing on foreign policy and national security. Founded in 2001, FDD combines policy research, democracy and counterterrorism education, strategic communications and investigative journalism in support of its mission to promote pluralism, defend democratic values and fight the ideologies that drive terrorism. Visit our website at www.defenddemocracy.org and connect with us on TwitterFacebook and YouTube.

Media Contact:
Matthew E. Berger, Senior Director of Communications
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Issues:

Hezbollah Iran Lebanon Syria