- Iran Policy Committee
The Iran Policy Committee (IPC), formed in February,
2005 , is a pressure group meant to influence US government policy towardsIran . IPC is made up of former White House, State Department,The Pentagon andCIA officials as well as scholars from think tanks and academia.Aims
According to its website, the Iran Policy Committee sees the current debate on American policy towards Iran as focused on two strategies: diplomatic engagement with the Iranian government or military strikes. The IPC says that while it believes that both of these options should be considered, it favors a third proposal, namely, working with Iranian opposition groups "to facilitate democratic change." Its support of opposition groups includes support of the
People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK)cite web| last =| first =| authorlink =| coauthors =| title =Iran policy group outlines new approach in dealing with Tehran| work =| publisher = Iran Focus | date =13 Feb 2005| url =http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1475 |format =| doi =| accessdate =2007-07-28 ]Co-chairs, directors, and personnel
The most important members of the committee apart from the President, Prof. Raymond Tanter, include the following: [http://www.nci.org/05nci/02/IranPolicyCommittee.pdf]
*James E. Akins
*Bill Cowan (CEO of private military corp theWVC3 Group, Inc. )
*Paul Leventhal
*Neil Livingstone
*R. Bruce McColm
*Thomas McInerney
*Charles T. Nash
*Edward Rowny
*Paul E. Vallely References
External links
* http://www.iranpolicy.org Iran Policy Committee website
*Jim Lobe, " [http://www.antiwar.com/lobe/?articleid=4805 Iran War Drums Beat Harder] ", "InterPress Service",February 11 ,2005 .
*" [http://www.iranfocus.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=1475 Iran policy group outlines new approach in dealing with Tehran] ", "Iran Focus",February 13 ,2005 .
*Press Release, " [http://releases.usnewswire.com/GetRelease.asp?id=45532 Members of Congress, Iran Policy Committee Meet to Discuss U.S. Policy Options for Iran] ",April 7 ,2005 .
*Soraya Sepahpour-Ulrich, " [http://www.payvand.com/news/05/apr/1091.html Let’s Rethink What We Wish For…] ", "Payvand News",April 14 ,2005 . (discusses significance of the Congressional meeting and why the MEK has been removed from the list of terrorist organizations).
*Barbara Slavin, " [http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2005-04-14-mek_x.htm Iran's 'terrorists' helped disclose nuke program] ", "USA Today",April 14 ,2005 . Discusses another IPC rumination: "Ray Tanter, a Middle East expert on the National Security Council under President Reagan, said the United States should use the MEK to try to destabilize Iran's government before it acquires nuclear weapons".
*Bill Samii, " [http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Middle_East/GD26Ak03.html Iran opposes US moves] ", "AsiaTimes",April 26 ,2005 .
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